Failed NCLEX for the 3rd time

patricia0809 · Jul 10, 2012

I haven't took the Nclex yet so I'm sorry if my advice is pointless but I would say do something different with this one. If you used a certain resource for the first, second and third use something different. Contact your classmates and have them help you, contact your professors. Think positive. You are a fighter, u aren't giving up I can tell and I know you will get that RN license!!! Good Luck

cBennett422 · Jul 10, 2012

So sorry you haven't passed yet. Keep doing the questions. I would go back through medsurg and read it cover to cover then do more questions and review skills. I hope you get it this next time. Good luck.

hopefaithlove26 · Jul 10, 2012

:hug:ohhhh,so sorry for what you feel right now! PLs. give yourself a TIME to Grieve and Be Sad thats OK! you are DOING GREAt to all the STUDY and EFFORT you made!! its just that we DONT KNOW what else is missing, I HEARD so many PEOPLE that their in 4th,5th and so on..BUT they are still kept goin until they PASS,bELieve me, you will going to PASS this EXAM...PLEASE like a said relaks for the mean time and get a BREAK and feel BETTER and after that GO BACK in the GAME!! GOD BLESS you!

decembergrad2011, BSN, RN · Jul 10, 2012

Do you experience test anxiety? I worry about this for you after failing so many times with what appears to be more than adequate preparation. When you're doing the Kaplan Q-bank, what is the feedback? I didn't take Kaplan (I took Hurst online review and thought it was worth every dime I spent on it) but I've heard that they will tell you what kinds of questions you routinely miss and whether you change your answers, etc.

If it's possible, I would see if you could take your exam at a different testing center. There is only 1 within a 50 mile radius of me, but if I had failed three times, I would be preparing myself to fail going into the same center, possibly with the same staff, a fourth time. I would also cut down on your study resources. I think that too many sources can confuse you because the questions will ultimately be written a little differently and possibly carry different rationales - that can turn into a brain stew during the exam that makes you second-guess yourself. When you come to a question that you are clueless about, try what I did: I pretended that it was one of the experimental questions and would not affect my test score. It helped me to move on after being scared about the possibility of missing the question and dropping down into the below passing level.

Remember that this is a test about safety and they want to make sure that you are going to be a safe, competent nurse. The "NCLEX test lady" does not expect you to know everything and Hurst stressed that new graduates' knowledge base is equated to only 2 weeks of vast nursing experience. Would it be great if I knew every heart defect in peds up and down? Yes, but it's not near as important as understanding, for example, fluids and electrolytes. A good solid understanding of the med-surg material is what's going to be important for passing this exam. Review delegation and scope of practice for LPNs/CNAs - I found that there was quite a bit of this on my exam.

I'm sure you've heard these as well, but some other random tips: Remember that the patient on your screen is the ONLY patient you have, and you have all of the staff, supplies, and support for safe procedures in place. This is the IVORY TOWER of nursing, not the real world, and you should use the "politically correct" response, not the realistic one. Don't give advice or indulge hallucinations/delusions with psych patients - mostly restate, address feelings, ask open-ended questions, and keep them in the real world. Assess before you intervene. Calling the doctor is mostly not the answer, but if there is nothing else you can do to solve the problem as a nurse, it's better than sitting there retaking their vital signs. It helps to think that you can only choose one thing to do and that is the ONLY thing you can do.

I also didn't study any medications when prepping for NCLEX unless it was specifically talked about during the review's material. I glanced over the pharm guides they had on Hurst, but I really did not do more than that. I had very few questions that required me to know side effects of drugs - I think focusing time and energy on that would be a waste of valuable time.

If I'm not mistaken, they give you a more elaborate score if you fail the NCLEX, right? What did that assessment say to work on?

Good luck with things. Hope some of this could help.

lizzyxpooh · Jul 13, 2012

Thank you all for your words of encouragement. I did took a break and took care of myself. I got into hot yoga! :) The second time I failed I took a 2 months to grieve. This time, I am ready to move forward since I dont want to waste what I had studied for the past 3 months....

Thank you @decembergrad2011 for your detailed advice.

Overall, I noticed that my weakness tends to be over thinking the question. I can confidently narrow down to 2 questions, but always pick the second best answer. I just dont know how to pick the best answer. I do get accommodation for my test anxiety, they gave me a separate room and an extra 3 hrs for the test. So I do take my time and take breaks when I start to get antsy/lose focus. So the environment is controlled....

For kaplan I scored in the high 80's for content/focus review, qbanks around low 60%, and qtrainer in the low to mid 60%. My overall weakness was pharm and physical integrity; which i studied for, but still dont know what i did wrong.

For HURST, I used my friend's book and did the online review for $50, which I used to text to follow along for. I am considering going to HURST this time for the more expensive package.... but a bit hesitant. Since I had already used Kaplan and its supposed to be the top resource to pass the nclex, however it did not work for me. So would HURST do any good? I just want to be wise with spending my money since there are so many resources out there.

I am thinking of getting a tutor, but dont know where and who. My colleagues who passed are helping me and we studied together. She passed on her second attempt and now got offered a job... so my chance with her is slim since she will be swamp with work.

Any more advice please?

Thank you all! :)

WorkingTowardsBSN · Jul 14, 2012

I'm so sorry for the frustration and disappointment you're experiencing. I know it's disheartening but your persistance and dedication is abundantly obvious!

To be totally frank, at this point, I strongly believe your failure has been due to your anxiety and stress over the exam and not so much the exam itself. I agree you need to find some help, but I don't think it's content help you need. I would talk to a counselor at your school and see what they recommend for test anxiety. The extra time, seperate room is nice, but I'm willing to bet you're a nervous wreck for the week (or two?) before the test! Do you do yoga, meditate, run? Anything to relieve stress and relax yourself? If not, start there!

I whole heartedly believe this is more due to anxiety than content. Find the key to YOU and the license will come. :)

Just my :twocents: !

VictoriaMareah · Jul 14, 2012

I haven't taken the NCLEX yet since I only start NS this fall. I also suffer from test anxiety. I'm not sure if you can so this- but what I find helps me do best on tests is to skip over any questions I do not know the answer to rapidly and then go back to them. I also write all over my tests to get my thoughts together. Hope that helps! Keep your head up and Good Luck :)

lizzyxpooh · Aug 15, 2012

So here's the update, I've been lightly doing questions on ATI and Saunders... just to practice.

I had also contacted and met with my dean, and right now she's trying to figure out other options and resources to help me. So it's the waiting game on her end, and on my end, I"m just keeping busy with doing questions. I hope that I am being productive in this, and hoping that it actually clicks so I can pass this 4th time around.

Thank you all for being so kind.

Please let me know if you have any resources or know anyone who can help. I feel like i DID everything, but keep failing.

So for now, I'm doing ATI practice questions, Saunders, and eventually NCBSN...

AND the test will change next April 2013... they change it every 3 years and make it harder. -.-

SHAstrenf · Aug 15, 2012

Hi,

I took my NCLEX for the second and didn't pass again. I'm interested in the part of your post where you said it said you got the error message on Pearson Vue but 3 days later, got the cc page? I thought that method was pretty accurate. Eek!

Hi everyone,
I am down in the dumps. I just failed my 3rd nclex about a month ago.
Background:
Graduated last May 2011 with 3.6 GPA. Tutored my friends throughout nursing school and they passed, but I have not. Got into a new grad program, but was terminated when I failed the nclex. Talk about a double wammie.
I am confused, down, discouraged, frustrated, and my emotions are a rollercoaster. I keep telling myself to get back into study gear before I forget what I have learned, but some of the times I sit here, at the computer, with my practice questions..... my heart just sinks due to discouragement.
I know I must take it again, but my confidence is sinking.
I just reapplied for my 4th attempt. Still waiting for my ATT. I spent about $1200 on nclex fees alone. Not including training course.
What am I doing wrong?
My 1st results were one above passing, the rest are near and below passing.
My 2nd results were 2 above passing, and the rest are near and below passing.
My 3rd results were all near passing and two below passing.
All three times I did Kaplan. The third time the questions on the nclex did seems different and more challenging. I got the "on hold" pop up after doing the pearson trick, but 3 days later got the credit card
SO CLOSE!
Prior to my third nclex, my study session is 3 months worth.
1st month, studied 3-4 days a week, 4-6 hrs per day.
2nd month, bunked it up to 4-5 days per week, 6-8 hrs per day.
3rd month or a month before the test, 5-6 days per week, 8-10 hrs per day.
My sources:
I did Saunders studied the hard copy book from cover to cover, did the questions at the end of the chapter, and about 1000 q in the CD. Scores are in the 80%'s. This iwas my base for content.
I did Kaplan all the qtrainers, scoring 60-68%. This was for critical thinking.
I did PDA, all the chapters, twice. Scores in the 70%'s. This was for critical thinking.
I glimpsed over cram exam, and did the questions in the CD. More study questions.
I did the allnurses tips of tricks (ie: spiderman, down down up down, etc).
I did the infection control info.
I did HURST review book and audio.
AND the Feuer audio - listened to it twice.
I got the resources, I think. I scored well on the practice question....
Still...
What am I doing wrong?
Any word of advice is appreciated and thank you in advance!

shay&lynn, ASN, RN · Aug 15, 2012

I haven't taken the NCLEX yet since I only start NS this fall. I also suffer from test anxiety. I'm not sure if you can so this- but what I find helps me do best on tests is to skip over any questions I do not know the answer to rapidly and then go back to them. I also write all over my tests to get my thoughts together. Hope that helps! Keep your head up and Good Luck :)

I do the same, but I believe NCLEX is on the computer and that there is no 'going back' to answer skipped questions...

Is this correct?

reeta116 · Aug 21, 2012

try this book....NCLEX -RN 101 How to pass by Sylvia Rayfield. I passed in 75 questions the first time. I had this book, the Lacharity book, kaplan, and exam cram. I will be honest, I do not remember what read in kaplan because i read it as soon as i graduated. i never completed exam cram....did about 4 chapters, and did about 5 chapters in the Lacharity. I did all of the questions in the Nclex 101 book and i did only one of the post test. I feel this book had good questions. Try it. I think that you can get it on Amazon. Good luck and many blessings! Lacharity has good questions also.