how to ace nursing exams

cracklingkraken, ASN, RN · May 1, 2014

What are your study habits? It may be time to change those habits. I'm a visual and auditory learner, so I tend to draw diagrams out and read my notes aloud because it helps me retain the information better. Once, I memorized verbatim 14 pages of notes for a final because I kept writing it over and over on the chalkboard, whilst reading aloud. Needless to say, you have to find what helps you the most. If you need to Google certain concepts to put it in a way that helps you understand better, DO IT. There are plenty of resources on the web that can help you learn material in perhaps an easier way. Also, speak with your instructor. Get some pointers, ask for him/her to explain a concept in more depth or in a different way. Hang in there, and I hope that this helped a tiny bit :)

NuGuyNurse2b · May 2, 2014

What semester are you in? My first semester I didn't do too hot on exams either. It was all about prioritization and Maslow's hierarchy, and of course, I'm overthinking things so I picked all the wrong answers when really it was down to ABC's (airway breathing circulation) and our dear friend, Maslow. It took me like 3 exams to figure that out cause I would go through all the pathophysiologies and stuff we learned and then couldn't figure out which client out of the 4 or 5 scenarios would get my immediate attention.

nursinglove15 · May 2, 2014

The first thing you need to do is figure out how you learn best and apply the appropriate study skills to your learning type.

Second, a big mistake I see my fellow students make is trying to memorize details and facts. I have found that most people do better on tests when they understand the concepts. After all, it is about applying what you know. Spending hours memorizing lists and specifics isn't going to do you any good if you don't understand the broad concepts well enough to apply them to test questions.

I have a Saunders 2014-2015 NCLEX book that has an Evolve access code with over a thousand questions ranging from fundamentals to every specialty. It has helped me a ton. My school requires that we do 50 NCLEX questions before each test, and I have found that just knowing how to take the tests has been very beneficial.

twinkerrs · May 2, 2014

I did study questions. When I missed one I studied the rationales. I needed to be able to apply what I had learned. Also doing questions teaches you how to find the important parts in the question get rid of dis tractors e

MountainBikeChick · May 2, 2014

Doing questions from the Fundamentals Success book/disc has helped me SO much! I started those questions the second week of school because I was really nervous about NCLEX style questions, and got a 94 on my first exam and 98 on my second, best grade in the class with most people making low Bs and Cs! I do an average of 30/day and read the rationales for EVERY question, regardless of whether I got it right or wrong. Reading the rationales has been the most important thing, because even if I am right, I may be right for a different reason than I am thinking!

I will also skim chapters, but not read the entire thing, because I know I won't retain all that info. I do the quizzes at the end of each chapter over the weeks between exams, then the day before the exams take the quizzes again and read the rationales. I also read the summaries at the end of each chapter and if there is something I don't understand, I'll go back and look up that part in the book.

I google/youtube a LOT of stuff, even if I think I know it. Often times, I don't know it as well as I think! Then after researching a concept a little bit, I was verbally say out loud the main idea of the concept. So much of nursing is conceptual and not just little facts. Trying to 'dumb it down' and explaining it to my husband, mom, friend, etc is also extremely beneficial. It allows me to catch the little things I don't understand, especially if they ask a question about something.

Lastly, don't stress so much about it. I **** a lot of people off in my cohort because I'm always doing things like mountain biking, reading for leisure, cooking delicious meals at home, etc in addition to working mostly full-time and they don't understand how I have time for such things. If I take time for myself and take care of my body, my brain is able to absorb more information when needed! Food, sleep and exercise are things I do not sacrifice at all.

missmollie, ADN, BSN, RN · May 3, 2014

Many students like using questions and rationales to help them understand how to apply the material. It seems you have all the right materials for questions, but if it's not helping you, then I have one suggestion that some students in my class swear by. With each specific disease process within a body system, make a care plan for it. On your assessment, put down everything that you would expect to find in Utopia General Hospital with the perfect non-well patient (Who, amazingly, happens to have every single s/s of the disease...imagine that!). From there, figure out several nursing diagnosis, putting the most important one first. Write notes as to why it is important to include that diagnosis.

Figure out your interventions: what would you do for this client, but more importantly...why are you doing it. Include the rationale.

If I were going to do this system, I would use one sheet of paper for each part of the nursing care plan. Maybe once you do it a few times, it'll become easier and quicker to do. I would definitely utilize a great care plan book with rationales in it. I would also suggest to continue to do NCLEX type questions regardless of what new system you try. An 80 is still passing, so it is working to some degree.

The other thing you could try is to find a study buddy and "teach" each other about the disease/system/process. You'll find things your partner misses, and vice versa. It helps the learning process.

Best of luck to you!

Episteme · May 3, 2014

I would like to ask the OP to describe the tests with which he/she is having difficulty. Are the questions on these tests taken from some standardized test pool associated with the publishers you mentioned? Or are they written by the instructor to probe your knowledge of the material that was presented and the readings/activities that were assigned?

In my view and years of experience, studying NCLEX type questions is an excellent way to study for an NCLEX test. But such study will NOT help you learn specific material your instructor teaches. NCLEX questions are pitched at application of a body of knowledge. If you don't have that knowledge in your head, you will not learn it going about study the way you describe.

You need to tell us the source from which your instructor's test items are drawn.

Jenngirl34RN · May 3, 2014

Sunders NCLEX book has a lot of fundementals questions. I use that and my books and any material like Powerpoints from my instructors, and my school uses HESI for exams so I use their site as well. They way I go about studying for exams is to go through the learning objectives for each module one by one and make sure I can thoroughly answer each one.

johsonmichelle · May 3, 2014

What semester are you in? My first semester I didn't do too hot on exams either. It was all about prioritization and Maslow's hierarchy, and of course, I'm overthinking things so I picked all the wrong answers when really it was down to ABC's (airway breathing circulation) and our dear friend, Maslow. It took me like 3 exams to figure that out cause I would go through all the pathophysiologies and stuff we learned and then couldn't figure out which client out of the 4 or 5 scenarios would get my immediate attention.

I'm in first semester

NuGuyNurse2b · May 3, 2014

I'm in first semester

I honestly think you're having the same issue I had in my first semester. Just practice NCLEX style questions and think about ABC's & Maslow's. Those are usually first semester questions. Med Surg is a different beast, but you'll get to that soon enough.