What chemistry should a student take who is considering a career in nursing

[48820592]

My son took Apologia Chemistry as a freshman which was taught through a co-op and did well in the class.  He is considering studying nursing in college. In two college visits that he has had so far it was recommended that another chemistry class be taken his senior year in preparation for the Intro to Org and Bio Chem class nursing students are required to take.  I know nothing about chemistry---what class should he take now that would benefit him when he gets to this class in college? 

 

Thanks for your help.

[kiana]

What does the org and bio chem class list as a prerequisite in the college catalog? You should be able to look this up, and that would help a lot with giving a reasonable answer. 

Edited April 8, 2017 by kiana

[EKS]

Generally speaking, the prerequisite for o-chem and biochem is general chemistry.  But, in the nursing program at the college near here, they have a special general chem class and combined o-chem/biochem class for nursing students.  I'm with kiana--take a look at what the college requires as a prerequisite to give you an idea.

[48820592]

What does the org and bio chem class list as a prerequisite in the college catalog? You should be able to look this up, and that would help a lot with giving a reasonable answer. 

 

All it says is successful completion of high school chem or ACT math score of 19 or above for one of the colleges.

[kiana]

Since he apparently had a good experience with Apologia, why not do their advanced chemistry? 

[SeaConquest]

I'm doing pre-nursing chem here, and it is indeed a gen, org, biochem class in one. So, any exposure to those topics will put him ahead of the game. All of my previous high school exposure was in general chem, which has certainly made organic and biochem more challenging. If you really want to get a leg up, you could just use the textbook that the university uses for the combined chem class, or just DE the class in HS.

[ocelotmom]

IMO as a nurse... it doesn't matter that much. 

 

I personally skipped chemistry in high school entirely (having absolutely no idea at the time that I'd end up a nurse). I took the college-level chemistry required as a prerequisite, and that was adequate for my ASN. The biochemistry I took as part of my BSN was, quite frankly, pretty watered down. 

 

Don't get me wrong - I'm not trying to understate the importance of chemistry, or suggest doing it my way! Repetition of concepts certainly helps in understanding. But I suspect even a basic high school chemistry class would have made the college-level intro to chemistry class extremely simple, and anything beyond that is icing on the cake.

 

But if I had to choose... either something focused on biochemistry, or an AP chemistry class that would (depending on the policy of the school) fulfill the entry-level chemistry requirement. AP Biology or a high school level anatomy/physiology would, IMO, be more useful than higher level chemistry.

Edited April 9, 2017 by ocelotmom

[gingersmom]

My daughter is in a 4 year nursing program and took in high school Honors Biology, Honors Physics, Honors Chemistry and Honors Anatomy & Physiology.

 

She also took pre-calculus through statistics.

[Reefgazer]

I agree with Ocelotmom - biochemistry or AP chemistry.

[mom31257]

I think if your student knows how to think, how to learn, and how to do math well, he will be fine. My dd only went through Algebra 2 at home and took College Algebra dual enrollment. She only took Dive ICP, Apologia Biology, Apologia Chemistry, and an astronomy course that I pulled together. She announced mid-senior year that she was going to consider nursing. I'll admit that I panicked a little being concerned she hadn't "done enough." Well, it turned out that I didn't ruin her! LOL! 

 

She made a 35 on the science section of the ACT. She has been doing all the science pre-requisites for nursing, which includes her making the highest average in her chemistry class. Her microbiology professor asked her to tutor this semester because she did so well, and she's tutoring 6 students. She did very well in statistics and starts nursing classes in the fall. 

 

I think we stress too much over what the coursework is when what really matters is all the stuff that's happening along the way. 

 

ETA: If you want to add something because they will require it, then definitely find a course through dual enrollment or possibly a more rigorous chemistry such as BJU or DIVE Chemistry. I just wanted people reading the thread to know that it's not always about which curriculum you use. 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 9, 2017 by mom31257

[MerryAtHope]

All it says is successful completion of high school chem or ACT math score of 19 or above for one of the colleges.

 

It seems confusing, then, that they told you to have him take another chem class. I think I'd ask a follow-up question. Maybe they just think it's too long since he took chem, or maybe there's something specific that they think would help. Without knowing their expectation and what they hope the outcome would be, it seems you're just shooting in the dark. The above requirement certainly doesn't seem to suggest you need to do anything else.

[GoodGrief]

I have a BSN, and see no reason he would need an additional chemistry class in high school. I'd take the advice with a grain of salt (sometimes you will hear advice from random college reps that are more opinion than fact.) Do a bit more inquiry. A strong science background will be useful, of course. You could consider having your son take an SAT subject test in chemistry if there seems to be a question. The prep would probably be a useful review.

 

[hsmom08]

As others have said, I don't think he "needs" to take another chemistry class.  AP chem is really for science majors and pre-med majors so definite over kill.  AP Chem or what would be gen. chem in undergrade is not required for pre-nursing.  I didn't TA the pre-nursing students when I was in grad school but I remember they had different books that they used for all their science that were not as rigorous as were being used by chem. majors etc.

[Crimson Wife]

Ellen McHenry's Carbon Chemistry is suprisingly "meaty" given its intended audience is middle school. It's relatively short so it would make a good supplement to whatever chem course your student chooses and will help with o-chem in college. I wish I'd had the chance to do it!

[Heather in VA]

My daughter is about to graduate with a BSN. Her chemistry courses in college were specifically for nursing majors and also not something you could test out of with an AP exam or anything like that. When we were asking similar questions we were HIGHLY encouraged to have her do Anatomy and Physiology in high school. It is the first major course that nurses hit and is a weed out. There is so much memorization and detail that kids with little or no previous exposure are often overwhelmed. So we did it. I got a college level A&P text, anatomy coloring book, and flashcards. She aced A&P when she got to college while many of her friends were playing catch up. 

[mom31257]

I agree with Heather's statement. The first semester of A&P was the most challenging for dd, and she never did it in high school. We would have done it had she said she was considering nursing before having just 4 months of high school left! 

 

 

[Mom22ns]

I agree with Heather too. Dd is a BSN major and took Biology (M/L w DIVE), Chemistry (BJU w/DIVE) and Anatomy (Apologia) at home, then Biology DE. When she got to college she took the nursing Chem class and got an A, but she is struggling in Anatomy this semester. She'll pass it, but she won't get an A. Less than half the class passes anatomy at her University each semester and probably half of those that pass are retaking it after dropping or failing it the semester before. Chemistry isn't the challenge for nursing students. Anatomy is!