1 minute for each question in nursing school

[RescueNinja123]

Okay, we get 1 minute and 3 seconds but still I believe that is a little unfair. I am having a hard time with this, I always end up rushing at the end and then mess up on my answers. What should I do? I am slow reader and often times read difficult questions 2-3 times. Do you have any tips on how to answer critical thinking questions in such a short amount of time? My plan was to skip to the easy questions 1st but I have to read them in order to know if they are easy or hard, which might take more time? Do you think it's best for me to drink coffee before the test? (Some students even take adderall).

[pmabraham, BSN, RN]

Don't forget that any and all breaks that you take during this time also count toward your total time.. So in 5 hours that 1.5 min per question will decrease with breaks

That only matters if you take breaks.

[203bravo, MSN, APRN]

That only matters if you take breaks.

True enough -- but trust me you are going to take a break or two if you sit there for 5 hours :)

[they_see_me_rollin]

Agree with previous post... your school is preparing you for taking the NCLEX! In NCLEX, just in case you are intended to take the full 265 questions, the magic rule is 1 minute per question. You cannot skip a question on nursing board exam. You only have one chance in answering it, you cannot go back

Some of the questions are not that hard that you can answer for less than 1 minute. This will compensate some of the difficult questions that may take you to answer for more than a minute.

[LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN]

The best way is to learn WHAT the question is asking you; identify key words and phrases to choose the BEST answer.

1 minute 3 seconds is fine; most of the questions in nursing school are not always that difficult; most of the time it seems that way be used one spends too much time reading into the question instead of looking for the identifiers and the best answers.

[Purple_roses]

DO NOT drink coffee before a test! You will not be able to focus. Drink lots of water, pee before your test, eat a simple snack before the test, but do not caffeinate yourself. People who take Adderall need a stimulus to correct their problem with focusing, usually due to ADD/ADHD. People who do not have ADD/ADHD would be bouncing off the walls!

Anyways, I feel you. Timed tests absolutely suck.

[pmabraham, BSN, RN]

In our schools case, we have to fill out a scantron in addition to marking up the original test (i.e. circle answers) and all dosage calculations are on the paper portion (not the scantron). 1 minute per question might be ok if you didn't have to transfer answers.

[RescueNinja123]

Thank you guys so much. The first thing I am going to do is make sure I know my information well and then do practice questions.