HESI tips

[RNtobe17]

I said i would make a post about the HESI after i took it to help people out and try and help people not make the same mistakes as i did

I got an 88% which is not as good as i wanted, and I know what I should have done differently.

First of all, dont over dramatize this test. The more you make yourself overwhelmed and nervous, the worse you will do on the test. I was breaking out in hives I was so nervous, and it showed on my score. I really wish I would have just remained calm and focussed because the test honestly is not bad. The first section i did was reading, then grammar, math, vocab - these are the only ones i had to take for my school

BIG mistake - take the easier sections FIRST because you will be distracted and nervous when you first sit down and taking the sections that are harder for you will only make it worse. My scores went up as I went from section to section because I started coming to my senses.

Math:

This was the easiest section and no... im not a "math genius" haha - i just studied what was in the evolve hesi a2 book that i got from my school

- this book totally prepares you for the test - i 100% recommend getting it

- the book is not meant for you just to read it and stop there - take the information and practice it, the things that you have a hard time with - find practice worksheets online and practice doing the problems

- you have to know how to convert gallons, quarts, pints, cups, and ounces - if you dont know how to do this, google it. youtube it. or check out itunes U. Also know how to move up and down the metric system - from base (meters, liters, gram) to the left and right (KHDBDCM)

- know how to work proportions x/6 = 5/9 or x:5::6:8

- know how to get from percent to decimal, decimal to percent, and decimal to fraction

- know how to add, subtract, multiply, and divide fractions - and reduce, find the common denominator

all of these things are really easy once you remember how to do all of it - just refresh your memory and practice and you will do great - i got a 98

Reading

I have always managed to just wing this section in all big tests - and manage to do well.

NOT THIS TIME. I made a 76 - the required score to apply was a 75 - YES very close and it brought my score down down down. I was so upset about this.

- the articles were not hard to read or to understand - think it was because i chose to do this section first because i knew it would take up the most time - well it took even longer than usual because I had to reread and reread because my mind was just thinking a thousand other things

- i would save this section for the end because as you take the test you get more and more focussed and when you read, you NEED to be super focussed

- the questions were: words from the article -- what is its meaning, authors purpose, summary of the passage (the hardest for me)

- i would definitely practice doing this -- just find articles and ask yourself these questions

- become an active reader - pay attention to the words the author is using

grammar - i got an 88

- i took the information out of the evolve book and took it further

- subject verb agreement - i googled it and tons of practice sheets came up and they helped me a lot!!!

- take each thing the book covers and go make sure you actually know how to do it because things that you think that you know how to do might get you.

- make sure you definitely practice misplaced modifiers and look for this on the test - they will get it. I know you think its easy but some can be quite tricky

- know the common mistakes people make - misspelled words, punctuation, affect and effect, can and may, could and might, prescription and perscription(wrong), direct object, indirect object, lie and lay, aid and aide, further and farther, bring and take

- googel hesi grammar and there are a lot of practice tests, and flash cards - id look through these

vocabulary - i got a 94

i was really scared of this section and if you arent good at vocabulary - you should prepare as much as you can

- i knew all the words out of the evolve book - i would say that about half of the words came from here

- i googled hesi vocab and made flash cards for all the extra words i found

- maybe i went over the top but it helped and it was worth it because a bunch of these works were on the test

- in the back of the evolve book, there are more vacab words - dont forget to learn these too

- you can do good on this if you prepare and just try to get as many vocab words in your mind as possible - that is the only way to prepare for this section

Another really great tool is the hesi evolve app - i think its like $25, but it is worth it!! A bunch of stuff came from this app. I was very glad that i bought this app.

Good luck -- remember to not stress out and make yourself so nervous you cant focus on the test

Think positive thoughts and just be prepared

You can do it

[RNtobe17]

How long were the reading passages ?

Not long at all. Like a paragraph. But there were so many. It was very annoying. Every couple questions there was a new paragraph to read. & BC it was just a little paragraph, and if was so unorganized it was hard to answer the questions. I still wouldn't be able to tell you exactly what I missed or what to study to get good at that section. I guess you are just good at that kind of stuff or not.

[laura1129]

Oh okay. Because the practice ones are like four paragraphs long lol so I was just wondering. Practice makes perfect! Thanks a lot

[an1129]

Hi there. Your post was very helpful.

Was there a lot of percent word problem? E.g " what was the original price of $65.74 with a 30 percent discount?"

For ratios, how were word problems set up?

[RNtobe17]

Hi there. Your post was very helpful.

Was there a lot of percent word problem? E.g " what was the original price of $65.74 with a 30 percent discount?"

For ratios, how were word problems set up?

Hey hey. I'm glad it helped you out.

There were very few word problems.

I honestly don't remember any percent word problems. The few word problems they had were simple math.. subtracting, multiplying, adding. There were some ratio word problems it was something like "4 apples for $3 how many for would you get for $5" so you'd have to set up the ratio. 4/$3::x/$5. Super easy. I only missed one on math. And it was a fraction problem. I was running out of time. I did the math section in like 20 minutes. I had to go as fast as possible to finish. Watch your time. We didn't have a clock. So wear a watch and keep track. :)

[RNtobe17]

Hi there. Your post was very helpful.

Was there a lot of percent word problem? E.g " what was the original price of $65.74 with a 30 percent discount?"

For ratios, how were word problems set up?

I just want to add that you should still prepare for percent word problems because the tests are different. I just don't want you to not prepare for that and not do good. My friend took the Hesi the week before me and tried to give me as much information as possible and what she explained about her test was nothing like my test. So try to be prepared for anything thrown your way.

But don't be nervous. It's not that bad. I promise.

[an1129]

Oh wow those types of questions are really easy for me since I studied for a good month. Im taking my exam on Thursday, and math doesn't come naturally to me. The only killer for me would be word problems dealing with percents. I know how to set up the problems as proportions. And for the ratios, that's the furthest I know as well ( the problem you included). I started researching about ratio word problems and I was about to rip my hair off of my head asking myself what this is lol-they were much more detailed.

Anyhow, thanks for your insight. Math was never something im good at. Hopefully it's as easy as you make it seem 😊

Thanks

[an1129]

Oh wow. Lol. Okay then.. I guess I have to study everything I am weak at.

Thank you so much

[RNtobe17]

I know EXACTLY how you feel. I was so insanely nervous I just wanted to break down and cry... prayer -- a lot of prayer got me through the test. At one point I had to stop, close my eyes and say Lord please help me calm down.

My nerves were out of control. I have never ever been so nervous, scared, frantic in all my life. It really was a terrible feeling. I wish I would have just calmed down and relaxed because I know I could have made in the high 90's - it really is easy stuff.

The math is not hard. As long as you studied the hesi book, you are prepared. Those problems are the exact same as the test. So if thats your biggest worry, then you have nothing to worry about.

Good luck. Please come back to this thread and tell me how you did :)

[an1129]

The way you described how you feel is the same exact way I am feeling. Last night I had to put my books away to relax and pray and take a deep breath and just close my eyes and rest my mind a bit. I keep telling myself if I dont do good there is always a second time. Well it's good to know im not alone lol.

But really, thank you so much. You put my mind at ease.

Hopefully I come on here tomorrow to tell you I passed 😄 lol wish me luck!

[robert82882]

I took mine today and passed!!! I feel like my math questions were not like the book at all...but who cares, I still passed.

[an1129]

What do you mean? What kind of math questions were they?

[an1129]

And congratulations on passing!