Excelsior college

PiedPiperRN · Jun 18, 2010

That's right. There were six of us testing, so we had 6 CEs and one CA (clinical associate, I think, basically the boss of the CE's).

If you finish before 2.5 hours, that is great! You get out of there sooner. I finished one PCS in 45 minutes, and was able to start my next a little early, and I finished that day be 11AM.

I found that the CE's were chill, especially if you gave off that you knew what you were doing. However, yes, you are right, they do watch every move you make, and that is one of the reasons that stress and nerves are the biggest problems for the CPNE.

StrawberryBanana · Jun 18, 2010

Thanks for clearing this up you guys! Wow. I'm going to be a total wreck. I'm very confident with my beginner's skills, when I'm not being watched..but it's a whole different story when someone is testing me. Just crossing my fingers!

lpnluv2help · Dec 6, 2010

That's right. There were six of us testing, so we had 6 CEs and one CA (clinical associate, I think, basically the boss of the CE's).
If you finish before 2.5 hours, that is great! You get out of there sooner. I finished one PCS in 45 minutes, and was able to start my next a little early, and I finished that day be 11AM.
I found that the CE's were chill, especially if you gave off that you knew what you were doing. However, yes, you are right, they do watch every move you make, and that is one of the reasons that stress and nerves are the biggest problems for the CPNE.

i'm starting my theory in feb"11", what hospital did you do your clinical at? i was told they only have a New York and Ga site. can you clarify if possible. :nurse:

calicolom · May 2, 2011

hi, i'm debating in entering the online nursing program, i have all of my general eduacation. i would prefer to enter a college for the nursing transitional program however it is very competitive! can anyone tell me how hard are the nursing test? please any advise on your experienced. thank you so much for any info. cali :confused:

spreadlove · May 2, 2011

I'm still debating as well. I've applied to a few schools but still no response. Others have said I would have to wait til the following Fall to enter. I have all my gen ed courses except info lit which I'm doing now. I simply can't til next year.

calicolom · May 3, 2011

i know what u mean, i have waited for a year to try to enter to a community college, however it its seems harder and harder. I dont want to prolonged this any longer yet i dont want make a poor judgement that will affect me in the long run. :yawn: what to do??? i hope that we get whats better for us! good luck.

spreadlove · May 3, 2011

I feel the same way. Thanks and good luck to you!!

BerryHappy · May 3, 2011

It has taken me almost 3 years from graduating from LPN school. That's mostly been because I was lazy. I am taking my CPNE in September and hope to take NCLEX-RN before the end of the year. I had about 15 credits that EC accepted from my college days.

It can be done much faster if you are highly motivated, and if you have enough money!

Good luck!

caliotter3 · May 3, 2011

hi, i'm debating in entering the online nursing program, i have all of my general eduacation. i would prefer to enter a college for the nursing transitional program however it is very competitive! can anyone tell me how hard are the nursing test? please any advise on your experienced. thank you so much for any info. cali

Reading your user name, are you living in California or Colorado? If in California, you will not be able to do the Excelsior College program, at least not without a lot of heartache. CA does not accept EC. The BRN states that they will evaluate an applicant on a case by case basis once they have practiced as an RN in another state for X amount of paid time. Colorado will accept an EC graduate under about the same circumstances, but there are still the stipulations of practicing in another state for X amount of time. Look on the website for each state. For that matter, no matter where you live, you need to find out if your state accepts EC or not, or if they accept EC with added requirements. In general, the nursing exams are straightforward and while not easy to pass, passable with study. Most people get hung up on the CPNE at the end. One gets three tries, then booted if they fail on the third try. The CPNE is easy to fail, so it is worth one's effort to find a brick and mortar program and only keep Excelsior as Plan B.

Nurse Blondie, RN · May 3, 2011

Hi - I am just starting to study for my Excelsior Exams. I took my first practice exam yesterday - Transition to the RN Role. I did fairly well.

I would like to know whether the practice exams are exactly like the actual exam? It's hard to know where to begin studying when I look at all the materials provided. However; if the real exam questions are like the practice exam, I think I"ll be okay.

Can anyone who's been through a few exams offer their opinion of what to expect when comparing the practice vs. real exams?

Thanks!! :nurse:

MissingMyErica · May 3, 2011

Can anyone who's been through a few exams offer their opinion of what to expect when comparing the practice vs. real exams?
Thanks!!

In my opinion the practice tests are the most crucial part to passing these exams. The way I studied was directly from the exams. I would take the first exam without studying anything. Then I would go over the test and look at all the rationales of every question, even the ones I got right. I would make notes from the test and write down anything I didn't know or needed to study. I bought a used NCLEX book and studied the sections that matched what was on the test. I would study for a couple of days and then take the next test and do the same thing all over again. I NEVER bought books or read chapters of books, I ONLY used NCLEX and studyguide 101 cd that I bought on EBAY. I ended up using the nclex book most of all. In the beginning I took a test every two weeks and then I did them once a week until I completed all of them in 9 weeks. I spent the entire summer of 2010 taking those tests and studying by the pool. I got all A's and B's on my tests and only 1 C and the C I got was the test I studied the longest for!

I'm not encouraging people to do things the way I did it, but I'm just telling people that it worked for me and it can be done. I think people get overwhelmed with tons of material and don't know where to begin. I know tons of LPN's who tried Excelsior and studied for months to do the first test...those were the ones that NEVER finished Excelsior. The ones that I know who did complete it, are the ones who went "balls to the wall" so to speak, and just did it! My best friend is the one who gave me the "take a test every two weeks" advice, but even she couldn't believe I was able to do them every week! I work 3 / 12 hour shifts, so I really only had four days of the week to study, so I studied for most of the day on my days off. My friends NEVER saw me that summer, and I am so happy to have this summer to lounge around and enjoy myself. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

PomPomRN · May 3, 2011

To MissingMyErica: Which NCLEX copy did you use? Copywrite date, edition #, authors, etc. Any info would be greatly appreciated!