What Are the Hardest Nursing School Classes?

If you're still in high school but planning to become a nursing student, you may have questions about this healthcare field. Specifically, you're wondering how hard it is to complete your education. What are some of the hardest nursing courses you'll have to take?

'Hard' and 'easy' are relative terms; not all students will struggle with the same courses. That said, many students consider prerequisite classes like anatomy and physiology and advanced courses like pathophysiology some of the hardest you will take in a nursing program.

Read on to find out more.

Top Hardest Nursing School Courses

Let's look at some classes that learners often consider the hardest course on their path to becoming a registered nurse.

Medical-Surgical Nursing

Medical-surgical nursing, or med-surg for short, is one of the first nursing-specific courses students take after completing their prerequisites. It provides a broad general education on the various diseases and conditions you may encounter as a nurse and how to provide proper treatment. Students commonly find this course hard because of the sheer wealth of information it provides.

Microbiology

Microbiology is a complex course that takes an in-depth look at various types of microorganisms. Students learn about bacteria, fungi, viruses, algae, protozoa, and more, often having to memorize names, characteristics, and how they impact the human body. The course requires strong memorization skills and is considered one of the most challenging nursing classes.

Pathophysiology

Pathophysiology is the study of diseases and their various causes within the body. This course requires memorizing and retaining information, as it provides essential training in disease recognition and treatment and management strategies.

Managing Adult Disease Processes

Managing adult disease processes is a similar course to pathophysiology. It provides a more in-depth look at how to treat and manage various types of diseases. Like pathophysiology, this course requires strong memorization and retention skills, as it contains information you will apply to your everyday work throughout your career.

Anatomy and Physiology

Anatomy and physiology courses are prerequisites in any nursing degree. It teaches the fundamentals of the human body and its basic functions. Students must learn and memorize the names and functions of different body parts, and how those parts work together. Because this course contains so much foundational information, many students find it incredibly challenging.

Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing

Classes relating to psychiatry and mental health can be difficult due to the complexity of mental conditions and disorders. Students must learn to dig deep into the physical, social, and psychological reasons behind various disorders to individualize care. This requires critical thinking skills that students must develop or build upon to provide the best patient care possible.

Pharmacology

Pharmacology provides in-depth education on medications, their uses, and contraindications. Students must learn about various side effects, proper dosage calculations, and the various ways to administer medications. Students often struggle with this course due to the vast number of pharmaceutical drugs they must learn about and the factors that affect how and when to administer them.

Organic Chemistry

Organic chemistry is another common prerequisite course, typically completed during the first year of nursing school. It teaches about chemical properties, reactions, and structures of organic compounds. It provides foundational knowledge of how and why the body responds as it does, but many students find it to be a challenging course because of its complexity.

Pediatrics

Pediatrics courses focus on providing assessment and treatment to children. Because children are still growing and developing, they face many unique health challenges. Students often find peds classes to be challenging because they are complex. They can also be emotionally draining since they detail the various diseases and disorders that can cause suffering in children.

Cardiology

Finally, some students find cardiology to be a difficult course to take. This class deals with the heart, blood vessels, and various diseases and conditions that can affect the cardiovascular system. It is a complex course that requires the retention of knowledge essential to providing life-saving critical care to patients with heart problems.

FAQs About Nursing School Classes

You may still have questions about the hardest nursing classes. If so, read on as we answer frequently asked questions you may be wondering about.

What Is the Hardest Class in Nursing School?

It's impossible to say which class in nursing school will be the hardest for you. Students have different strengths and weaknesses, so what is hard for one may be easy for another. The hardest class for you is whichever class challenges you the most and requires the greatest amount of study, but you may not know what that class is until you're taking it.

What Is the Easiest Class in Nursing School?

'Easy' is also a relative term. You may find certain classes easier than others, but some of your classmates may struggle with those same classes. The easiest class for you may be the one you find most interesting, that you don't have to study as much, or in which the information learned comes naturally to you. Again, you may not know which class is easiest for you until you enroll.

What Is the Hardest Skill To Learn in Nursing School?

Nursing involves many complex skills. Some of these are hard skills and require providing patient care, giving medications, or assisting with treatments. Other skills are known as soft skills and have more to do with how you interact with patients, family members, and other healthcare professionals. The hardest skill for you to learn will be the one that comes the least naturally for you or that you have to practice extra hard to perfect.

Why Are Nursing School Classes Hard?

Students may find nursing classes hard for several different reasons. Generally speaking, classes are often seen as hard when they require a lot of study, memorization, and highly complex information. Students may also consider a class hard if it provides critical information that must be retained and used throughout their nursing career.