How an average student passed the NCLEX in 75 questions with low Kaplan scores

Hello nursing students,

I told myself that when I passed the NCLEX, I would post my story in hopes to inspire others and ease their anxieties. To begin, I was a "B/C" student in nursing school. I managed a couple A's here and there, but I did struggle throughout nursing school. I had a lot of anxiety (especially when it came to taking exams) and a poor attention span. Compared to others, I had to study longer and do more work to receive the same grades (and at times, to barely pass). In nursing school, there was a 75% passing score on our exams. I was one of the students who constantly received a lower mark and had to go to extra tutoring with teachers, mentoring, and so on. In nursing school, they had us do ATI and I was constantly receiving low marks as well...below level 0 and level 1. I received a level 2 once on mental health. In the ATI predictor at the end of the semester, it said I had a 54% pass rate on the NCLEX. Despite all of the struggles, I passed nursing school.

The next step would be to pass the NCLEX... It was very frightening to think about how a single exam can determine whether or not I can be a nurse. Despite doing well in clinicals and simulations, I knew my biggest weakness was focusing and sitting down to take an exam. As a student, with ADHD and anxiety, it took me much longer to study than others and I knew, I had to fully prepare before I took the NCLEX. I wanted to pass my first try because I didn't want to have to face that dreaded exam again and the anxiety of studying that came with it.

I also received my ATT much later because I had a juvenile history of theft and I received a citation for an open bottle container when I was 21 (but those are other stories all together). I am now 25. I turned in all the paperwork related to my past troubles and waited. I waited and waited and decided to just take a mental break -I must admit I am a bit of a pessimist and half-heartedly believed that I would never receive my ATT. I didn't study for about a month. I had graduated June 2016. It wasn't until August 11 that I received my ATT but I hadn't been studying! (I kicked myself in the butt for this, but it is what it is...) Well, so I decided to extend Virtual ATI (VATI) tutor that the school had paid for us and I did many practice questions, made notecards and wrote in a journal on everything I didn't know. I scheduled my exam the end of September so I had enough time to study. It was nearing the end of September and took the predictor exam for ATI and it said that my chance of passing NCLEX was 65%. I was devastated. I thought I had learned enough but I didn't. I decided to push the exam again to October 11 and I decided to utilize Kaplan. Other classmates were taking and passing the exam, and even getting job offers...It was very difficult for me because I couldn't help comparing myself to them. I wanted to rush but at the same time, I knew myself and I knew that I needed more time.

I started Kaplan and realized that it would be very time consuming. So, you guessed it, I pushed my exam again (and the last time) to October 26. I studied every day 5-6 hours a day and closer to the end, almost 8 hours a day. My kaplan scores included these:

Diagnostic Score: 62%

Question Trainer 1: 65%

Question Trainer 2: 57%

Question Trainer 3: 47%

Question Trainer 4: 53%

Question Trainer 5: 51%

Question Trainer 6: 53%

Question Trainer 7: 53% (I repeated this exam one more time as well, but it reuses the same questions. Instead of memorizing the answer, I focused on WHY it was the answer and the rationales behind it the second time taking it)

I did all the Qbank questions, 75 questions each time and I never reused the questions. My overall Qbank average is: 58%

Nclex sample test 1: 54%

Nclex sample test 2: 50%

Who do you see first test 3: 52%

Alternate format test: 26%

Readiness Test: 67% (which translates as a 97-98% chance of passing NCLEX)

As you can see, my scores rarely reached about 65%, and even 60%! BUT I studied... I made sure I remediated each exam. I was upset whenever I didn't reach 60%, but I kept going. I made more notecards, wrote more notes in my journal, used memorization tricks, learned concepts and so on.

I took the test October 26, 2016 and it stopped at 75 questions! I was shocked because I was fully prepared to sit there for all 265. Realistically, I was expecting 120-150 questions. After the exam ended at 75 questions, I sat there and stared at the screen in a bit of shock. I spent the next 48 hours in complete fear. The more time that passed, the more I thought that I failed. I received a lot of infection control, delegation, and prioritization questions; 6-10 SATA, EKG, and drag and drop. I made sure to practice breathing exercises and muscle tension/release exercises before starting the exam. I focused to the best of my ability. I utilized the white board and pen for every question even if it was just to write the topic of the question on the board. I used ear plugs and tried not to chew my nails down to the knuckle. I felt so in the zone that I hadn't even noticed how much time had passed. I did 75 questions in 2 hours.

And so, I waited. I didn't even do the PVT trick because I was so anxious. I just waited and lo and behold, when I looked at my Breeze account, I saw my license number and saw my status as current, and an expiraton date.

So guys... I did it, and so can you! Believe in yourselves, study hard, and don't give up. Go at your own pace and follow your dreams.