Nurse Kaycee Here

Oh, I recall the blood, sweat and TEARS that went into nursing school! It was not easy!

I worked 16-32 hours per week while in nursing school. I had friends who worked full time while in school. Somehow, we all made it work.

Here are some tips and tricks that can help if you might be struggling with work/life balance while in nursing school.

1. Use a planner-I used a planner for EVERYTHING. At the beginning of each semester when the professor gave the syllabus out, I would separately color code assignments, exams, quizzes, projects, and papers. I would then write down when each was due in my planner. Every Sunday I sat down and reviewed what assignments were due and what exams I had each week.  This helped keep me organized and I used it in my ADN and BSN programs.

2. Use a time tracking app- A time tracking app does what it says it does- it tracks your time! This can be a game changer for people who procrastinate! (Who, me? Haha I may need this too).

3. Take breaks! – Makes sure you set time for breaks. Take some time to work on your hobbies. I had a beauty blog in nursing school, and I ended up quitting it because I didn’t prioritize my hobbies while I was in school. I have MAJOR regrets about this when I look back. Don’t be me. Don’t have regrets.

4. Go to office hours if you need to- If you are not grasping a concept or have questions, go to your professor’s office hours! When I had to take statistics, I went to my professor’s office hours every single week and I was the ONLY student that went to her office hours. She ended up giving me extra credit for each office hour session I attended. The extra credit ended up being the reason why I passed the class. Only three of us passed the class. Go to office hours.

5. Form study groups- Forming study groups is so important! You can learn so much from your peers. I can’t tell you how many times I learned a new way to do something or an easier way to do something because I listened to how my peers viewed a concept. We would take turns quizzing each other and asking questions. I always remembered concepts better after I taught it to someone else.  

6. Form healthy study habits- Schedule study time and breaks. Put it in your planner. Use your tracking app. I think it’s useful If you reward yourself after a block of time spent studying. I would reward myself with scrolling time on social media. For example, if I spent 20 or 30 minutes studying, I would reward myself by scrolling social media for 10 minutes.

7. Utilize social media! – YouTube was one of the best things that happened to me in nursing school. If I was studying by myself at home and I was having a difficult time understanding something, I would go straight to YouTube and find someone to explain it to me. This was especially helpful for me in cardiology.

8. Etsy – If you have the resources, you can go to Etsy and find a whole plethora of study guides, templates, planners, and stickers all specifically tailored for nursing students. I think this could be super helpful. There are so many cute and customizable templates on there for any subject. You can also utilize an app like Canva to create your own.

9. Change up your scenery – I loved studying at coffee shops. I always found myself to be more efficient when I was able to study at a coffee shop for some reason. The library was great too but there’s just something about the ambiance of a coffee shop.

Balancing work and school is not easy but you can do it! You’ve got this! Take time to figure out what your learning style is and the best methods to help you balance your work and school life. Everyone is going to feel fulfilled by different things, you just need to find the right combination of what works for you to find that balance.

Let me know if this was helpful and if there is anything else you would add to the list!