At the end of my last semester in school we were required to take and pass the Hesi exam with a score of 850 in order to graduate. This exam and the review course we were required to take cost us $275. If you scored below an 850 you had to reschedule and pay another $30. If you failed yet again, another $30. After that you failed the course and had to repeat the semester the following year.
Our school's syllabus clearly states, "Students are required to pass the Hesi exam with a score of at least 850 or a 'F' will be recorded for the semester and the student will have to retake the course."
I, like many others in our class, failed the Hesi the first time around because of an incompetent OB instructor who thankfully was fired at the end of the semester (but that's another horror story for another time). I passed after the second time and went on with my life and my studying for boards.
Last week I recieved a call from another student that several people had taken the Hesi for the fourth time and that two students had failed it yet again. The twist though is that the school decided to go ahead and graduate those two students anyway.
To make a way too long post short... Do I have any right to be as angry as I am right now? I feel like all the hard work I put in to not only pass the course but to pass the Hesi was completely invalidated by this decision.
Sorry if I'm a bit dim here...but what is the HESI test?
I never took it--I had to take an "NCLEX-like" test that was designed by nursing staff at my school. Then it was off to taking the NCLEX. I keep hearing of HESI, and just assumed it was an educational tool that my school just doesn't use. But hearing you talk about it, it sounds like a big deal. And I looked online, and it looks like you have to pay for it!
I'm in a direct entry program, so maybe that has something to do with why I didn't take it? But I don't think undergrads have to take it either...
Specializes in Infection Preventionist/ Occ Health.
I would probably feel a sense of injustice just as you do. However, you are right to try not to let it affect you too much. The other students who were passed despite their poor HESI scores will still have to pass boards and make it through an orientation program.
The reputation of the school may impact someone's initial impression of your level of knowledge, but once they get to know you I believe that they will judge your skills and abilities on an individual basis.
I try not to base my opinion of a nurse on what program he or she attended. It is true that some programs are better than others, but it is entirely possible for someone to shine in a bad program, or slip through the cracks in a good program for that matter.
kanzi monkey
618 Posts
Sorry if I'm a bit dim here...but what is the HESI test?
I never took it--I had to take an "NCLEX-like" test that was designed by nursing staff at my school. Then it was off to taking the NCLEX. I keep hearing of HESI, and just assumed it was an educational tool that my school just doesn't use. But hearing you talk about it, it sounds like a big deal. And I looked online, and it looks like you have to pay for it!
I'm in a direct entry program, so maybe that has something to do with why I didn't take it? But I don't think undergrads have to take it either...
Thanks!