Published May 18, 2010
deb11
3 Posts
I am just starting Excelsior College and I really could use some help on how to begin and what to study and what exams I need to take with what content is involved with each exam.
Sonnalasean
17 Posts
I am currently studying for my last examination which is Life span 2. I have alot of pointers and tips for Excelsior College Nursing program success.
[email protected]
caliotter3
38,333 Posts
You need to do some looking around on the website. Go to the publications page and download a copy of the study guides for the first two nursing tests that you need to take. You can take the nursing tests in any order you choose. All the content for the test is listed in the study guide. You can find study material in many places. First place to start: the recommended texts that are listed in the study guides. Go to ebay and type in Excelsior College. You can get study material from studygroup101 and Lisa Arends. You can also find study material in the files sections of the various yahoo Excelsior group sites. Another suggestion is Flashcards: The world's largest online library of printable flash cards. The library is a good place to check out books for free if you don't want to buy texts at this time. You can get them to do an interlibrary loan for any titles that they don't carry.
TashaLPN2006RN2012, ASN, RN
1 Article; 1,715 Posts
I second what caliotter said! I'm getting ready to take the first nursing exam (i just started as well) which is Health & Safety - taking it saturday! I bought the recommended text off ebay and half.com but chose an edition or two previous to the one listed on the excelsior free content study guide. so far all required chapters have matched up perfectly! =) good luck!
PiedPiperRN
129 Posts
as much as I hate to say it, the EPN is a good website.
And I have to get this off my chest: Exselsior has it's good points, but its website is NOT one of them. That thing is impossible to navigate so don't feel bad when it takes you an hour to find the link you need to download a study guide. :)
Here is how you find the EC content guide:
go to excelsior.edu
click on top right MyEC (and register if you haven't done so, if you have just log in)
After logging in scroll down about 1/2 down the webpage and on the RIGHT side look for the link that says FREE Examination Content Guides click on it.
Then just find the one you want and click on the little pdf icon to download it, print it off and there you go.
If you haven't done so yet, apply and pay the $75, it will take a couple of weeks after they recieve your last transcript but then you will know exactly what exams you need to finish! hope that helps!
StrawberryBanana
99 Posts
Heya, random Q. For those of you that graduated from Excelsior...how long did it take to obtain your ADN, and how many hours, per week, would you estimate you had to study?
It took WAY to long, IMHO.
There is more information in this post:
https://allnurses.com/distance-learning-nursing/questions-about-ec-486666.html
I applied in September, but it wasn't until around mid December that I got an ATT for my EC exams. I got my five required exams done in a month. Then it took me about two weeks to get the PPW for the CPNE. I aplpied at the start of February, and I finally took the CPNE on June 11. My graduation date is August 20 , I hope to have taken the NCLEX by the one-year-mark after I initially applied to EC.
As for studing, I actually only spent about four months activly studing, and the rest of the time waiting for EC. I studied during the application time and took the tests very quickly after the ATT. I probably only spent about a month really studing for the CPNE, although I did some light reading here and there through March and April.
As for how much time it will take to study, that depends on you. I crammed at about five hours a day for about a week per exam, with light review over three months. Some people need to do this program as a full time job, others don't. It's a "go at your own pace" program (provided that your pace is slower then the time it takes EC to do anything.)
Lunah, MSN, RN
14 Articles; 13,773 Posts
Just for future reference for other students, you don't have to wait for the ATT to schedule or test when it comes to EC exams.
mjm1979
72 Posts
I'm confused again... This is the first I've heard about the ATT. How does this work? If someone doesn't mind, walk me through the first few steps. Let's say you have already applied and taken pre-reqs and you're ready to start taking nursing classes. Do you just register for your first class, study, when ready schedule your exam, start the next class, etc? That's what I assumed you did, but I've read where several people have scheduled several exams at once. And, again, this is the first I've heard of the ATT. Do they send you one and it's good for all classes or do you get one per class? Thanks!
They mail you an ATT after you register for each exam, but the ATT isn't necessary to schedule your exam at all. I'm not sure why they even mail them anymore! I don't think you have to have it with you at the testing center. (It's been a while since I've taken an EC exam, so I can't remember. :))
Your eligibility is in the computer system. You just go on the website, register for, and pay for the exam, then schedule it. If you aren't eligible for some reason or other, the computer would not let your register for or pay for the exam.