Help I Failed!

DaisyRN, ACNP · Jun 10, 2008

hi there mp...

well, i'm sorry about your test. i don't know details about what kind of test you took and when you finished your program... so i'll do my best.

advice? (i'm sure others will chime in accordingly... :))

in terms of passing your retest...

1. if you didn't attend one before, i'd recommend a live review course. mine was great.

2. buy a good review book or audio mp3s/cds to refresh everything.

3. have a buddy that you went to school with? get together and study weaker subjects... ask them to help you explain something you weren't familiar with on the test.

4. do not try to memorize or cram info in... it will only stress you out to realize it can't be done. instead, just look over the areas you are less confident in and delve deeper into the patho behind it, to see if that will help you understand why a certain treatment is effective/ineffective... why you need to consider x intervention... what patient teaching would be appropriate etc... and know that you will have a clearer head going in to the retest. you will know what to expect and that alone should take a great deal of anxiety out of the picture.

5. and if there's one offered for your specialty... take the other certifying body's test! thats what i would have done... i took the ancc exam, but if i had not passed the first time, i was going to retest with the aanp exam.

as for your pride...

1. that's a tough one to swallow, but there are lots of reasons people do not do well on the cert exams... think: inability to concentrate due to anxiety, noise, other distractions in the room itself, lack of rest to keep your mind alert, personal issues weighing on your mind, a lack of wheaties! that morning... hehe... etc etc etc. the list goes on and on...

2. what i had prepared to tell myself should i have not passed my ancc exam was that... i must not have been ready to move on to the next step in my career. for some reason, i was witheld from moving forward... and i would have to ponder what that reason was... "was i meant to take this new job?"... "was i really prepared to take on my own patients at this point?"... "did i rush things too much and not give myself enough time to relax and prepare for the exam calmly?"... "was i suppose to learn a 'humbling' lesson?"...

basically, i would try to look at it as a life experience... and a learning experience... not only do you know what to expect in terms of the test layout, design, etc, but you have a clue how questions are worded, how many questions there are, tricks that should improve your score on the retest.

mom and nurse · Jun 10, 2008

I failed the AANP exam and just can't feel good...I am very depressed...any advice out there??

Don't give up. And I agree with Daisy RN. I used the Fitzgerald CDs to study and listened to them again and again. I also would probably have taken the other certifying test had I failed (ANCC).

Don't give up...

Trauma Columnist · Jun 10, 2008

I just want to offer my best wishes too. Don't feel bad. Just dig in and begin reviewing again. Good luck.

mp478 · Jun 10, 2008

Thank you to everyone for your support/advice. I did take the Fitzgerald course, graduated in Dec, studied with the CDs and did tons of practice questions. I felt very prepared for the AANP I took, but the questions I got were not very familiar...I do feel better now, I am already working as a FNP for about 3 months now...personally, been going through a divorce, so maybe that played a part. anyway, I will study more, focus on what areas I was weakest in and pass is the next time! By the way, can I take the ANCC if I've taken the AANP?

DaisyRN, ACNP · Jun 11, 2008

yes... or at least it was that way for acnps. i still don't know what program you did... but i also recommend barkley (http://www.npcourses.com) for a review. i swear by his review course... and you don't have to actually go to them. and sure... the divorce you were going through absolutely could have had an impact on your test performance. and i started working immediately after graduation, so my preparation time was a little hindered... i wish i had been like some of my classmates who waited to test before they got a job, but to each their own.

i wish you the best of luck!

KatieRN04 · Jun 11, 2008

sounds like daisy's advice covered all bases. best of luck on retesting. there will be many people thinking of you and hoping for the best. as a future test taker to become an np, i have what many be a silly question. what is the difference between the ancc exam and the aanp exams? does it play any role in your job search by taking one over the other? are there different certifying exams for a fnp like the anp?

DaisyRN, ACNP · Jun 11, 2008

as for job searches upon completion, no... it does not matter. i have done quite a bit of job searching and secured a job as well... and all they want is for you to be certified. they don't care which certifying body it is with. as for the difference between the two exams... i really do not know. the aanp acnp exam is new... and i chose not to take a brand new test. my review course, prior instruction, and most all of the online resources were based on the ancc exam, just because its been around longer... so that's what i went with. you can go to http://www.nursecredentialing.org (ancc) and also http://www.aanp.org to compare. with ancc, the credentials look something like this for me, being an acute care np: acnp-bc. and with aanp, it would be np-c.

tests offered by ancc:

acute care np

adult cns

adult np

adult psychiatric and mental health cns and np

family np

family psych and mental health cns

gerontological cns and np

pediatric cns and np

tests offered by aanp:

adult np

gerontological np

family np

now acute care np

Advanced Practice Columnist / Guide · Jun 11, 2008

as for job searches upon completion, no... it does not matter. i have done quite a bit of job searching and secured a job as well... and all they want is for you to be certified. they don't care which certifying body it is with. as for the difference between the two exams... i really do not know. the aanp acnp exam is new... and i chose not to take a brand new test. my review course, prior instruction, and most all of the online resources were based on the ancc exam, just because its been around longer... so that's what i went with. you can go to www.nursecredentialing.org (ancc) and also www.aanp.org to compare. with ancc, the credentials look something like this for me, being an acute care np: acnp-bc. and with aanp, it would be np-c.
tests offered by ancc:
acute care np
adult cns
adult np
adult psychiatric and mental health cns and np
family np
family psych and mental health cns
gerontological cns and np
pediatric cns and np
tests offered by aanp:
adult np
gerontological np
family np
now acute care np

daisy,

i didn't find the new acnp exam in the aanp certification website. is it totally new? i know of a new certification exam for acnp's offered by aacn (amer assoc of crit care nurses) established late last year but my state still doesn't recognize it as only the ancc exam is recognized here as of now.

DaisyRN, ACNP · Jun 11, 2008

woops!

you are right... it was aacn! not aanp... sorry about that!

Smitty08 · Jun 11, 2008

This happened to me too, ouch! I had used as a FNP prep book, a book that had very easy questions in it. They were not on par with the test at all. Back then it was paper tests, not computer based. I would suggest get a review book (or course) that has similar level of difficulty. Thats what I did and I passed with no trouble the second try. Best of luck!:beer:

christvs, DNP, RN, NP · Jun 12, 2008

I'm sorry that happened to you. Good luck to you in your studying. I feel your pain because I am preparing to take my ACNP exam as soon as I hear back that I can schedule to take it, and I know how stressful the whole process is. We are all crossing our fingers for you!!! :)