Anyone writing CRNE for the 3rd time?

al228 · Dec 8, 2010

I'm writing it for the 2nd time and I'm pretty sure this time I'll get it. My main problem when writing the first time was time. I had to rush through the exam and that was detremintal. I failed by 1 mark .

Anyway, this time I'm more focused on timing myself as well as getting as many accurate as answer I can get. I simply use any and all the books from mosby to CNA prepguide. Although to be honest with you unlike Nclex I don't think any book can give you an accurate formate of the type of the questions we get in CRNE. One thing I learned is to use the competencies of the back of the books as my study guide. It's simply too much of materials but not all are equally important so is it's mentioned there that should be important. And I don't use my time on reading a lot of materials unless I'm not sure about them. I do as many as questions as I can. How about yourself?

dishes, BSN, RN · Dec 8, 2010

Having a full understanding of all of the competencies and feeling confident about your knowledge are key to choosing the correct answers and passing. In addition to reviewing the competencies and positive thinking, you may find prep workshops with passnurse and/or primeed. http://www.passnurse.com/

http://www.primededucation.ca/

dishes

lovelivelearn · Dec 10, 2010

I'm writing it for the 2nd time and I'm pretty sure this time I'll get it. My main problem when writing the first time was time. I had to rush through the exam and that was detremintal. I failed by 1 mark .
Anyway, this time I'm more focused on timing myself as well as getting as many accurate as answer I can get. I simply use any and all the books from mosby to CNA prepguide. Although to be honest with you unlike Nclex I don't think any book can give you an accurate formate of the type of the questions we get in CRNE. One thing I learned is to use the competencies of the back of the books as my study guide. It's simply too much of materials but not all are equally important so is it's mentioned there that should be important. And I don't use my time on reading a lot of materials unless I'm not sure about them. I do as many as questions as I can. How about yourself?

I'm thinking about taking the yorku prep course because it teaches more about how to read the questions and have an understanding of what its asking you. Personally I don't even think i need the course because my second time, the problem was time and anxiety. I got too nervous and read everything too thoroughly and didn't manage my time properly. But i'm being pushed by the parental units to take the course so i guess i will. I will also buy the mock exam from PRIMED. Go through the CNA prep guide, mosby and lippincott again. I hope this is enough...any thoughts? I think the biggest challenge for me this time is stress and anxiety...i already feel super stressed out and nervous. Need to find a way to deal with it especially during the exam..can't afford another screw up.

akardan · Dec 14, 2010

As I said in my previous post, I don't think any of books out there actually provide a good representation of the exam. Mosby gets too much in details and CNA prep guide was not even close to what I got in actual exam. I think, however, lippincott is more or less useful than the others. But what other choices we really have? Did you find the recent CNA prep guide useful. I have it but haven't start it yet. Have you tried the online prep on CNA website?

Funny that I passed NCLEX with all it's technicality but not CNA's exam!

dollarman · Dec 14, 2010

Hi guys,

The goal for the exam is to get 120/180 right? my advice is to attack-attack-attack! answer the questions you surely know then quickly skip the questions that you need to think about. For sure out of 200 questions, there are 60 to 70 easy items that you will get right, sometimes 80 if you are that amazing. The goal is to get many points as soon as possible and finish the exam because it is time pressured. Then use your critical thinking skills and test taking strategies to get another 50 points or more, or how many more you need to achieve 120/180. I passed the exam last October in one attempt and I use that attack-attack-attack strategy... Goodluck to all

dollarman · Dec 14, 2010

Canadian Mosby and CNA prep guide is enough to prepare. dont use NCLEX Book please! that's a suicide! Godbless

SandBetweenMyToes, BSN, RN · Dec 22, 2010

What strategy have you used up till now? Perhaps if you are able to share that, we can make provide more constructive responses. How many hours are you putting in per day or week? What resources are you using? Do you think you are lacking in fundamental knowledge or is it more of a stress response that is interfering with your test taking?

lovelivelearn · Dec 23, 2010

What strategy have you used up till now? Perhaps if you are able to share that, we can make provide more constructive responses. How many hours are you putting in per day or week? What resources are you using? Do you think you are lacking in fundamental knowledge or is it more of a stress response that is interfering with your test taking?

First time i failed was because i wasn't completely focused and I didn't know how to study for it. I was using school notes and didn't use the lippincott prep guide until 5 days before the exam (didn't know about it). The second time I took a prep course (Toronto School of Health), they provided a textbook going over each body system and the diseases. So i used that with the CNA, lippincott and mosby prep guides. The second time I had more knowledge and i think it was the stress that got to me. I was so careful reading the questions I ran out of time. The last few mins of the exam I was rushing through the last 15 questions. This last chance is going to be VERY stressful and i'm already getting pressure from my family. The constant nagging me to study literally every waking hour is stressing me out. I tell them to stop but they don't get it. As far as my plan...I will probably take this york university crne prep course, which focuses on strategies and interpretation of the tricky/psychosocial questions. I will also go over the CNA, lippincott, mosby prep guides as well. I may also purchase this crne mock exam from PRIMED. Do you think this is enough? Any advice/suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I'm desperate at this point and becoming a nurse is my dream. Thanks.

SandBetweenMyToes, BSN, RN · Dec 23, 2010

These all sound like good resources, but you really need to put in a minimum of a couple hours a night for at least two months...that seems to be the minimum study time that all my classmates who passed put in. I seriously would reschedule if you are not able to do that, especially in light of this being the last time you can write. Prep classes can be useful, but they are no substitute for doing hundreds, if not thousands of practice questions before hand. Doing practice questions will help you identify your areas of weakness. Each question you get wrong, look up the topic and quickly review anything not explained in the answer rationale. Mosby, Lippincott, etc...all of these have answers with rationale, and this is key...you need to read and understand the rationale of every question, especially the ones you get wrong.

lovelivelearn · Dec 25, 2010

These all sound like good resources, but you really need to put in a minimum of a couple hours a night for at least two months...that seems to be the minimum study time that all my classmates who passed put in. I seriously would reschedule if you are not able to do that, especially in light of this being the last time you can write. Prep classes can be useful, but they are no substitute for doing hundreds, if not thousands of practice questions before hand. Doing practice questions will help you identify your areas of weakness. Each question you get wrong, look up the topic and quickly review anything not explained in the answer rationale. Mosby, Lippincott, etc...all of these have answers with rationale, and this is key...you need to read and understand the rationale of every question, especially the ones you get wrong.

Do u think 6 hours a day everyday for the month of january leading up to the exam feb 2, would be enough? Going over notes and practice questions?

joanna73, BSN, RN · Dec 27, 2010

Hi there. Don't forget to allow yourself time for rest and relaxation :)

While you do need to be focused, its very important not to burn out. When I studied, I put in 5 days a week, 4 to 5 hours a day (with breaks) for 5 weeks. So 2 full days off. This was about the average for my friends, too. You will have it this time. Good luck.