My Story: How I Crushed the NCLEX RN 1st Try

[ccfl7, BSN, RN]

Three months before I graduated, I began applying for jobs and accepted a position at an amazing hospital; one I had dreamed of working at since I first heard it mentioned on Grey's Anatomy! The pressure to pass NCLEX within 90 days from graduation (their rule) should've been on, but I'm a bit of a study procrastinator... I always think "oh I can wait to study, I've always done that and passed despite being scared out of my mind." Instead of devoting my time to studying, I decided to start my state application. I began the out of state ATT process (which was awful) and that whole terrible ordeal lasted 2 months because of a state wide license/ATT issuing freeze. After many unsuccessful attempts, I was finally able to get in contact with the state board and the state level FBI and they pushed my application through. I scheduled a test date a bit over a month from that day. I did not study for those initial 2 months, instead I worked a bit, vacationed and just enjoyed my summer.

Programs I used and loved (or hated) to study:

My school required us to buy KAPLAN at a whopping cost of 700 bucks.. what a WASTE. I found the decision tree to be confusing and it applied to 1/4 of the practice questions I did. It also took way too long. I gave up before I even started, literally only doing the Trainers required for school and never tapping into the videos or Q banks. It may be your thing, but it didn't work for me.

HURST:

The Hurst reps came to my school to advertise their program which I bought without hesitation (350$). I did a live review in December 2015 which helped me in my preceptorship, and I did a second live review that was free (it's in their terms and conditions that you can take it 2x for one price) after I graduated. I thought the review was great and although I could "teach" the material like they say you should be able to, I wasn't able to recall it as quickly and relate it to questions well. I took the 1st Q bank two weeks after my 2nd live review (mid July) and I only got a 78/125 which is lower than they say you should be at- 84/125. So naturally I panicked.

SAUNDERS:

I called my friend who just passed and I explained my fear with Hurst and she had the same problem. She bought the Comprehensive Saunders Review book and let me borrow it along with her online passcode for questions. I read the whole dang thing in about a week, all 1000 pages. I often fell asleep in the book too. I was getting ALL of their questions right and I felt I was really doing well.

UWORLD:

So over casual conversation another friend that recently passed, she told me that she swore by UWORLD. I did my first 75 question randomized practice test and only got a 55%... CRAP. I decided to devote my last week of studying to UWORLD. I read on this forum that people should write down their rationales for wrong answers but I didn't bother since I didn't have much time. Like I said before I am a sponge so I just took my time reading the rationales, explaining what I just read in my own words, and kept moving. Because my friend already used all of the questions, I wrote down the subjects I was taking tests in so I didn't repeat subjects and subcategories if possible. I only had time for about 1000 questions and my averages were solid 60's and 70's. That last week I studied 10-12 hours daily. Basically 'till I just couldn't do it anymore. The day before my 8am test, I quit studying at 9pm and barely slept due to nerves. My dad came into town to make sure I woke up (just in case) and he cooked me breakfast.

IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW MUCH YOU DO TO PREPARE, YOU PROBABLY STILL WON'T FEEL PREPARED.

Test Day: Aug 2

I was terrified. I arrived 1 hour early since there ended up being no traffic and I was the first person to sign in and begin testing. I saw on another person's ALLNURSES post that she wrote her name and RN as well as an inspirational quote on her whiteboard. I did the same. My Name, BSN, RN and I can do ALL things through Christ were my phrases. I asked the test proctor for earplugs and a whiteboard- good call on my part there.

My first question was a multiple choice and so was my last. ALLLLLLL of the other questions were SATA, also approx 4 ordered responses, 1 exhibit, 5 EKG. I had over 20 medication questions, my absolute weakest area. No calculations, no hotspot, no audio, no pictures.

My Strategies:

Each question I treated as my first and last question, only focusing on what was in front of me at the moment. I read questions as they were and then again in my own words. For SATA's, I wrote down on my whiteboard "123456" and I crossed out the ones I knew were wrong and circled the right ones. I then checked the boxes to reflect my choices and moved on quickly before I could second guess myself.When I began panicking I told myself "if I couldn't handle it, I wouldn't have been given it" and I kept going. My exam screen went blue after my 75th question and it took me 1 hour and 20 mins.

After the Exam:

Well I told myself I either totally blew it or I killed it. I was crushed about all of the med questions which were ALL SATA, and I felt I probably should have spent more time reviewing the NCSBN's RX Flashcards App (FREE-download it seriously). If you look at the NCSBN's website, the statistics for May-July were 90% passed the first time so I figured there was a higher chance I passed in 75 than failed.

I told myself I wouldn't do the PVT but after 24 hours I folded and used a VISA gift card with 5$ on it. I got the good pop up but I didn't believe it, mainly because I didn't believe in myself still. 50 long painful hours after my test time, my quick results were available and I found out that I PASSED!!!!!!! Turns out everyone had full confidence in my abilities except me. Even though I spent a fortune I am so relieved to have passed and to move on with my life as a registered nurse. I really hope this long rant helped you! I swore I would write my story if (I mean WHEN) I passed.

THE MOST IMPORTANT THING I LEARNED: Have faith in yourself.

PRO TIP:

Make yourself a mini rap about passing NCLEX and sing it when you feel defeated. It will make you smile and boost your confidence a bit. I even gave my parents phrases in my song to sing backup LOL