97% on HESI A2 1/5/2018

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Hi everyone! I just wanted to share tips and tricks on how I was able to achieve the score I got! I took the test today, and as everyone else is, I was super nervous and worried about whether I was studying the right things. I wanted to share my experience and hopefully it'll help you guys! I spent about 2-3 weeks studying the test and felt that that was enough to prepare me! I had scheduled the test for the end of January, but changed it to the beginning because I felt like it was already fresh in my mind.

Here's my score and the order I took it in:

Vocabulary - 96

A & P - 100

Math - 98

Grammar - 98

Reading Comprehension 94

/Cumulative: 97.02%

I wanted to take my easier sections first and leave enough time at the end for me to take my time with the harder sections, which I knew would be reading comprehension and grammar. I chose Vocabulary first because I was very anxious about what words there would be and wanted to get it out of the way. I ended the test with an hour to spare, and felt that I took my time with all the sections. I got up and used the restroom 4 times (I drank a lot of water...). Before the test, I had breakfast (hashbrown and egg), and right before I went in the test I ate a banana.

Vocabulary: There were definitely words in there that were in the Elsevier book! But these weren't words that were hard... they were common, everyday words. But it just became tricky to me, and I had to second guess myself a lot of the times because I hadn't studied those words. I recommend studying the book, as well as doing a lot of practice questions (not necessarily just what the definition of words are, but how they fit in sentences). I'd say about 1/2 of the words came from Elsevier and quizlet sets [felt like most of the words did not even come from quizlet], but the other 1/2 were common everyday words... Some of the words required you to know more definitions though---like if a question asked the meaning of the word astute, it'd require you to know that it means shrewd. My advice is to not FORGET the common "easier" words, because those will very likely also be on the test!!

A&P: I spent the majority of my studying on this, even jotted down notes and practiced everyday. I used Pocket Prep, lots of apps on android to practice the concepts. I read the explanation for every question, even if I got it right. I drew diagrams, watched Crash Course and took notes from that. Although some of the concepts were fairly broad (i.e. testing the functions of each system), some were also very specific and were things that I didn't even study. I used my judgement from classes to answer those questions, and to rule out whatever did not make sense. This section tested on bones, joints (what types), broad functions of each system, hormones and their functions, what statement is correct regarding the functionality, cells, tissues, etc. I was also VERY surprised I got a full score here because I found myself second guessing. There was 1 question that required you to "check all that apply"

Math: very tedious. Annoying. Checking answers. Using the calculator and checking answers. Very tedious. I didnt get any questions about roman numerals, got conversions, lots of simple multiplication division, lots of ratios, lots of reduce to the lowest denominator. I double checked all my answers... and this section took me the longest (@ 55 min) because I was just so hung up on checking my answers and clicking the calculator.

Grammar: so much faster to get thru compared to my last section (math). Reading the elsevier book and knowing how to identify what's wrong in a sentence, as well as which phrase is correct grammatically, will be your success in this section. You also need to know how to spell certain words (perform vs. preform) in the context they are used. I stressed out a lot about this section and wanted to save it second to last. But it really wasn't that bad! I used pocket prep (full version), and Grammar Quizzes I also used the McGraw Hill Questions (350 questions?) from Barnes and Nobles.

Reading: very tedious. Long passages, some passages had 10 questions about it, while others had 4 questions for a short passage. They weren't hard to read, just took a very long time to make sure the answers were right. I got 3 wrong, but I knew I had... Lots of inferences, implications, conclusions, definitions of words used in the context, whether a statement was explicitly stated in the passage, whats a fact vs. opinion. Readings varied by topic, from science to health topics, to topics about gift giving... My advice is to pick the answer that is directly stated in the passage (for inferences) and to pick the one that is listed in order (for summaries). I went through my scratch paper and wrote A B C D and eliminated those that did not sound right. I did not study this section at all for the test, except reading through the short guide that was in elsevier.

Good luck to everyone taking the test! I was definitely nervous, sweating through everything, but was happy that i was done in the end. It's about how you study, not how much you think you know already :)

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Hey jum00!

First of all, congrats!!!

I'll be taking the Hesi exam next week, and i'm freaking out! í ½í¸©

Is the pocketprep app (full version) helpful for the A&P section?

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Hey jum00!

First of all, congrats!!!

I'll be taking the Hesi exam next week, and i'm freaking out! ������

Is the pocketprep app (full version) helpful for the A&P section?

Yes! I found it helpful, it explained a lot of concepts and solidified concepts. The A&P questions weren't TOO hard on the pocketprep full version, but they are like the ones that you see on the test. I feel like the ones on the tests were just phrased differently but testing the same concepts. In addition to the pocket prep, I would also google some practice a&p questions because there were definitely some that weren't from the pocket prep. Good luck!!! :o

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Specializes in Dialysis.

Do you remember how many A&P questions there were? I keep seeing 25 or 30.

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Do you remember how many A&P questions there were? I keep seeing 25 or 30.

30 questions!

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So the pocket prep app questions were similar to the ones on the actual test? I have been studying A&P through the Elsevier book and using the pocket prep app and I have been getting most of the questions right on the practice tests. I am worried that I'm not studying enough. Do you think by getting the questions right on the app will be sufficient for me to get a good score on the hesi? Congrats on the score!

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So the pocket prep app questions were similar to the ones on the actual test? I have been studying A&P through the Elsevier book and using the pocket prep app and I have been getting most of the questions right on the practice tests. I am worried that I'm not studying enough. Do you think by getting the questions right on the app will be sufficient for me to get a good score on the hesi? Congrats on the score!

Pocket prep questions are similar in that the test tests similar things, but worded differently in like scenarios or different question formats. I think I'd supplement pocket prep further by watching crash course, and other free hesi a2 practice tests on Google. If i were you I'd over prepare than under!

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Hey I just took the Hesi today for the second time. The first time I passed everything but the AP section. I didn't study so I wasn't upset. This time I studied I did practice tests, quizlet, I bought a hesia2 book everyone recommended, I bought the Hesi app, I watched crash courses from anatomy professors, and I took notes I don't know what else I can do. I even followed the advice given by other people who passed (study muscles, hormones, all systems, ears and eyes exc.) Can someone tell me? 😔

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