mursiful heavens

We have almost surmounted our first hill. Unfortunately, cresting the first hill only shows you all the other hills to follow. In this case at least, it is better to look back than look ahead.

In looking back, i still cannot believe that we are nearing the end of 4 out of our 5 summer courses. There is still the matter of another exam tomorrow and a paper due by next Friday, but for the most part, its all but finished. My overall impressions are mixed thus far. There still seems to be a certain sense that the program is still in the process of finding a groove. There are too many incidents of paperwork getting to us just prior to deadlines and some classes feel superfluous. My thoughts in review:
Pathophysiology: An amazing class and one that I wish everyone could take, though much more slowly. Great instructor. (expected grade - B+, A-)
Nursing Science: Superfluous waste of time. Assignments were poorly explained and capriciously graded. (expected grade - B, B+, A-)
Genetics: Interesting, but not in depth enough to really garner much information. Spectacular instructor. (expected grade - A, A-)
Assessment: I have mixed feelings. The lab instructors were pretty sterling, but the class itself was middling. No consistency to the exams or papers. (expected grade - B, B+)

Overall, I think that there is definitely room to improve the program, but there are also some really strong points to build from.

The new course looks like it will teach us everything we could possibly imagine needing to know out in the field.......and once again in an incredibly short span of time. Most lessons are an hour or less with focuses of catheter insertion, bathing, and injections. Makes me fear doing it out in the field with so little practice time. Hope all the skills are easier to pick up than I presume they will be.

Not much else to report. Heard of a few students who have already dropped out/failed out of the program. A bit scary really, but the silver lining is that it is no one I know at least which would be more impacting since most people seem very competent and capable. Wish me luck on tomorrow's test. I may need it.