So I just took the Hesi A2 today. And, frankly I am happy that it wasn't as difficult as I perceived it to be. I didn't buy the guide, but I did find some free ones on the internet that gave a lay-out of what it would consist of. Apparently, the test ranges 3-4 hours. However, I got done in about an hour and fifty minutes. And, I'm far from genius, believe me! This is what I remember from it....
Math section
80-90% of this section consists of fractions. So, definitely be extremely comfortable with adding, multiplying, dividing, and subtracts all types. Like 5 and 3/5 multiplied by 6 and 4/7....or....6 and 7/8 divided by 8 and 11/15. I posted a thread "those dreaded fractions..." that leads to a site that is very nice and will improve your ability in fraction conversion. I guarantee it!
Also, it consisted of basic, basic, basic word problems. Like 7th grade stuff. Really easy. Plus the test has an integrated calculator that you can use, so that is handy.
Also, be comfortable with ratios, Roman numerals(What is XVI or XXI, etc.) percentages, liquid measures(pints, gallons, quarts, etc.) IE. How many pints in a gallon? Round to the nearest tenth.
(Check out the math site I posted, big help!)
Sorry, lots of "also."
Grammar section
Almost the entire section was something similar to this....
Directions-Add the word that makes the following sentence grammatically correct.
John_________ a police officer for 25 years.
a. is
b. was
c. were
d. has
Obviously, "was" would be the right answer. So, even if your grammar skills aren't the best, single out what definitely would not work, and then make an educated, "what sounds correct" guess. We've all been reading and writing English for some time and we have an ability to hear what sounds right and what sounds wrong. I would suspect that almost anyone could narrow the choices down to the "sounds" correct method I've proposed. If your grammar skills are really, really bad, well, I would recommend you find help at your tutor center, or I'm sure you could find something on the internet to help. Another point to consider, read everything out loud Slowly if an answer doesn't "pop" out at you. I did this whenever I noticed I was skimming through the question, and when I read it aloud, this really made the difference.
Reading Comprehension
This section was also pretty easy. Each reading portion is roughly 2-4 paragraphs, and each paragraph didn't extend passed 5-6 sentences, and there was about 8 reading portions all together. The reading itself was pretty basic, and also, didn't include very many difficult words to understand. There wasn't much to comprehend because the questions showed up underneath the paragraph after you are done reading, so even if you forget what you just read, you can simply re-read it, and answer the question.
The questions were something like....
1. What is the author implying?
2. What does the word "imply" mean in paragraph 2?(I couldn't think of a better word, they select random words within the reading)
3. Does the author agree with what he or she is writing about?
Biology Portion
This part is a little harder to explain, The questions asked about.....
What is the total magnification of a 10x ocular and 40x objective?
The answer would be 400x
What is the part of the microscope that the specimen is placed on?
The answer would be stage
I would say your best bet is to know prokaryote vs. eukaryote cells-very well!
Know the anatomy and physiology of each type of cell
Know the various methods cells use the bring in fluids and nutrients...
IE Osmosis, Diffusion, Passive vs. Active transport, Endocytosis, Exocytosis, Pinocytosis
Know the taxonomy arrangement(This should be burned in your memory anyway from previous biology classes)
Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus
Species
NOTE- The points I've just mentioned are by no means the only facets of biology you should be familiar with, I'm stating what I thought the biology portion mainly consisted of...Keep that in mind.
Vocabulary and General Knowledge
This part wasn't too bad either(commom reoccurring theme). The words themselves were just about "every day" words a person would use. I would say if you read a fair amount(which most college students do), you should be fine in the vocabulary "department." As far as the general knowledge part, I can't say much here. This is actually the portion where I received the worst scores. The general knowledge didn't seem so "general" to me. It partially consisted of nursing "know-how" and alittle bit of nursing terminology-not simply medical terminology. This somewhat confused me considering I'm taking this test to get into the program. How am I supposed to know this stuff when I'm not in it yet? But, the solution I suppose would be to buy some-sort of study guide that is available(something I didn't do), to be better prepared for this area.
NOTE- The reading comprehension portion was actually broken down into 4 sub-groups, which are incorporated throughtout this section(something I also didn't know until I received my scores-it's completely random)
The 4 sub-groups are...
1.Meaning-Word use
2.Conclusions
3.Implications
4.Understandings
So, you receive a score for each sub-group, and you receive an average of all four scores of the sub-groups for the final Reading Comprehension score.
There is also 2 more sections, which were not required to take: A&P and chemistry.
I thought about taking them, but I was afraid if I didn't do well on either of them, their scores would drag down my entire score. From what I understand, some schools require these to be taken, so if you have taken A&P and chemistry, you should be fine. I would assume they are just as general as the biology section.
The "jist" I get from the test is to test your knowledge on various subjects and to assess your "likelihood" of completing the nursing program. Seriously, I would NOT stress over this test like it's going to make or break you. This is not the ultimate deciding factor of you getting into the program. I would however, consider buying the study guide just for general assesment and to see where your weak and strong points are. Obviously, focus on your weak points(That's what I would do). Just sit back and relax, and take it like any other test. If you always get test anxiety, I've felt and noticed preparation is the best deterrent for that anxiety.
Good luck!!!
