Need help with HOW not "what" to study

Nursing Students NCLEX

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For those who have taken and passed the NCLEX-RN, would you please share how you studied for the test? Most postings share what materials people used but I can't find one that actually identifies how a person who was successful studied day by day until the test. I have taken the exam 3 times and for each I studied at least 6 to 8 hours a day for 2 months with exception of weekends. I would have breakfast, do whatever daily cleaning I had to do, shower and then start studying usually around 8:30 - 9:am (I get up at 6-7) and don't stop until noon except for bathroom breaks. I take an hour for lunch then resume studying until 4 or 5pm. After dinner I don't really study but I do some questions or something pertaining to the NCLEX such as reading articles, checking Youtube (because I am a visual learner and seeing Youtube videos on a subject really helps), checking allnurses.com, etc. Since I have done this for the past 3 tests and have failed the past 3 tests it is obvious this is not working for me. I am an older student who graduated from nursing in Aug 2013. After failing the test 3 times I am desperate to pass on the 4th but I honestly don't know what else to do or how else to study for this test. If you have any recommendations or advice please share. Thank you.

Hi dbrenda,

I'm in the exact same spot as you since I graduated a year ago and am now just settling down to take my NCLEX-RN. If you find anything that works for you, I'd love to know as well! Thanks in advance!

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Choua, There is a Nurse website called Nurse Project ran by Joan Palmeri (you can look her up on the web) that is a great resource. Email Joan as ask her to allow you to become a member. You can then access the nursing site via facebook. When you go to the site you will find others like us who are struggling to pass the NCLEX and many who have. At the top of the page there is a section named "files". If you click on it you will find a ton of helpful information including videos, questions, etc. I have accepted your friend request so if you have any further questions please feel free to contact me. I hope we both pass this monster so we can get on with our lives!

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Hi - I'm sorry that you have been having trouble creating a study schedule. It sounds like you are so dedicated, and such a hard worker. Try and stay positive, because you will pass the NCLEX-RN!

I graduated in August and started studying 3 weeks before my test date (9/19). I studied most days (with the exception of weekends), for many hours (because I only had 3 weeks, I had to make the most of my time). The first week I reviewed all content from the HESI Comprehensive book (its smaller, and has a green color) - this book gave a simple review of all NCLEX-RN content. While it does not cover any particular disease in depth, it is an excellent content review. Once I completed this book, I felt ready to start practice questions. I used Saunders Q&A for one week - this book is excellent. It contains many alternative response questions, which as you know are common on the NCLEX. I then used Lippincot Q&A review during my last week of studying, which I found to be a difficult book. Quite honestly, the material and questions were very complicated and I think this book made me more nervous than anything else. I only had time to do the 6 comprehensive review tests in the end of the book, which were decent as they covered all material.

I was nervous that I did not have enough time to prepare, but I was able to pass the exam with 75 questions. In short, I believe my brief content review followed by NCLEX style questions was very helpful. I highly recommend the Saunders Q&A book. Best of luck to you in your studies!

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Thank you nic1118 and congrats on passing the NCLEX. I have exactly one month to study before testing for a 4th time. I'm determined to make it this time and be working as a RN before Thanksgiving! Thank you for your well wishes, recommendations and insight. If you would be so kind as to say a prayer for me I would really appreciate that as well. God bless you as you continue your journey as a RN!

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dbrenda1510 are you talking about Brilliant Nurse? I took the course for NCLEX strategy beginning of this month and I was able to print all the tips and finish all the questions and listened to all the strategy videos. Priority NCLEX videos were from PDA but the teacher gave good tips and I wrote all the tips.. did you do that?
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hmahdoui It is a social media group listed under nurseprojectnclex.com

Or you can websearch Joan Palmeri and it will bring it up as well. She also has another site called "NCLEX" and it is ONLY NCLEX questions and answers posted by individuals. It has helped me in rationales because if there is a question you have the opportunity to discuss it with a group of others. Ms. Palmeri also does workshops that are 90 minutes long and cost $22 each. I have done 3 so far and they were very helpful in strategy and there is one on answering SATA questions. How is your studying going this time? I have had a tough battle with committing to studying again but I am doing it. It is difficult to keep studying the same things over and over and still not passing. I have all the usual resources that others who pass swear by yet here I am getting ready to test again for the 4th time while others tested once and passed with 75 questions. I don't mean to sound like I am not happy for them, I am. I just wonder if my time will ever come and at what point do I just call it quits? Good luck and God bless you!

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dbrenda1510 Which workshops are you talking about that offers SATA? I would like to do that probably before I take my board can you give me more details? I did the strategy workshops but they were none of SATA. I just emailed them to join the group I guess :/

Studying is going I work 3 days and I am off 4 days! I was able to complete Hurst videos and also Kaplan strategy book. Now I am doing Qbanks focusing on each category Physiological first then psychosocial then Health Promotion.. while I listen to Hurst videos more since my friend gave me her log in lol then I will do Qtrainers.. I also have NCLEX mastrey app my brother got me i phone 6 and bought me the app for motivation or I can use it before i go to bed..

Don't get discouraged who cares who passes or fails.. to be honest so many of my friend passed and I am happy for them I focus at myself and I am positive I will pass.. just do your best.. focus on your weakness. Practice Practice Practice.. stay positive & pray!!

Good luck & God bless..

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hmahdoui if you took Strategy 1 and/or 2 the SATA is a workshop just like those are. You can go to the website (Nurse Project NCLEX) and look up the calendar for October. It lists the dates and times of each workshop offered for the month. She also has a workshop for 90 minutes that is called "Last Minute". I have heard it is a really good one to take about a week before you take the NCLEX. The next one is scheduled for October 22 and I plan to take it. When do you test? I am scheduled for Nov 1st. It was a week earlier but I changed it so I could test on a Saturday. I have been searching for a study buddy to get together via Skype (or something similar) for an hour a couple times a week. Would you be interested? We could study content and alternate format questions. I have the free version of NCLEX mastery on my phone. I just downloaded it today so I will try it out later this afternoon. I am posting my email address in your messages with some other information.

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I'll share!

I just recently passed my NCLEX for my RN last week and I graduated in May. I originally scheduled me test date in JULY, but had to reschedule it 4 times. I had several life events happen due to my husbands military career - moved to NY for a month then moved to TX. Then my husband and I visited family for several weeks while he had time off. I started 'kind of studying' in mid July when we were done. August came and then I truly started studying hard. Then mid August, I got a job and started for my BSN. I wasn't able to study for about 2 weeks because my place of employment was piling all of the hours onto me instead of hiring other people besides me. Finally I scheduled it for September 18th because that was the last week I could do it and I pushed myself to get there. Okay, done with story time.. time to talk about study materials:

1. Saunders - that's it.

2. PDA - really wanted to use it, but I ended up not having time to go through the questions.

3. NCSBN site - I told myself that if I failed I would use this site, heard very good things about it.

How did I study?

* I skipped the content and went straight to the questions.

If I didn't get 76% or above that means I didn't know the material well so I would review the content I got wrong and briskly read over certain things that I definitely didn't recognize. I made sure to read the pyramid points. If I did get 76% or above, then I would still briskly read over the chapter but only regarding the questions I got wrong and pyramid points. I didn't spend a lot of time reading. I didn't get to do the CD - wish I did (I did the CD for my LPN).

*Flashcards

Writing things out helps me A LOT. So even if I didn't have a chance to review my cards before my test like I wanted to, I was able to remember things a bit easier during my test. The ones I DID review were electrolytes, fluids, and ABGs. I did flashcards to help me remember priorities for certain disorders or situations. Don't spend a TON of time on these (I DID and I wish I didn't), but doing some will only help you as long as you keep it simple and to the point.

*Study one chapter, take a break. Repeat.

I spent a LOT of time on each chapter. I even timed myself as I did the questions to add a little pressure. On the NCLEX you only have 1 minute and 21 seconds to spend on each question. If it was a short chapter, I would skip the break and go to the next chapter so that I wouldn't stop the momentum I had going.

I studied about 4 to 6 hours everyday and would take a day off occasionally depending on family events or work usually once or twice a week. I did this from August until September with a 2 week hiatus. My studying was not consistent as far as time goes. I wish it was, but I did pass with ~120 questions after a little less than 3 hours.

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dbrenda1510 Thans for the tips, I was thinking as soon I finish Kaplan I will do 3 weeks ncbsn since I heard positive feedback about it.. I am scheduled to take my board on November too but looking for afternoon spot!!! I wish i could study thru skype but I barely sit for 3-4 hours to study since been busy with family.. work.. but we'll stay in touch feel free to message me anytime!! Good luck in studying and thanks for the tips please stay positive!
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Thank you for your sweet well wishes. I will absolutely say a prayer for you!

I think that 1 month is a perfect amount of time - review the material for a week perhaps, and then just do tons of questions. I forgot to mention earlier that you should study infection control questions, particularly what precautions are required for particular diseases. These questions were plentiful on the exam. Best of luck!

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I graduated from nursing school in May and took boards August 1st. I really wanted to take boards right away, but in Arizona it can take a little bit to get your ATT because you have to wait for your school's official transcripts to be released. I really struggled for a while with trying to figure out a schedule and how to study. For a month I read the yellow Saunder's book and followed their study guide that they generate for you. To be honest, I hated it. I found myself rushing through the reading and still doing okay on the end of the chapter quizzes, but I was just going through the motions. In July I bought the Lippincott RN 10,000 and did Kaplan questions every single day. I made a goal to do a certain amount of questions a day. My school had us use Kaplan so once I got about 4 weeks away from my test date, I did the trainer tests (since I had already finished all of the qbank a month earlier). Overall, I found that for me just reading and taking notes was not helpful at all. Doing quizzes (and only doing 75 questions at time, unless I was doing the trainer tests) was what helped me the most and kept me the most motivated. I also listened to lectures on certain topics from youtube so when I was cooking or cleaning I could still be sorta studying. I hope this helps! I passed NCLEX and do feel that I was very prepared due to the massive amount of questions I did. They helped expose me to a lot of different topics!

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