Not to beat a dead horse... But KAPLAN?

[cassi_future_RN]

I am having a really hard time deciding if I should invest in taking the KAPLAN Class before I take my NCLEX... which I am hoping to take in June. It's just a lot of money, but If I am being honest I do not feel prepared to take the NCLEX(I don't know if anyone ever does?). I would just appreciate any thoughts or opinions on KAPLAN or anything else someone has used to prepare for the NCLEX. Thank You in advance.

[countrygurl89]

I am not able to vote but I took the class in January after graduating in December. I found it very useful in several ways and passed my NCLEX-RN in 75 questions in February

[melizerd, ASN, RN]

I'd done well on HESI each semester (ADN program) we took it every semester. So I didn't take the kaplan class and it would have been a waste for me.

All if us that tested together (8) passed in 75 questions, only one of those took the class. My class had more than that but we just tested together.

[river_song]

Our class just fired Kaplan and chose to go with ATI. We felt uneasy about using them after the mini review they were supposed to do at GANS was a bust, and they failed to follow through on some commitments.

[Dranger]

I thought it was useful if you have difficulty taking standardized tests. I found it also helpful for the MCAT

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

hard to say - I taught Kaplan for years and it is a great course, but not everyone needs it. I could not afford the course myself at the time I tested. I figured if I did not pass I would then spend the money, but took the chance that I could pass without the course and I did. Depends on your own confidence level.

[emtb2rn, BSN, RN, EMT-B]

Kaplan is about the look/feel of the test itself. If you're comfortable with your content knowledge and simply want to prep for what the test is like to take, then go for Kaplan. I personally thought the NCLEX was just like one of the easier Q-bank sessions.

[melizerd, ASN, RN]

I did use one of Kaplan's free online quizzes and then I used Lippincott's Alternative Answers to prep.

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

I taught Kaplan a long time, and I agree c classicdame-- you'd never know it by reading the hysteria here, but believe it or not, most people who graduate from nursing school do not take any kind of review course. Think about that. Nationwide the pass rate is well north of 85%, and most of those people took no prep course at all.

Individual Kaplan offices and staffs vary. Of course so do their catchment areas, so some schools' graduates may need more help than others, and the local Kaplan staffs may have a different mix to deal with. I don't know what classicdame's classes were like, but in the ones I taught almost everyone there probably would have done just fine without it. I taught mostly test-taking skills, with some review of content (I did six of the ten modules), and I phrased it mostly in critical thinking terms.

But really, if you graduate from an accredited school and have half a brain to apply to critical thinking, you will very likely not need to spend your money.

[Julesmama28]

Our school buys the course with our degree. So we have to take the tests every semester and then get a week long review after graduation. It's worked well for a large percentage of our graduates.

[sjalv]

I am still in nursing school, but I plan to only study using Saunder's NCLEX prep and the CD that comes with it. It has thousands of questions, allows for studying by content area, delegation, prioritization, etc. It also has a realistic test feature, and an assessment tool to see where you are weak.

[cassi_future_RN]

Thank you everyone. I've decided just for my own confidence I am going to take the class. I think in the long run it will help me feel more comfortable going into the NCLEX.