kaplan vs saunders

soontobenurse2 · Jul 6, 2007

I agree with you!!! I was just talking to my friend about this same situation.

When I look at the Sauders questions I can pick out the answer right away. I like you I'm doing better in the Saunders than in the Kaplan. Hopefully this is a good sign!!!!

Good luck on your test!!!!

Kinkle · Jul 7, 2007

The questions on the NCLEX are harder than Saunders in that you can narrow the question down to two options and then have to really critically think out the correct answer; unlike Saunders where I found you usually can pull out the answer or just have no idea. I did use Saunders as a tool to prepare for the test, as well as, learning.ext, and a small bit of Kaplan with a friend. I believe if I had only used Saunders I would have been in trouble on the test because I would have become frustrated at the difficulty level of the test. Just my thoughts though, everyone is different. Best of luck to you and hope this helps.

**RosesrReder, BSN, MSN, RN** · Jul 7, 2007

I too took Kaplan and scoring in 60's but doing high 80's on Saunder's. I put away the Kaplan and focusing just on 'content' and I believe Saunder's is the best way to go!

Good luck

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Jul 7, 2007

how come saunder's questions are easier than kaplan? i am getting about 55% to 64% on kaplan and 80% on saunders. is it just me? i took the kaplan course and have done almost everything on kaplan q bank and the 7 tetst saving the last one for next monday.. the day before boards 7/17... is saunder's giving me false reassurance. not that i am reassured at all. i am so nervous. also is it true we can't chew gum during boards? everyone please pray for me.

Saunders' questions are easier, I think the huge majority posting here over the last year that I've been looking has come to that conclusion at some point. For what it's worth, getting 55%-64% on Kaplan tests puts you well within the passing range! While they say "65% is passing", the majority of test-takers do seem to pass with considerably less as their average. Kaplan questions are very comprehensive, designed much like the NCLEX questions themselves, and (IMO) are actually harder than the NCLEX when all is said and done.

Don't make yourself crazy. If you're doing that well with Kaplan, you're doing well. I can tell you that when I found myself missing Kaplan questions in a certain area, I'd go to the Saunders' ones and brush up on content. Then went back to Kaplan to see if I could apply the knowledge I'd gained :)

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Jul 7, 2007

I too took Kaplan and scoring in 60's but doing high 80's on Saunder's. I put away the Kaplan and focusing just on 'content' and I believe Saunder's is the best way to go!
Good luck

Well, yes and no. Putting away Kaplan to focus on Saunders' content is smart, if you're missing certain questions regularly and need to learn more of the content. However, once you've done that, in order to pass the NCLEX questions, you'll need to know how to use that knowledge to critically think through the choices. The Kaplan questions (and the NCLEX ones) are not as straight-forward, as easy to choose from as Saunders.

They both have a purpose :)