ATI Experience

[Dr.Nurse2b]

My school switched to ATI and I started taking the practice assessments.

What was your experience with ATI?

I find myself reading these questions and thinking "What?"

These tests were just sprung on us so no time to prepare.

Fluid and lytes was in Latin and French...I think. A number of the meds I had no recall and a few of the diseases I was like "huh?"

Is this normal? I mean is this to be expected the first round?

Giggle...one of our professors tells us "call the doc as a last resort. If you are faced with a question that offers contacting the healthcare provider as an option this is usually not the answer." :uhoh21:

Every question I had with "contact the healtcare provider" as an answer I got wrong...

[queenjean]

I thought they were very helpful. The seemed to be a good indicator of what we SHOULD be studying, or where our individual weaknesses lie. If the textbooks that your program uses are subpar or old, or if you have some weak instructors, the ATI gives you a nice indication of that, as well as guidance on what you are lacking.

[vixnnet]

Yes, but it said check all that apply

[Mommy_of_3_in_AL..RN]

i HATE the check all that apply questions. I always miss them, because i second , and third and fourth and fifth guess myself. I always expect there to be multiple answers although there are sometimes only one or two. Good thing that NCLEX isnt all made up of those..i would have no hope!!!

[penny2009]

What's the best way to prepare for ATI exams? My school switched from ERI to ATI this year, and I really don't know what to expect. In the next two weeks, I have to take the Newborn, Pediatric, Pharmacology, and Leadership exams, so obviously, I am kinda stressing! I have read all the study guides and have done the practice assessments, but how helpful are the DVDs? I have watched some already, but I know the Peds one is hours upon hours long! =) I am willing to suffer through them, if they will help. Any suggestions or advice??? I greatly appreciate it!

[Mommy_of_3_in_AL..RN]

I never watched the DVDs. They said to take the practice tests and only watch the DVDs that corresponded to the areas you missed, so you dont have to watch it all. This is the only semester we have done it, so we only did the proctored exit, med surg and leadership..they werent that bad. About the same as HESI i thought.

[lei7]

ATIs can be pretty ridiculous, but I learned more from the med-surg ATI book than from my semester of med-surg.

Evil, yet very helpful.

[jbw1017]

We also use ATI. This semester the ATI tests we took counts as 20% of our final grade. Next semester that percentage will increase and each semester thereafter.

I think ATI gives me a good overall indication where my strengths & weaknesses lie.

[queenjean]

OMG, I had totally forgotten about the DVDs!

I actually liked the DVDs. Most of them (*most* of them) are well done. Almost like news broadcasts of what is in the book. I would put them in my laptop and play them while I was cleaning, doing laundry, etc. I had several classmates with portable DVD players that would play them in the car while commuting--not to watch, of course, but to listen to. It was a nice review, from a different perspective than our regular instructor. Listening to it in the background just helped reinforce what I already knew and increased my understanding of concepts that I didn't have down.