I created this thread to have an inclusive up to date CEN review thread for people planning to take the CEN in the next year. I have been in the ER for almost a year and I think that is enough time to start studying. I got some resources from my educator at work.
So far, the materials I have are the CEN review manual from the ENA which is basically practice tests and some stuff from Jeff Solheim's review which appears to be content in notes form. I also have a book called the Quick Reference to Critical Care which I have been using since I was a pretty new nurse. It has a lot of great information. I have also downloaded the most recent test blueprint.
Which materials did you use/are you using to study from? How important do you think it is to have the latest edition of study materials?
The lectures on YouTube by Mark Boswell were terrific. There were questions on the test that had content he specifically discussed.
I took my CEN yesterday and passed with the minimum 105(talk about close).
But, the reason for the quote. If nothing else watch Boswell's videos. I also picked up the (outdated) Pass CEN! book. Although it does have same good content and is a good value, don't bother. Some of the questions/answers are obviously dated. Also bought an app on the apple store. It's by pocketprep and just titled CEN, also don't bother. 95% of the content is overtly not high level enough. I unfortunately don't really have any other insight, as these are the only resources I used. Good luck to anybody else taking it.
The Boswell videos seem to be the only content available that is relevant to what's actually on the CEN exam. I also grabbed the Pass CEN exam book by Jeff Solheim and it was overwhelming and not specific to the CEN exam.
Mark Boswell is basically breaking down the exam in his lectures without being too specific as to what is actually on the exam and specific questions.
Don't waste your time reading books that are too general about ER knowledge and interventions. You will not be asked that on the CEN. This is why the BCEN recommends 2 years experience before sitting for the exam. You need to have experience in the ER to work out certain questions. You can't study for some of the content on the CEN.
Congrats Bobjohnny on passing the CEN. Passing is passing whether its 105 or 150.
Congrats to those who passed. I will start studying seriously this summer after I finish my advanced patho class and watch Mark Boswell's videos. By the time I take the CEN, I will have over 1.5 years of ER experience.
Just sent in my application to take the CEN. SO nervous. I have a years experience in the ER, hoping that + studying like crazy is enough! so good to hear that people can actually pass this exam :)
Hey you guys-- I'm on Facebook and was wondering if those of you who passed the CEN exam already could look at the questions posed on the Mark Boswell Facebook page and the Jeff Solheim page and tell me if the questions are really comparable to what they have on there recently. Some of those questions are unbelievably specific. When I do the practice exams in the ENA book I do ok-- around 70-80% but when I try their questions on their FB pages I rarely get them right. I wonder why there is that disconnect….
Pewp can you post a link to both those pages? I can't find the proper Mark Boswell page when I search on FB. And when I type in Jeff Solheim there's like 4 different pages. Just wanna be sure I'm looking at the same questions you are. Thanks.
I found the Boswell page. Great info on that page. Study his lectures. The questions are kind of similar to what's on CEN. Its not the kind of question you should be concerned about, its the content of the question. You should be able to answer the same question asked 5 different ways. You're gonna see a few general knowledge questions on the CEN. Most will be scenario based. But stick with Boswell.
orsrt05
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Thanks for the welcome!!!! Glad to be a part of it.