Not going to give up!

xoemmylouox, ASN, RN · Aug 31, 2014

You need to do a different type of review. What you are doing isn't working. I wish you the best of luck. So many times we just psych ourselves out. When I took it I was unnerved by the whole check in process.

cat605724 · Aug 31, 2014

thank you. I know now I have to do something else. I have been studying from the following books................

NCLEX RN Review ~ Made Incredibly Easy

Saunders 2014-2015 Strategies for Test Success

NCLEX RN 2010-2011 Edition, Strategies, Practice and Review

Saunders, Comprehensive Review, NCLEX RN Exam

In addition to my cell phone apps ~ NCLEX QBank, NCLEX Questions.

I will resit for 4th time....Spring 2015.

Silverdragon102, BSN · Aug 31, 2014

How are you studying?

cat605724 · Aug 31, 2014

reading the chapters e.g paeds, maternity, leadership etc....and then doing the questions at the end of each chapter but im also doing questions on the cell phone app....and any i dont get right i'm reading the rationales. I have read the Strategies book by Saunders 3 times....and i totally get about maslow, saftey , nursing process etc....but somehow i'm still not succeeding. I always know the vital labs before i go into the exam. On the last NCLEX, i got a lot of prioritisation of patients questions, and paeds, no drug calculation and one acid base balance question............

RN403, BSN, RN · Aug 31, 2014

Where do your weak areas lie? Try to focus on studying those areas. On the other hand, maybe you know your content, but, you may lack the proper test taking strategies. You might look into books that provide these strategies and walk you through how to "pick apart" NCLEX questions.

Yiu state you had a lot of prioritization questions... Do you feel comfortable with them? Lacharity is a great book that helps you with these types of questions.

Before you sit for the exam make sure you really get to the bottom of why you are not passing and make a plan to fix it. (Weak areas, anxiety, test taking strategies, etc)

best wishes.

buspar · Aug 31, 2014

Go with kaplan !!!!

yedwards42, BSN, MSN · Aug 31, 2014

I'm sorry you didn't pass, though as you said don't give up - you will and CAN pass NCLEX!! Take some time to refresh, and start a new game plan...

Are you a visual and/or auditory learner as well? I like to "hear" and "see" information as well as "read" it. HURST was excellent for content - going to the live class and then listening to all their core content videos a second time. You really need to know core content "like second nature" so you can eliminate/pick correct answers on NCLEX. Also, Kaplan is excellent for content as well (though HURST was my primary) and then most important doing a few thousand or more questions. Kaplan has excellent questins (and they even have several videos of questions where they go over about 300 questions and show you how to break down questions and eliminate/chose answers). NCSBN is a great resource too (from the makers of NCLEX) I also purchased this and found their questions very similar to NCLEX. La Charity PDA book is great for priority/delegation questions. Lastly, the 35 page study guide here on allnurses - excellent for infection control/precautions as this is big NCLEX! Daily studying until you know core content "backwards and forwards" and some strategies/question practice is what helped me.

You will beat NCLEX and can do this!! Go for it!

cat605724 · Aug 31, 2014

thank you!....i think start afresh, even regroup, whatever...is the best strategy right now. Each time I fail...apart from money wasted, im losing confidence in my ability to pass the exam and to FAIL on 75 questions is pretty dire!...... Thank you for all the recommendations eg NCSBN, LaCharity etc etc....I will certainly check these out.

scaredsilly, BSN, RN · Aug 31, 2014

Cat, first off, I admire your tenacity! You WILL succeed. But the others are right, you need a different way to study! While the resources that they recommended are good ones, I would think after multiple fails it is not going to be enough. I would recommend looking into a review course at the very least. Kaplan and Hurst seem to be the most popular depending on if you need to focus more on content or strategy. I know they are costly, but so are multiple retakes. Most of us did 100-200 practice questions daily, most from those reviews.

That said, if you really cannot determine where your weaknesses are then I would strongly suggest looking into a tutor. These people are trained to identify weaknesses and help you work through them. Your school may be able to refer you to one, which would be your best bet. If they can't help you, theres a website caring4you.com and the nurse there tutors online. I have heard good things about her, but no personal experience.

exit_this_way · Aug 31, 2014

I would suggest Kaplan. I did the face-to-face review course the last week in July and then completed all of there Q Bank which is about 1100 questions and then studied the rationales.

cat605724 · Aug 31, 2014

@scaredsilly Thank you so much. By a Hurst Review/Kaplan Review. Do you mean buy the Hurst review book or is there a Hurst Review Online service tutorial that you can obtain and/or utilize?...I do have a Kaplan Review book. I know my strategies/method of studying has to change. I really do think i need strategies on how to think critically as my i feel my content knowledge is ok. I will let you know how I do on the next retake. Thank you again.