NCTC ADN Fall 2013

Nursing Students School Programs

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I'm going to Gainsville next week to apply for the ADN program and was wondering if anyone else was looking to do the same. I live in Lewisville, so Gainsville is quite a drive, but I'd be willing to car pool! Has anyone started to study for the Kaplan? I need to get started on that since the test is scheduled to take place at the end of June. Good luck to all of the applicants!

The Kaplan guide I used was the Kaplan Nursing School Entrance Exams, 5th Edition. I originally wasn't going to get it, but I found it in one of my local bookstores...and perused it. I originally bought it to take the 2 practice exams in the back of the book...but it broke down all the answers, as well as covered some basics on each subject. It was more valuable than I thought it would be...

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Awesome, thanks!

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Acceptance scores are in...74 and above for ADN program, non-LVN students. Looks like 68 and above for LVN to ADN students. Scores of 71-73 make the alternate list. Congrats to all those that made the cut.

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I MADE IT!!!

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Congrats to those who got into the program!

Is a 70% and above like a C, or is this based on another grading scale?

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I made it too! :) Congrats guys. I am so excited.

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Specializes in Transplant.

I made it in also! Congrats to everyone who also made it in! To TWiersch, the grading scale that is on the NCTC nursing website is 90-100 = A 81-89 = B 75-80 = C 66-74 = D 65 or lower = F, and you have to get a C or better in every course while in the program.

In regards to the Kaplan exam, I used the Kaplan Nursing School Entrance Exams and feel like it is a very good study tool for Reading and Math sections. The Reading section is the same format that will be on the test, extracting main ideas and summarizing each paragraph.

As for Math, there were a lot of fraction problems; adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing fractions. Also make sure you are very familiar with percentages. For the dosage calculation questions, there were fairly basic problems and maybe 3 or 4 on the test. There wasn't any that involved X grain (I had to google X grain when I saw it on the practice question). The only dosage calculation problem I remember was a situational question...A nurse has to administer a medication twice a day, at 10am and 4pm. The first dosage is 3/8 oz and the second dosage 2/7 oz, she only has one oz of the medication. Will she have enough for both doses?... For the math portion, I also bought a dosage calculations math book from Barnes and Noble, it has a lot of situational problems that closely resemble what was on the test.

Writing was by far the most annoying section of them all. The Kaplan study guide does not reflect what is on the actual test. In the Kaplan study guide, you will have a section for vocabulary and spelling only, neither of which are on the test. I take that back, I had one question on my test where it asked which sentence had an incorrectly spelled word, and it was very obvious. The word was "roll", in which is was the wrong form of roll. The correct spelling was "role", as in "role model". The Writing section was in short story format, each sentence numbered, and it would ask questions as far as grammar, structure, or punctuation - which sentence has a comma where one isn't needed or which sentence is repetitive and not necessary in the paragraph. There were few questions that asked which sentence has an incorrect usage of a verb or which sentence has a subject-verb that doesn't agree. Mostly there would be a question with either a sentence, or even a whole paragraph, that asks where would be the best place to insert it within the short story, those were the hardest for me, I tend to be an over analyzer!

The science section was by far the hardest, and even now I'm not sure of the best way to prepare for it. I used A&P for Dummies, which was of little help. There were mostly questions about the Cardiovascular system - the pathway of a blood flow through the heart is the one that I remember most because that was one of the only questions I was completely sure of! Which system is responsible for regulation the pH? What is unique about the cells in the nervous system? Which organ of the digestive tract does the most absorption of nutrients? These were the easier questions that I can remember, the hard ones I can't even think of because in the moment, you either know it or you don't.

Hopefully this information is helpful to you, and good luck when you apply! Let me know if you have any questions.

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Thank you jlg311! That info is very helpful!

I am studying this summer, so I want to pick up the dosage calculation book you mentioned. Which one did you buy? I just bought the Kaplan book to help me study for the other sections, besides science. I haven't taken A&P II yet, and I am glad so I can really focus on it this Fall.

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Specializes in Transplant.

No problem! I wish I could've found more info on the test before I took it, so I don't mind helping.

It's called Kaplan Math for Nurses, A Skill-Builder and Reference Guide for Dosage Calculations 3rd ed

A&P II should help you with the science portion since most of the systems on the exam are covered in II. I took A&P I and II about 5 years ago but retook A&P I this past Spring in order to get my PP's up. I'm sure I could've done much better had I taken A&P II over also.

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Perfect, thanks so much!

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I got in!!! yay!!!

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Congrats cross!

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