I just took my Nclex on Feb. 20, 2014, and I found out on Feb. 22nd that I am a REGISTERED NURSE! I'm coming to you with my tips because I greatly appreciated other people sharing their advice to me before i took the test.
Let me start out by saying that I was never the greatest student in nursing school, definitely more of a lazy student. When I decided to start studying for Nclex, I decided to take the plunge and get Kaplan. It really did hurt spending so much money, but I do not regret it.
i studied like it was my job, it is truly the only way to do it. set your alarm every morning, and go to the library or starbucks or wherever you like to study at the same time everyday and don't be late, ACT LIKE STUDYING IS YOUR JOB; i cant stress that enough. i went through and watched all of the kaplan lectures, and took notes on every single one. it is very time consuming, but it is a good refresher for EVERYTHING. they go over every little detail, and it truly helps. i'll be honest, i did not read the kaplan course book that went along with it. after watching all of the lectures, i did qbank quizzes. by the end of my studying journey, i did every single q bank question. and DONT worry about the grades you get on the quizzes, just pay attention to the rationales. read every single rationale, even if you got it right. i would go through the rationales, and take notes on every single question (i find if i write something down, i will remember it better). i then went on to the question trainers, i did 1-6, i never got to the last one, and i did the same thing, i would take the test (not get a very good grade), and then go over the rationales and write everything down. on the qbanks, my grades ranged from high 40's to the 60's with a few 70's and 80's thrown in there, and every single one of my question trainers i got a grade in the 50's. so remember, do not get discouraged if youre not getting 80's and 90's, just pay attention to why you got the questions wrong. i cannot stress enough the importance of doing practice questions, whether you have kaplan or not, PRACTICE practice practice answering questions. every single day. do about 100-200 a day, no more than 200. you get the most random questions on nclex, things you may have never heard of, so if you practice answering enough questions, you will get better at making smart guesses on questions you dont know the answer to.
I got 100 questions on Nclex, and I know everyone gets so concerned with the amount of questions they get, but really, dont think about it too much. I know people that passed in 75, failed in 75, passed at 150, and passed at all 256. do not stress out about the number of questions you get. if youre in the middle of taking the test, and it gets to number 76, be happy! that means you are still in the game, and you are in it! so don't get discouraged, you are doing great! i got a TON of SATA questions, so many that i thought there was no way i was going to pass, and i got 2 drag and drops and no math. i got a few meds, most of them i had never heard of.
the best advice i can give to you is just to practice your questions. i did a lot of praying, and A LOT of talking to myself. i know it sounds silly, but for the few days leading up to the test, i would constantly say to myself, "you can do this. youve worked so hard, you've got this." remember to take deep breaths, and truly believe in yourself with all that you've got that you can pass the exam. trust me, i am not a naturally smart person, i had to WORK my butt off for this test, but i did it, and so can you. work hard because trust me, you will feel SO amazing when you see the word "Pass" and you can call all of your family and friends and tell them that you're a nurse! :-)
