How I Failed and then finally passed the hesi a2

Nursing Students HESI

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Hey guys, I wanted to write about my experience with the HESI A2… ok so first I failed it when I first took the exam. I was devastated and couldn't believe I scored so low. I used the official HESI study guide from Elsevier and it was helpful for the most part but I need more help with the a&p section.

I used a lot of free online content and found some youtube videos that helped me with the math section. I also used the study guides from HESI A2 Study Guide – Ready For The HESI

They are kinda expensive but I was willing to do whatever just to make sure I passed this second time around. All the guides are awesome but the anatomy and physiology one is so frickin good like that's all you need to pass and do well for the a&p section… And I did! I got an overall 86% Finally Jesus! Now the only thing left to do is send in my nursing school applications. I want to go to U T of Houston and eventually become a life flight nurse or work in the ER.

Ok so here is a breakdown of each subject: (I basically copied it from the ready for the hesi website, but it was on point. It was just like the text and it helped me pinpoint exactly what to study. I bought their study guides so their practice test questions were extremely helpful and similar to that like the HESI.

Ok so for anatomy you need to study every body system: I made an 86%

Body Planes

Nervous System

Functions

Circulatory System

Heart flow

Muscular System

Reproductive System

Endocrine System

Glands and Hormones

Body Senses

Ear, Nose, Eyes

Respiratory System

Skeletal System

Tendons and Ligaments

**For biology study these topics: I made an 86%

Acids and Bases

Bacterial Infections

Biology Basics

Catalysts

Cell Genetics

Cell Reproduction

Cellular Membrane

Cellular Respiration

Histology

Meiosis vs Mitosis

Metric Measurements

Aerobes and Anaerobes

For chem: I made an 80%

Acids and Bases

Atomic number, mass, and structure

Chemical Reactions

Oxidation and Reduction

Solutions, solvents, and solutes

Compounds

Alloys

Emulsions

Amino Acids

Math section: I made a 92%

Decimals

Multiplying decimals

Changing Decimals to Fractions

Comparing decimals

Fractions

Ratios and proportions (number and word problems)

Changing Fractions to Decimals

Dividing Fractions

Multiplying, dividing, adding, subtracting fractions

Measurements

Teaspoons to mL

Tablespoons to mL

Cups to Ounces

Algebra

Solving for X in ratio and proportion

Using Percent Formula

Solving equations for a variable

For reading comp: I made a 96%

Identifying a Writer's Purpose and Tone

Identifying Supporting Details

Identifying the Main Idea

Finding the Meaning of Words in Context

Distinguishing between Fact and Opinion

Making Logical Inferences

Summarizing

For grammar: I made a 98%

Adjective

Adverb

Confusing Word Pairs

Affect vs Effect

Among vs Between

Good vs Well

Bad vs Badly

Farther vs Further

Hear vs Here

Lie vs Lay

Eight Parts of Speech

Pronoun Use

Independent and dependent clauses

Subject and Verb Agreement

Vocab I made a 92%... The vocab section is just really tough to describe because you can't really memorize all the words in the English language, so what I would suggest is looking up practice worksheets on how to find the meaning of words when you don't know what they mean: context clues. Just practice doing a lot of those and then it shouldn't matter what vocab word you come across, if you know how to look for context clues, it'll be easier to figure it out.

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Thanks!! I am going to take the HESI this fall, at our school it only includes Reading and Math. No science

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This is great!! Thanks

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Thanks ladies. Please let me know if I could be of any other help. @rob95 the reading and math are one of the sections that are so time consuming!

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I am so nervous about this exam. I am horrible at math when I feel time looming over me, I basically panic. Were there a lot of percentages and algebra questions? Thanks!

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Hi @erialexa28 there were very few algebra questions...maybe like 5. I would focus my energy on fractions, ratios, and yes percentages. When is your test date?

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I am so nervous about this exam. I am horrible at math when I feel time looming over me, I basically panic. Were there a lot of percentages and algebra questions? Thanks!

aww dont' be nervous! The fact that you are nervous tells me you know how important it is to study! Yes, there were percentage questions, like turn 66.4% into a decimal (answer is .664). There was very little algebra and I would mostly study on proportions, word ratio and fraction problems. Let me know if you need more advice or send me a private mesage!

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Wow! This post was so helpful. I am so incredibly nervous to take the exam! Would you say the first time you didn't do too well, was because of a lack of studying. I have started studying a few hours a day and plan to take it in october. I hope I am prepared enough!

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Hey @tayloralexus, no problem I am so happy to help. I know it's a stressful time. Honest, I think I failed because I was so much in my head and really nervous. You have to really get a hold of yourself mentally and psychology. I would freak out and think I'm spending too much on one thing or too many details. That was also part of the reason I failed is because I didn't really study right. You have to study the general topics and then going into detail of each human body system. It helps to know exactly what to study. My best advice is to know the fundamentals of each human body system like the bank of your hand, and then if a random (which it will) very, super detailed question comes up, then you can use context clues and your strong knowledge of the basics to make an educated guess.

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hey do you have the grammar and biology study guides?

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