There is no possible way to study for the NCLEX-PN

Nursing Students NCLEX

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Hey you guys. I'm studying for the NCLEX-PN and have it tomorrow! I have to admit, although I did alright in nursing school...well, mostly B's and an A here and there..I feel like I don't know ANYTHING and because life has gotten so crazy, it's been 4.5 months since I have graduated and I barely started studying but 4 weeks ago..and even then, I study about 1.5 hours a day maybe. It's very overwhelming and I just feel like I keep going through questions..slowly getting more right..but I still feel like I'm only getting about 65-75% of them right..at the very most, with my Saunders NCLEX-PN program..it's the newest one, green book. EVERYONE that I know says they feel like studying hardly helped them and that they feel like they literally guessed the ENTIRE test through..that there were tons of select all questions, etc. I'm not lying~lol. My classmates all literally told me they were ready to cry coming out of the test center and that they were ALL positive that they failed. I STILL just don't understand how they determine you pass. I am also ridiculously nervous. I will be honest..the one thing I really didn't try too hard to study was meds, because there are literally just too many to memorize and I cannot do it all. I tried to just condition myself on how to answer the questions, look for keywords, strategies. It will be by the GRACE of God if I even pass tomorrow. I just never feel ready and have been pushing it back for so long.

So is it true...is there really no way you can possibly study for it? Everyone told me that all of the questions they used to practice weren't even on the test. I mean, I am in NY so I realize I can take it over again, but who wants to pay all that money? Plus, who wants to feel like a loser failing? I know I don't..but I am trying to accept it beforehand..and if I pass.. I will be that much happier.

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I took the NCLX-PN a year and a half ago and passed the first time. I felt the same way you do. There really is no real way to study for it. Basicly, if you don't know it already you won't be able to make yourself learn it now, espically if you're nervous! Just try and relax, don't study at all the day before, and go in with a positive attitude. Always go with your first answer unless it's a math question and you re-do the calculation. Good luck!

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Don't let test anxiety get the best of you! Have confidence. You know WAY more than you think you do. Good luck. Let us know what happend. :yelclap:

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Specializes in Skilled geriatric nursing care.

I believe in you- you passed the LPN course, your clinicals and you succeeded. There were a few weeks after I passed the course that I realized that with all that studying in nursing school, I was burnt out. They teach you test-taking skills; read each question slowly and do your best to feed out the ones you KNOW are wrong. You will see questions on the NCLEX that you just have no idea and might as well throw your hands up in the air and give up! DON'T. Think with logic; ask yourself if you were in that situation, what does your nursing gut tell you. I, too, walked out of that small classroom, and decided that I failed. I failed I failed I failed.... then, 48 hours after taking the test, I logged in and saw PASSED... I was finally an LPN. Underneath all the stress, studying guides (it's only a guide to teach you strategies of test taking and some guidance on what sort of questions are going to be on the nclex), you have to believe in yourself. Get a good nights sleep, eat a hearty breakfast (or a snicker bar, whatever ;) )and sit down and relax. Trust in yourself. Don't let fear get in the way. Tell yourself you can DO this. I believe in you, and I am sure there are others that believe in you too. :nurse:

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Specializes in Pediatric Private Duty; Camp Nursing.

Don't stress about it at this point. (Easier said than done, I know.) They gave me tons of ATI study books and DVD's in my PN class, I looked at 5% of it all. It's one of those things that, you either paid attention in class and retained most of it, or you did not. Lots of times, you will just make an educated guess. I got nearly straight A's in school and came out of my test crying. You may or may not know that on the NCLEX, what happens is, they give you some easy questions to start. You get those, they go higher in difficulty. You don't, they keep giving you lower level questions. (This is not a good sign.) But if you get them right, they keep going up in difficulty until you are getting these doozies that practically make you burst in to tears. I kept thinking, "What is THIS? We didn't even COVER this in school! What was I studying?" If you get to that point, you are gold. At the time, I didn't know this. I thought I was a goner. I learned all this after the fact! I could have saved a stressful couple of days if I knew it worked that way. Good luck! If you were a good student and tested well, the only thing that can trip you up now is your stress. So relax, go do something fun tonight, eat something gooey and rich and bad for you to treat yourself. Get a good night's sleep. Let us know how it goes! :D

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Good luck.

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Thanks you guys! I feel like this..honestly..I BARELY paid attention in SOME classes because it was just soooo boring (sometimes) and tedious..and I was surviving on around 5 hours of sleep and just trying to get in and out..even though there were a good handful of things I enjoyed learning about. There was SO much drama in my LPN program that it was sometimes hard to focus and stay positive. I feel like..omg..I graduated almost 5 months ago..and tried to study...brushed up a LITTLE bit, but I just feel like I know 1% of all the nursing/medical stuff out there. I got practically a straight B average. I used to cram for exams..I won't lie..and pass with a B+ or something..then later on..I feel like I forgot a lot of the stuff. My nursing school was a for-profit joint and I really feel like they bent over backward with a lot of stuff to make sure a lot of the not-so-bright people passed. Not saying I'm a genius. I was being sort of "lazy" and doing the minimum. Just passing with my straight B-average..tired..burnt..over the drama. If I had actually gotten more involved in my studying and been more disciplined I know I could have made a LOT more A's..not even saying it to stroke my ego, but I know that's the truth deep down. I'm not those of you who aced nursing school or busted your butt studying, because I did NEITHER. I guess I am just being annoying right now. It's kind of pathetic because I'm more worried about paying to take it again and my pride than anything else. I'm not in a position where my whole family is depending on me or that I have tons of bills and need a nursing position asap..but I guess none of us like to fail ya know? Thanks for bearing with me. I'm being ridiculous right now.

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Lesson learned.

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Lesson learned.

Wow what a useful comment! What lesson was learned?

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That when you go for your RN you put more into it. ;)

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That when you go for your RN you put more into it. ;)

Ahhh..I see what you mean! Yes, that is true. You do have a point :)

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Specializes in Pediatric Private Duty; Camp Nursing.
That when you go for your RN you put more into it. ;)

I put my heart and soul into my PN program, put my life on hold, missed a lot of time with my kids. I didn't study much after graduation and I still passed. I passed because I worked hard all year long and retained a sufficient amount of the material. But the night before the test, I could swear I forgot everything I learned and then some. We don't know yet if her studying during her course was sufficient or not, but I'm sure she's extremely nervous and having second thoughts on what they did, like somebody might on the day before their wedding, for example. Given her state of mind, I would give her the benefit of the doubt without saying something to make her feel like she's already failed. Just a different point of view here.:)

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