NCLEX was not easy

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Dec 23, 2006

Actually, I thought my NCLEX was slightly easier than the nursing school exams to which I had been previously subjected. I received 85 questions and walked away from the testing center somewhat knowing that I had passed this exam.

EricJRN, MSN, RN · Dec 23, 2006

Currently, the NCLEX is set up so that both passers and failers tend to get around 50% correct, so it isn't supposed to feel easy. Check out the Candidate Bulletin available at www.ncsbn.org for more information on NCLEX scoring.

SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN · Dec 23, 2006

I didn't find it that difficult. Passed at 85. Saunders prepared me well. As TheCommuter said, my nusing school tests were much harder, focusing more on specifics and less on taking in the big picture.

suzanne4, RN · Dec 23, 2006

The exam will focus on your weak points,a computerized exam is able to do that. And what you find difficult, someone else may find easy. Each exam will be different, even if ten from your class took it the same day. Each will have a diffferent exam.

jamangel · Dec 23, 2006

I found it easier than my school tests as well.

pagandeva2000, LPN · Dec 24, 2006

I also found that there was no comparision between the school exams, Saunders, Incredibly Easy and Delmar's CDs. I also passed at 85 completed the entire exam in 40 minutes, and thought that I bombed out. In fact, I left out of there angry because I truly see the exam as a crap shoot. I also left knowing in my heart that I did all that I can do, and that there was no preparation for this, and would not have been surprized that I failed. I didn't check on the answers to the questions that I remembered until I found out that I passed, and I did better than I thought, but it was through wild, educated guesses. In fact, some answers, I chose because I thought that it was too stupid to really do in real life. I'm glad that I will never face that demon again.

jimthorp · Dec 24, 2006

I found it easier than my school tests as well.

Ditto. Anxiety can play a rold in the "feel" of an exam. My school tried to mimic NCLEX questions and not being very good at it was difficult to figure out what they were asking. During grading some questions were thrown out as they were too obscure.

flwannaB · Jan 2, 2007

The tests in school were far easier. The priority questions were the ones that left me dumb founded. Most all of the questions I guessed at. I will give you a for instance.

Pt A is complaining of pain 2 hours post status appendectomy

Pt B is complaining pain 4 hours fx hip

Pt C is complaining of pain 6 hours hysterectomy

Which pt has high priority of pain management?

Well um...... my guess would be I dont know. There is no other information. Pain is subjective. We cannot determine who's pain is worse. Those were the kind of questions I got. I am a very analytical person. I read each option fully to see if there was any indications of priority. I had maybe, and I mean maybe, 9 questions that I considered definetive. I was an A student in one of the top nclex passing rate schools in our area. This was NOT what we studied. I passed however and am moving on to RN. Just thought it odd.

Jules A, MSN · Jan 2, 2007

I also didn't think it was that tough and that Saunders review was a good preparation. I did 85 questions in about 50 minutes and left feeling pretty sure that I didn't bomb so bad that the computer wouldn't have at least given me more questions so I figured I passed. And I did.

ALF_LPN · Jan 2, 2007

I passed NCLEX with 85 questions. When I left the test site, I felt confident that I passed. However, when I got home, I started looking up questions from the test, and started to doubt myself. Within a few hours, I just new for sure that I had failed. I used Saunders and Kaplan (which was very helpful with prioritizing questions). The answer I would choose for the question previously asked would be PT A. Pain for all 3 circumstances would be considered normal. I believe what the question is asking is who should be checked on first? The most unstable would be the post op 2 hours patient. That is the answer I would choose if this is the only information given in the question. Is it the right answer? I don't know, but it is what I would choose. With the NCLEX, you just can't read too far into the question. It may be asking a completely different question than what you think.

blueberrybon · Jan 3, 2007

It sure seems like most of us passed at 85 questions. The only weird thing about that is that sometimes, like in my case, there were absolutely no dosage calculations problems or even measurement problems. I thought I failed because I didn't get either of those, and figured that I must have done so badly that the test didn't even bother going on.

I seriously wanted dosage calc problems because I was so proud of the fact that I do so well on them. Kind of silly, huh?

Anyway, there seems to be no knowing how to judge how you did on the test. Unless of course, you are the super smart few who get 99% or better in everything all the way through school. I was not one of those, I had to make quite a few "educated guesses". A nurse friend of mine says "educated guessing" is a common practice, and not at all unusual in the medical field.

Blue