OMG why Im I not passing my nursing exams

kpossible · Sep 21, 2012

I'm not sure if you guys have Evolve, but my textbooks always had extras on the website. I would recommend buying the complementary study guide with your textbook in order to have practice questions. Have you gone to meet with your professor yet? They are usually very helpful and look at you in a different light since you've gone in and acknowledged that you are having trouble understanding and processing the materials. As everyone else said, how much do you study? You have to change your lifestyle if you want to pass this class and focus on studying the materials. Have you read the textbook at all? Try joining a tutoring group, explain the information that you've learned to roommates or friends or family, make med cards or a comparison chart for pharm? If you're having trouble in fundamentals, make sure to practice your skills on your own time? Good luck!!!

Luckyyou, BSN, RN · Sep 21, 2012

Not to be the little black rain cloud here, but how many tests are remaining? Is it mathematically possible for you to pass after failing the first two exams? Would it be better to salvage a W out of the whole thing and retake the class rather than risking a failure?

future2012nurse · Sep 21, 2012

@ cerriwin I have 3 more test remainding

libby11 · Sep 22, 2012

I don't know WHY you're failing, as you asked, but here are a few questions to start figuring out some possible reasons...

Have you gone over any of the exams in class, after all sections are done taking the exams?

Can you meet with your instructor privately to go over the exams so that you know why you are failing?

Do you know the concepts or do you memorize info.?

Are you REALLY understanding what the question is asking? [For example, The question: You have just give your patient morphine. Morphine is know to cause respiratory depression. What should the RN educate the patient about? You answer: frequently count respirations to ensure patient safety and protect against severe respiratory depression. While this is a correct action & safety is always #1, the question isn't asking you what the RN needs to do... The question is asking about patient education, so the correct answer would be educate the patient not use alcohol and report trouble breathing.] Now the example may be clearer here... but your instructors may be a bit sneakier and have wordier questions, and you usually only get 60 minutes and it's easy to skip ahead or read over something too quickly, etc. etc. etc.

Do you underline important words on your exam? (In the previous question I would underline morphine, respiratory depression, and double underline educate.) I always have to underline the words 'not' and 'except,' otherwise I might answer the question backwards. When I'm given vitals in a question, I usually draw arrows for high or low next to each.

Well, that's just a bit of brainstorming... Maybe answering some of the above questions will help you figure our why you are failing, and what your next steps are.

WorkingTowardsBSN · Sep 23, 2012

Not to be the little black rain cloud here, but how many tests are remaining? Is it mathematically possible for you to pass after failing the first two exams? Would it be better to salvage a W out of the whole thing and retake the class rather than risking a failure?

If I got a 79% on my exams, I failed the exam. Passing is an 80% for everything in our program. So if she's failing, it's not neccessarily a 25% or something she can't recover from, know what I mean?

That said - are you having trouble with the content, or applying it? Those are very different problems. I'd schedule an appointment with your professor during their office hours and ask them to review your exams with you and see what suggestions they have.

mysquirrel · Sep 25, 2012

Keep your head up! I was in the same boat as you. I talked to my professors and ask to go over old tests to see what I was doing wrong. I got help from other students and got in the right study group not a gossip session. I changed my seat in class to stay focused. I wear ear plugs during tests and study in a quiet place which I cannot be interrupted. You can do it!!!