i took nclex last week and it took me 1 hour and 45 minutes in answering 75 items of the exam before the computer stops.:heartbeat at first i felt devastated because the minimum no. of question is 75 and it means either i passed because i'm smart or i failed because i answered majority of the questions wrong.
i didn't even given a chance to use my optional break. as i go out of the testing center, my knees are shaking thinking that i failed and all of the efforts i did will be wasted and that maybe i finished the exam too fast that i didn't focus answering each item.
i have my lunch with my cousin who also taken the exam. we both look at each other's eyes thinking if we passed. both of our computer stopped after question 75. we talked about the questions we've encountered and realized that 6 items on our exam are actually the same.
it added to the anxiety that we have because some of our answers are different!
after we ate our lunch we decided to call our professor for him to check if we passed using the pearson vue trick. we waited for 3 hours until he called me saying that i got the good pop up and i passed! it felt really good because all the sata questions that i answered are hard and i don't know if i got them right. however, my cousin waited additional 2 hours for her to know that she got the good pop up too. hooray! we both passed and both are parents are screaming happily that both of us beat the nclex beast.
preparation is the key to success and i know it's hard. you have to be disciplined, consistent and focused when taking each steps on becoming a certified rn!! so here i am sharing what i did on one of the most significant events of my life. i hope i will inspire future nclex takers.
*i would like to say sorry for some of the inconsistencies of my grammar because english is our second language and it's my weakness. i'm not as fluent like you guys but i'm trying my best to express myself clearly.
i started around december of last year while i'm still processing my ces application. i decided to start early because i'm a kind of person who needs plenty of time when studying and i don't want to rush on things. below are the materials i used:
saunder's 5th edition:
i love this book! i owe everything that i know from this book. it highlights important details that are commonly asked at the exam. i recommend doing every post exam at the end of each chapter. it's helpful in retaining important information.
*i got 2-4 items wrong in every post exam.
la charity
invest on this book coz it will help you prepare on prioritization and delegation questions which are majority of the questions that i had during my exam.
here are my scores: (1st try---2nd try)
chapter 1: 70%---90%
chapter 2: 48%---85%
chapter 3: 86%---91%
chapter 4: 75%---71%
chapter 5: 61%---91%
chapter 6: 57%---83%
chapter 7: 76%---91%
chapter 8: 50%---64%
chapter 9: 71%---84%
chapter 10: 57%---71%
chapter 11: 69%---73%
chapter 12: 53%---67%
chapter 13: 80%---75%
chapter 14: 90%---100%
chapter 15: 62%---85%
chapter 16: 69%---79%
chapter 17: 56%---96%
chapter 18: 53%---71%
exam cram
good in reviewing your content. i did all of the chapters and reviewed the items that i got wrong.
here are my scores:
test 1--- 75%
test2--- 69%
test3--- 76%
test4--- 70%
test5--- 74%
nclex 3500
i answered all of the questions! it helps me a lot in dealing my exam. great on practicing sata question.
kaplan qtrainer
a must have! i think it's a great tool to assess your competency. i find it harder than the actual nclex exam. i answered it 2 weeks before my exam and it helps build my confidence.
here are my scores:
test 1--- 77%
test2--- 72%
test3--- 69%
test4--- 67%
test5--- 67%
test 6--- (-)
test7--- 69%
*important: memorize different disease that requires airborne, droplet and contact precautions. it appears on my exam ranging from 5-6 items.
know your meds because 4 items on my exam asked for "which medication order will you intervene".
don't forget to take a break! you need it trust me, don't pressure yourself.:cheers:
lastly, be prepared for anything because the exam is very random. i didn't encounter ob and ped question. i only got 1 computation and 1 psyche question and it asked for the characteristics of a person with histrionic personality.
pray!!! don't forget to ask for guidance and wisdom from our lord the creator. it will help you relax and be confident that you are not alone in answering the exam, but you are with him and together, both of you are taking the nclex.
and also say a prayer to st. joseph of cupertino.
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i would like to offer a heartfelt 'thank you' to all the people here that spend their time trying to help others out and to this wonderful site for being a source of significant information. 
