NCLEX Prep

Rural NP · May 16, 2022

I wish you well on your preparations. I just passed the NCLEX, in 75 questions, on the second attempt. On my first attempt, I failed in 145 questions. I used the Mark Klimek lectures and UWorld on the first attempt, and the same two resources plus Archer on the second attempt.

I attribute my failure the first time around to trying to squeeze my prep into the two and a half weeks before the exam. For the second exam, I devoted almost four full weeks before the exam. Bottom line: I recommend that you allow yourself plenty of time to prepare. I also recommend that you purchase UWorld (which is pretty expensive) and the Archer QBank (which is considerably cheaper), but do not buy the Archer lectures.

I think UWorld is a very high-quality educational product. It is much better than Archer at actually teaching the substance that will be on the NCLEX. The UWorld questions are carefully written and the explanatory rationales are clear, detailed and well thought out. UWorld explains in detail why the correct answer is correct and why each of the wrong answers is wrong.

In contrast, the Archer QBank is sloppy. The explanatory rationales tend to be perfunctory; sometimes the "rationales" for wrong answers are little more than a statement that the answer is wrong. In addition, some of the questions are poorly drafted; I think a handful of allegedly "correct" Archer answers are simply wrong; and some of the stated rationales contain obvious errors. Although Archer claims that its questions are designed to be short and mimic the NCLEX, I found the NCLEX questions to be much clearer and better written. (I agree, however, that the UWorld questions tend to be longer than the NCLEX questions.)

Archer has at least one very attractive feature that UWorld does not. My UWorld package included only two 100-question practice test assessments, which are supposed to tell you your approximate chances of passing the NCLEX (low, borderline, high, or very high). These practice exams are offered with some UWorld packages, in addition to the QBank. I suggest that you take these assessment tests after you have completed a fair amount of study.

In contrast, Archer lets you use the QBank questions to make up as many 75-question practice tests as you want, which are then evaluated as low, borderline, high, or very high. This was a great feature, which increased my confidence as I improved, ultimately testing consistently at the "very high" level. Archer claims in their advertising that four straight tests at the high or very high level indicates a 99% of passing the NCLEX. (I confess to being skeptical; I do not understand how Archer can access their customers' NCLEX test results to accurately correlate the NCLEX test results with the Archer assessment tests.)

I also purchased the Archer video lectures, which I did not find particularly helpful. I gave up after listening to about 10 hours, which was only a small fraction of the lectures. The lectures are long, presumably more comprehensive than the Klimek lectures, but much less interesting and lacking in the helpful mnemonics and other memory aids at which the Klimek lectures excel.

One irritating feature about UWorld is that, with study packages of 6 months or less, you cannot reset the questions. This is a hindrance after you have gone through the QBank and want to start over again. (You can keep having the computer feed you question sets to answer, but there is no way to tell the computer that you only want to see "new questions.") Presumably this is because UWorld wants customers who want a reset to bite the bullet and buy a new product. I believe Archer similarly will not let you reset the QBank but I am not sure of that as I did not exhaust the Archer QBank.

Rural NP · May 16, 2022

One more thing: on Youtube, SarahRegisteredNurseRN has many short, clear lectures on a variety of topics. I highly recommend them. I watched dozens of them.

Tifany Lam · May 19, 2022

I APPRECIATE this thoughtful response, I really do. UWorld is definitely more expensive than Archer Review. I've noticed that a lot of people say the same thing about UWorld and Archer. Archer tends to better reflect how NCLEX questions are, and my goal is to be able to answer those type of questions. Like I mentioned before, I only want to have two sources to study from and not try to overwhelm myself.

ayuhime, BSN · Jun 13, 2022

On 5/19/2022 at 7:14 AM, Tifany Lam said:

I APPRECIATE this thoughtful response, I really do. UWorld is definitely more expensive than Archer Review. I've noticed that a lot of people say the same thing about UWorld and Archer. Archer tends to better reflect how NCLEX questions are, and my goal is to be able to answer those type of questions. Like I mentioned before, I only want to have two sources to study from and not try to overwhelm myself.

I completely agree with this statement. It's best to stick to one or two study materials at the most. Honestly the best combo that worked for me was UWorld and mark k reviews

Tifany Lam · Jun 17, 2022

I believe that what I'm doing wrong is looking at other people's experiences and making them my future experiences, does that make sense? Some people only used Mark K and UWorld, and didn't pass; but on the 2nd attempt, they used those two resources plus Archer, and passed. Some people only used Mark K and UWorld, and passed. I'm spending all my money on these resources because I want to have a "secure feeling" instead of trusting that what I have is enough to get me through the NCLEX. At the moment, I have been doing UWorld questions and reviewing the rationales (scoring between 40-70, I have bad days sometimes and score between 20-30 but mostly 40-70s) and been listening to Mark's lectures (one lecture a day, maybe a break in between).

Just so I can have a peace of mind (LOL); is it worth it purchasing Archer? I'm studying for the NCLEX 6 months in advance.

Tifany Lam · Jun 17, 2022

I just decided to buy Archer, as well. LOL

With UWorld, if you are scoring between 40-60, you are good for the NCLEX. Does this applies to Archer as well?

ayuhime, BSN · Jun 17, 2022

8 hours ago, Tifany Lam said:

I'm studying for the NCLEX 6 months in advance.

That is a long time to study for NCLEX. After graduation, I would allow myself a week or two of a bunch needed break. After that, I would study for 2 weeks to a month for the NCLEX. The whole point is to take the NCLEX right after you graduation because the longer you wait, the more info you might lose from nursing school

Tifany Lam · Jun 17, 2022

I completely agree. When it comes to Archer, would you recommend to read the rationales or just do the practice questions? Is the grading the same as UWorld?

Royce.spratte · Jun 18, 2022

I just took my NCLEX yesterday. I used UWorld because every nurse on my unit suggested it. I only did 900 questions over the month before. I focused on fundamentals. I have been listening to Mark Klimek every night while chilling. for NCLEX I had 77 questions to with over half SATA and had a few SATA with 6 possible answers. I didn't know that existed. I did it in 63 minutes. Won't know results but feel Mark Klimek helped me the most. My community college is tied in with Mayo Clinic and I also work there as a PCA. I assume I passed, but who knows. My mother was in ICU then PCU and now rehab right before test. If I have to retake, my time was well spent with my mother.

Royce.spratte · Jun 18, 2022

I just took my NCLEX yesterday. I used UWorld because every nurse on my unit suggested it. I only did 900 questions over the month before. I focused on fundamentals. I have been listening to Mark Klimek every night while chilling. for NCLEX I had 77 questions to with over half SATA and had a few SATA with 6 possible answers. I didn't know that existed. I did it in 63 minutes. Won't know results but feel Mark Klimek helped me the most. My community college is tied in with Mayo Clinic and I also work there as a PCA. I assume I passed, but who knows. My mother was in ICU then PCU and now rehab right before test. If I have to retake, my time was well spent with my mother.

I will say I studied with an RN buddy the night before and many of the UWorld questions are just worded poorly. My assessment said I was 33% chance being borderline passing. Almost every current nurse said UWorld was more difficult than NCLEX. If I passed I would suggest using UWorld and focusing on Fundamentals. After all Mark says we only need to be a touch under average. If I didn't pass I will eat crow... Assuming you all still now that phrase.

Tifany Lam · Jun 18, 2022

Thank you so much for that detailed answer, I appreciate it so much.

I'm sure you passed; a lot of people who their screen got cut off at 60-80 Qs usually pass. ?

I have decided to use these 4 resources for my NCLEX prep: UWorld, Archer Review, Mark Klimek Lectures and Saunders (for any clarification on topics that I need to refresh on).

I'm just confused about the Archer Review; a lot of people say that their rationales are not accurate and right, so I don't know if I should read the rationales or just do practice questions. With UWorld, I do take my time to go over each question and the rationales, and take notes if I need to. I also don't know if the scoring for Archer will be the same as UWorld. Like I mentioned before, I have been scoring between 40-70s on UWorld (to my knowledge, that's pretty good, but I do have bad days every now and then).