KAPLAN Pre ENTRANCE Exam

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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Just wanted to post some useful information regarding the Kaplan pre-entrance exam because it was difficult to find information. The HESI and Teas have been around much longer and the Kaplan is fairly new, comparatively. The test is comprised of 4 parts: Reading Comprehension, Math, Writing, and Science in that order. It is approximately 3 hours and 91 questions. The reading comp section utilizes a split screen on your monitor, which is very helpful. You read four passages, I believe, and answer a few questions about each. There is a calculator window you can use during the math section.

The Kaplan-published book for nursing entrance exams was almost useless. The reading comprehension section was similar, but that's where it ends because the book is designed to cover every major nursing entrance exam. The other tests cover topics such as chemistry, physics, biology, geometry and the Kaplan does not.

I used a basic math book for nurses to review and that's all that is needed. The math section is fractions, fractions and more fractions (adding, multiplying, converting - you get the picture) decimals, addition, percentages and word problems that weren't very scary. I am terrible at math and scored an A on that section because it was basic and I practiced for a few hours.

The writing section was harder than we thought. There is subject-verb agreement, which isn't difficult, but questions like "after which sentence should this topic be introduced" left us feeling like more than one answer seemed correct. I missed more than I thought I would!

The science section is ONLY physiology, and some pretty specific physiology questions at that. I have not taken A&P II and it was by far my lowest score...a 60. My overall score was 84% and my critical thinking score was 94% and those are the two scores my school uses when reviewing scores. For the science section, I would recommend reviewing your A&P notes on the systems Kaplan lists and/or purchasing the A&P Cliffs Notes book. However, the questions were difficult and the book couldn't have prepared me the way A&P II would have.

All in all, I didn't find the Kaplan to be as difficult as I worried it would be.

Thanks for the detailed information. I'm also finding that the Kaplan study guide is useless. Hopefully, just brushing up on my A and P with the cliffs notes study guide will be a sufficient enough review to score high. Congrats on your scores, by the way.

Thank you. I was pretty worried about it but if I wasn't accepted I did not want it to be as a result of these scores so I was very happy with the result. Just know basic math and conversions (especially those fractions!) and I did find it helpful to review the Kaplan book's reading comprehension quizzes. If you do those quizzes, I think you'll find the actual test is actually easier. The math, vocabulary, and science section in that book are useless. I forgot to add that I went through the science quizzes and just tried to answer only physiology questions. The math I didn't look at, because it was much more than what was needed and the basic math book for nurses was perfect. There was absolutely nothing I found to practice the writing section. The vocabulary section in the Kaplan book is absolutely not a part of the Kaplan-produced test and I don't want anyone wasting time studying it. The writing portion is paragraph logic, subject-verb agreement, etc. Good luck! I only had about a week to review so I think you'll be fine!

Can you tell us which math book for nursing you used?

Awesome, thank you. I'm due to take mine in April.

Specializes in Psychiatry.
Can you tell us which math book for nursing you used?

Davis Math Review for Nurses is EXCELLENT and shows you step by step in a very easy to understand format how to solve anything you will see on an entrance exam. I highly recommend it. You may even be lucky enough to find it at your school or public library.

Meeep do you go to gwinnett tech? What kind of math problems does it have? Like a nurse needs to administer 6 ml of X medicine in a solution of 150 ml. At what rate would you set transfusion of the medicine so the patient receives it at 1.5 ml/ min? Stuff like that? That's the only kind of question I remember from my first go at the test. I was so nervous I got a 59 in reading lol. I had that same problem however taking the compass. But I went back not long after and made a decent grade so I'm concerned with the math word problems.

Specializes in Psychiatry.

No, I do not. Just thought if recommend the book. It has every kind of math you need for nursing. If you want strictly dosage calculations and don't need help with other types of math you may encounter, a dosage calc book would also be helpful.

I have been told by people who took it twice that their questions were the same. Even by people from my school who got into the program. Should I go by this and just study mostly what I remember from my first exam? I remember a few questions that were strange.

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