ANCC exam 2017

Nursing Students NP Students

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Hi All,

I just PASSED the ANCC exam and wanted to provide feedback in case it helps someone.

Here are my study techniques and tips

I did not attend a review course but I did listen to some older Berkley recordings(he is good). TOO expensive and too overrated

I DID read Leik and Fitzgerald review books as well as do Board Vitals questions (very helpful although harder than boards so don't fret if you're scoring low-I scored 80%).

Leik was a perfect summary and provided great information that was useful for boards. Both books had errors and YES leik had the most but look beyond the errors and use her key points. Her exam tips are on point.

2wks before the exam- I did the Fitzgerald comprehensive exam (scored 78) to gauge my knowledge and took the APEA predictor exam (scored 81) a week before the exam.

I recommend doing as many questions as possible and READ the rationales

Key points I would give is to review ethics, research study levels, health promotion, and profession practice. My exam was at least 40% non clinical

For the clinical portion-know your guidelines as far as screening and firstline treatments for the major diseases

I had about 8 pics of various things from eye, skin, and musculoskeletal

Thank you I have failed twice and retest in October scared to death I had 333 out of 350. I have spent so much money on review books and flash cards. Just need help.

Cheryle

I agree with everything the poster said. I took the ANCC yesterday (June 28th), and passed. I would say 40% nonclinical is right. I felt like every other question was a nonclinical question. With that being said, if you have had a strong primary care education that was current with guidelines, the clinical questions will be easy for you. They are basic things that everyone should know. Nothing crazy. I went to an on-campus program, where I had rigorous exams and an exit hesi, and the clinical questions were not a problem.

As far as the nonclinical questions, I could pretty well narrow down my answers to 2 and use common sense to select what I thought was the right answer. I had to read some questions a few times to really gauge what they were asking. There were some that i just had to guess on.

I used Leik, and only Leik, to study. I made flashcards of all the exam tips and I did all of the practice questions. I also used the FNP mastery app and did all those practice questions. I felt like both of these resources were representative of the exam, especially with clinical info. Leik has a couple nonclinical chapters at the end that I would strongly encourage to look through carefully. The FNP mastery app also has 200 nonclinical practice questions, which were very helpful. I would suggest looking over Research stuff, hierarchy of evidence, ethics, hippa, leadership, etc...

I would review weak areas in depth and find a way to relax your mind. Sometimes it's not About knowing the material it's about being so nervous that you can't focus.

do you all mind answering what speciality you're in? thanks!

Thanks for the advise. I failed the aanp and am awaiting my results. I think I am going to take the ancc this time.

Congrats on passing!!! how did you study for the non clinical questions? I'm struggling with those. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

Hi everyone!

I passed my ANCC February 28th in 2018. I searched for tips while I was studying and found a lot of useful tips on allnurses forum but I wanted to share my study tips as well. I hope maybe someone will find it helpful.

Resources: Liek, Liek app, Fitzgerald (newest edition), Exam Edge, APEA predictor exam x2, Barkley predictor exam #1, Barkley CDs.

I started out by creating a calendar and depending on how long the topic is for each system, I would allot 1-3 days for that topic. I would first review the topic on Liek and really try to note down the fast facts and exam tips. Then I would use the Fitzgerald book and review that same topic with questions and read the rationale. The following day after that specific topic is done, I would do the Liek questions for that topic on the liek question app to reinforce what I learned the day or two prior. I was scoring mid 70's to low 80's on these questions. I studied these systems for about 6-7 weeks. I was also meeting up with a study buddy every other week and doing exam edge questions 300-400 questions each session.

- I did listen to Barkley CD and Doctor radio on XM in the car to get me into studying mode.

-About 2 weeks prior to the exam, I took my first APEA predictor test and got a 74% and I reviewed my weaknesses and did more exam edge questions.

-A week prior to my exam I took a 2nd APEA predictor test and got a 75%. I then reviewed weaknesses as well as reviewed all of the fast facts and exam tips in the LIEK review book and did exam edge questions.

-Two days prior to my test, I took the Barkley predictor test and got a 70%. I also went to the testing site and talked to one of the workers at the testing site for tips.

-The day prior to my test, I reviewed pharm fast facts and exam tips and reviewed the category drug levels that are safe for pregnancy and drug interactions only until 3pm. I also reviewed the first two chapters in LIEK, and to relax, I got a massage and my eye lashes done.

*I spent a total of 10 weeks, I wanted to finished faster but I got sick for 2 weeks.

*About the test: definitely 40% nonclinical. I felt like, OMG I did not even study for this. DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE the nonclinical. I reviewed Barkely, fitzgerald, liek and whatever I can find online for this. Focus on research hierarchy of the studies. I made a pyramid on my white board the moment I walked in to test. Know your ethics terminology like maleficence, leadership, and examples of it.

* I had 4 pictures: eye, skin, radiograph

That is all. Good luck everyone!

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