Failed the NCLEX-RN exam on the first time

[buckeyegirl19]

Hello!

I recently just took the NCLEX-RN exam and received 265 questions to just find out that I unfortunately failed. It has been a tough few days finding out the news both disappointing and frustrating. I am writing today to get back any feedback on better study tips to prepare for the exam the next time. Also, just an advice whether or not you passed or have failed would be greatly appreciated. I just hope to tackle this exam one more time and come out victorious! Thanks again!

[XNavyCorpsman]

You are exactly right. You are given enough information in nursing school to pass the NCLEX but I think people lack the skills in answering critical thinking type questions. I took my time with the test and did not worry about having enough time to finish all the questions.

[turtlesRcool]

As a PP pointed out, Kaplan focuses on test strategy. Hurst focuses on must-know content. I hear both are good at their specialties, but weak at what the other does. I'm not saying to take both, but figure out what you need.

I took ATI through my school. I have no idea what it costs on its own because it was mandatory and factored into our tuition. The general consensus of my classmates (some of whom took Kaplan, very few took Hurst), was that ATI's questions seemed the most "NCLEX" like of all the sources. I know the other companies have NCLEX style, but people seemed to think there was something about the way ATI asked the questions that was most like what we saw on the NCLEX itself, though many other sources were good for content review.

I passed in 75 questions, and that seems to be about what's happening with my classmates. No one's failed yet, and 80 is the highest number of questions I've heard from anyone. I might not be the most helpful poster here because my post-graduation NCLEX prep was pretty minimal. But I think our program did a good job of making sure we really know our content, and our overall strategy was strong because we had ATI exams as part of our course grades right from the first course, so we didn't have to learn it all at the end.

One thing that was super helpful for me was not rushing during the exam. It's easy to look at the clock and start to panic, but there's really no reason to answer more quickly. It will just make you flustered, and you'll make stupid mistakes on things you know.

On the bright side 265 questions probably means you were close to passing. If you were doing really poorly, the computer would have just shut off earlier. Good luck with your second try!

[buckeyegirl19]

Thank you, thank you!!