PASS******* (a few words of wisdom)

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hey allnurses :)

according to the pvt, i passed. so here we go........ i had 75q, 15 sata, 5-7 meds (cardio, neuro, psych), 2 pictures (ekg & infection control), and 1 listening (lung sounds). my strongest piece of advice to those of you preparing for the nclex and doubting yourselves and your method of preparation, dont doubt yourself!!!! each and every one of you knows exactly what you need to do to prepare for this test, because guess what you did it in nursing school you have already been prepared and everything is designed to go in your favor. each and every person you meet is going to tell you something different about the exam and how to prepare for it, my method may not be the same as the next person. i passed @ 75 because i studied my but off, but someone else may have not even opened an nclex review book, but thats okay because in the end you are responsible for obtaining your own license. i know 2 girls from my program that listened so much to what everyone else was telling them about preparation for this test, so they stopped studying and guess what they both failed, not because they are incompetent/ dumb, we all graduated from the same program, but because they changed their study pattern. everyone told me i was studying to hard, glad they had an opinion, but for me it went in one ear and out the other. my motto is continue to have the two f's @ all times during preparation is faith and focus. so many people will try to get you off track especially those that have already passed. i'm sure they are trying to help, but for some it doesn't. another strong piece, don't tell everyone you're taking the test especially when it's not necessary, i can't understand why people post stuff like that on facebook. it seems like alot of unnecessary pressure your putting on yourself. only told my family and my closest friend that i was testing, but i made it clear right after graduation that my nclex date was my business (no offense thats just me).

i prepared for this test the same way i prepared for all of my exams in nursing school. i graduated from an accelerated bsn program which has it's pros and cons. i felt 1 year was not enough time to know everything i needed to pass. on the other hand because of this program i am able to retain a boat load of info in a minimal amount of time. i made my own timeline based on how i knew i would be able to study. i read saunders cover to cover and used the content area quizzes to gage how i knew each area. completed the kaplan program, i watched the videos in the areas i was weakest. finally, the golden la charity book (must have). i felt all three of these fully prepared me. by the time i got to question 5 i knew i was passing @ 75q. to tell you the truth i was very strong in my content because i over prepared, there was not 1 question/ drug i hadn't studied/ seen somewhere during my preparation. this test isn't going to ask you something you have never seen/ heard of. it's really just a matter of reading each question carefully, elminate 2 immediately and think through the last two very carefully.

my last piece of advice, enjoy yourself the day before the test, by then either you know it/ you don't. i went and had may hair done, a mani and pedi, went to dinner with my fiance and sat and saw a movie. claim victory, i wrote on my white board i will pass and my favorit scripture that got me through this preparation mark 11:24. @ the 75th question i asked god to stop the exam, and it did.

god bless anyone that sits through the nclex, just know that you will pass :nurse:

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:clpty:congrats!!!

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Good luck with your official results.

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Thank you for the encouraging post. :yeah:

I am in my first semester of nursing school and, even though I really like it, sometimes I feel I don't know what I'm doing. Ok, so a lot of the time I don't know what I'm doing. I have an A in the classes, but I'm worried about the rest of this semester, next semester, summer, NCLEX-PN and the rest.

Thank you very much!:jester:

But, how did the first semester go for you? Did you ever feel, OMG? How did you handle it and the test anxiety?

Thanks!!!!:confused:

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hey allnurses :)

according to the pvt, i passed. so here we go........ i had 75q, 15 sata, 5-7 meds (cardio, neuro, psych), 2 pictures (ekg & infection control), and 1 listening (lung sounds). my strongest piece of advice to those of you preparing for the nclex and doubting yourselves and your method of preparation, dont doubt yourself!!!! each and every one of you knows exactly what you need to do to prepare for this test, because guess what you did it in nursing school you have already been prepared and everything is designed to go in your favor. each and every person you meet is going to tell you something different about the exam and how to prepare for it, my method may not be the same as the next person. i passed @ 75 because i studied my but off, but someone else may have not even opened an nclex review book, but thats okay because in the end you are responsible for obtaining your own license. i know 2 girls from my program that listened so much to what everyone else was telling them about preparation for this test, so they stopped studying and guess what they both failed, not because they are incompetent/ dumb, we all graduated from the same program, but because they changed their study pattern. everyone told me i was studying to hard, glad they had an opinion, but for me it went in one ear and out the other. my motto is continue to have the two f's @ all times during preparation is faith and focus. so many people will try to get you off track especially those that have already passed. i'm sure they are trying to help, but for some it doesn't. another strong piece, don't tell everyone you're taking the test especially when it's not necessary, i can't understand why people post stuff like that on facebook. it seems like alot of unnecessary pressure your putting on yourself. only told my family and my closest friend that i was testing, but i made it clear right after graduation that my nclex date was my business (no offense thats just me).

i prepared for this test the same way i prepared for all of my exams in nursing school. i graduated from an accelerated bsn program which has it's pros and cons. i felt 1 year was not enough time to know everything i needed to pass. on the other hand because of this program i am able to retain a boat load of info in a minimal amount of time. i made my own timeline based on how i knew i would be able to study. i read saunders cover to cover and used the content area quizzes to gage how i knew each area. completed the kaplan program, i watched the videos in the areas i was weakest. finally, the golden la charity book (must have). i felt all three of these fully prepared me. by the time i got to question 5 i knew i was passing @ 75q. to tell you the truth i was very strong in my content because i over prepared, there was not 1 question/ drug i hadn't studied/ seen somewhere during my preparation. this test isn't going to ask you something you have never seen/ heard of. it's really just a matter of reading each question carefully, elminate 2 immediately and think through the last two very carefully.

my last piece of advice, enjoy yourself the day before the test, by then either you know it/ you don't. i went and had may hair done, a mani and pedi, went to dinner with my fiance and sat and saw a movie. claim victory, i wrote on my white board i will pass and my favorit scripture that got me through this preparation mark 11:24. @ the 75th question i asked god to stop the exam, and it did.

god bless anyone that sits through the nclex, just know that you will pass :nurse:

i agree with your post~*

-i studied my butt off too, like i was studying like a dr. for the mcat....seriously! i felt the

same way you did!......i also told no-one!!!! except my husband only. i have had friends post

on face book, that they are taking their state boards and fail....nerves, high expectations or whatnot.....

i think you do need to study the way you studied to pass nursing school. use your methods, because you are the one that knows how you study best! for myself, i am a 'super-crammer', but i am a 'learn it all type of person' (i work best under pressure).....this type of studying or preparation is not for everyone but for me!!!!!, but i passed nursing school with a 3.95 gpa, buy doing my methods of studying. also, the test has does not reflect your gpa.....each and every person needs to find out how they learn best and how they can figure out the questions.

( i studied for the nclex for 3 solid weeks + i have 3 children under 5 yrs old...lol) remember: i work best under-pressure: ie. not best study tactics for everyone!!!

here is what i did: ---understood hardcore >>mostly went over things i did not know 1st....concepts i was shaky on/ did not grasp totally, then did nclex type questions >> i studied content---made sure i knew every disease/disorder, how to treat, what were the major signs/symptoms--what tests would you do?, learned memorized & understood what every lab value was,what if it increases or decreased (what is the lab used for), learned or re-learned all major set-ups or procedures you would do in a hospital setting, learned all percautions for isolation rooms in a hospital, learned all insulins, all needles to use, learned all about injections, learned all drug calc conversions, meds (i just studied the basics....i learned the ones most talked about in the hosptial and ones that would be most dangerous as being toxic, etc....and what was the toxic level.... )......so-----i really thought to myself, "what if..... there is a question about this in a hospital???......i thought you need to think outside the box-----what if.......!!! also, (google) was my best friend, if i did not know something, a good quick way was to just look it up fast!

i still believe hard-core, that if your content in theory is 'strong' you can answer most any question! ....i guess i put it this way, if for instance you do not know what (example) xxxxccceriteremia is, and cannot break down a question, then you are guessing more like 100 % on the questions. if you know the content of the question, you can then pick apart the answers and then decide on what looks best at least 50/50 chance!.....

good luck to all!!!

oh, here is what i used for main content: short and sweet evolve workbook that breaks down most all disease/disorders/by section i.e (maternity, geriatrics, med/surg) it was a 1 week long, end of bsn/rn program seminar in nursing school, but....the workbook is wonderful (what i used to study content of med/surg etc...):

evolve live review workbook: http://www.amazon.com/2008-2009-workbook-evolve-review-nclex-rn/dp/143770171x

also this book is a (must-have) for priozitization, delegation (lacharity):

http://www.amazon.com/prioritization-delegation-assignment-exercises-examination/dp/0323065708/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=utf8&qid=1283619349&sr=1-1

saunders q & a review for the nclex-rn book/dvd-(orange) book for questions was great for quick 10 question quizzes or loaded exams, nice because you could select content and style of questions! love the 10 question quizzes!!!

http://www.amazon.com/saunders-nclex-rn%c3%82%c2%ae-examination-silvestri-nclex-rn/dp/1416048502/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=utf8&qid=1283619568&sr=1-1

kaplan nclex rn 2010-2011 strategies and practice: great book/dvd for strategizing how to pick the best answer!

http://www.amazon.com/kaplan-nclex-rn-2010-2011-strategies-practice/dp/1419553445/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=utf8&qid=1283619931&sr=1-1

nclex-rn for dummies: i liked this book because it was simple-straight & forward ----no fluff, definitions, calc conversions, easy reading material!

http://www.amazon.com/nclex-rn-dummies-patrick-r-coonan/dp/0471752843/ref=sr_1_1?ie=utf8&s=books&qid=1283620121&sr=8-1

nclex 3,500 - software dvd with 3,500 q! very nice if you like questions!!!!! this is not a book, only software ie. cd/dvd ;-)

http://www.amazon.com/nclex-review-3500-springhouse/dp/1582553874/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=utf8&qid=1283620366&sr=1-1

nclex 4,000- dvd with 4,000 q -great if you like lots of questions!!! also, not a book, only software i.e cd/dvd ;-)

http://www.amazon.com/nclex-review-4000-software-individual/dp/0781777909

this in a nutshell is everything i did to prepare for the nclex! hope this helps.....i did use all these materials, some more than others, but is all a 'personal choice' i loved them all!

i took the test sept 1st, did the pvt trick (got the good-pop up-as soon as i could get to a computer after i took the test and check it), and found out i indeed did ((((pass)))) on sept 3rd!!!!!!

study >> way...and like she said, don't tell too many people when you are testing~*

lastly pray: i believe in this verse 100%!

"i can do all things through christ who strengthens me"

philippians 4:13

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Congrats

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To AMAYA:::ROSE.... I too have been using the NCLEX 4000. I really like it. Did you think that the questions on this CD were similar to NCLEX questions?

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To AMAYA:::ROSE.... I too have been using the NCLEX 4000. I really like it. Did you think that the questions on this CD were similar to NCLEX questions?

Hey there,

By law, I cannot say, but I did like the NCLEX 4000-CD's plethora of questions- I felt prepared to take the test after the methods I used to study for the NCLEX as posted in my previous thread on here, plus doing many questions from the NCLEX 4000 and others ;-)

Good LUCK!

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Thanks. So far I have practiced over 6000 questions (which may seem ridiculous) using the NCLEX 4000 and other study tools but I want to be prepared. Someone had told me that they thought that some of the questions were somewhat similar to the NCLEX 4000 and I was just wondering.

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i agree with your post~*

-i studied my butt off too, like i was studying like a dr. for the mcat....seriously! i felt the

same way you did!......i also told no-one!!!! except my husband only. i have had friends post

on face book, that they are taking their state boards and fail....nerves, high expectations or whatnot.....

i think you do need to study the way you studied to pass nursing school. use your methods, because you are the one that knows how you study best! for myself, i am a 'super-crammer', but i am a 'learn it all type of person' (i work best under pressure).....this type of studying or preparation is not for everyone but for me!!!!!, but i passed nursing school with a 3.95 gpa, buy doing my methods of studying. also, the test has does not reflect your gpa.....each and every person needs to find out how they learn best and how they can figure out the questions.

( i studied for the nclex for 3 solid weeks + i have 3 children under 5 yrs old...lol) remember: i work best under-pressure: ie. not best study tactics for everyone!!!

here is what i did: ---understood hardcore >>mostly went over things i did not know 1st....concepts i was shaky on/ did not grasp totally, then did nclex type questions >> i studied content---made sure i knew every disease/disorder, how to treat, what were the major signs/symptoms--what tests would you do?, learned memorized & understood what every lab value was,what if it increases or decreased (what is the lab used for), learned or re-learned all major set-ups or procedures you would do in a hospital setting, learned all percautions for isolation rooms in a hospital, learned all insulins, all needles to use, learned all about injections, learned all drug calc conversions, meds (i just studied the basics....i learned the ones most talked about in the hosptial and ones that would be most dangerous as being toxic, etc....and what was the toxic level.... )......so-----i really thought to myself, "what if..... there is a question about this in a hospital???......i thought you need to think outside the box-----what if.......!!! also, (google) was my best friend, if i did not know something, a good quick way was to just look it up fast!

i still believe hard-core, that if your content in theory is 'strong' you can answer most any question! ....i guess i put it this way, if for instance you do not know what (example) xxxxccceriteremia is, and cannot break down a question, then you are guessing more like 100 % on the questions. if you know the content of the question, you can then pick apart the answers and then decide on what looks best at least 50/50 chance!.....

good luck to all!!!

oh, here is what i used for main content: short and sweet evolve workbook that breaks down most all disease/disorders/by section i.e (maternity, geriatrics, med/surg) it was a 1 week long, end of bsn/rn program seminar in nursing school, but....the workbook is wonderful (what i used to study content of med/surg etc...):

evolve live review workbook: http://www.amazon.com/2008-2009-workbook-evolve-review-nclex-rn/dp/143770171x

also this book is a (must-have) for priozitization, delegation (lacharity):

http://www.amazon.com/prioritization-delegation-assignment-exercises-examination/dp/0323065708/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=utf8&qid=1283619349&sr=1-1

saunders q & a review for the nclex-rn book/dvd-(orange) book for questions was great for quick 10 question quizzes or loaded exams, nice because you could select content and style of questions! love the 10 question quizzes!!!

http://www.amazon.com/saunders-nclex-rn%c3%82%c2%ae-examination-silvestri-nclex-rn/dp/1416048502/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=utf8&qid=1283619568&sr=1-1

kaplan nclex rn 2010-2011 strategies and practice: great book/dvd for strategizing how to pick the best answer!

http://www.amazon.com/kaplan-nclex-rn-2010-2011-strategies-practice/dp/1419553445/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=utf8&qid=1283619931&sr=1-1

nclex-rn for dummies: i liked this book because it was simple-straight & forward ----no fluff, definitions, calc conversions, easy reading material!

http://www.amazon.com/nclex-rn-dummies-patrick-r-coonan/dp/0471752843/ref=sr_1_1?ie=utf8&s=books&qid=1283620121&sr=8-1

nclex 3,500 - software dvd with 3,500 q! very nice if you like questions!!!!! this is not a book, only software ie. cd/dvd ;-)

http://www.amazon.com/nclex-review-3500-springhouse/dp/1582553874/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=utf8&qid=1283620366&sr=1-1

nclex 4,000- dvd with 4,000 q -great if you like lots of questions!!! also, not a book, only software i.e cd/dvd ;-)

http://www.amazon.com/nclex-review-4000-software-individual/dp/0781777909

this in a nutshell is everything i did to prepare for the nclex! hope this helps.....i did use all these materials, some more than others, but is all a 'personal choice' i loved them all!

i took the test sept 1st, did the pvt trick (got the good-pop up-as soon as i could get to a computer after i took the test and check it), and found out i indeed did ((((pass)))) on sept 3rd!!!!!!

study >> way...and like she said, don't tell too many people when you are testing~*

lastly pray: i believe in this verse 100%!

"i can do all things through christ who strengthens me"

philippians 4:13

hi! this is so helpful! but please tell me how you were able to study with your children. any advice for me? im a single mom and i feel like i have no time to study so much in a day! my strategy was that i always studied late at night when she's already asleep but i fall asleep cuz im just really tired! can't afford a babysitter or what and parents are at work so im really all by myself in this. what advise can you give me? i have failed the exam twice and i don't know anymore.

thank you!

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WOW, well....I am married, and when my husband would come home---about 6pm I would study non-stop until 2am (crazy yes, but this is the way it is with having children)!!!! I would try to study during the day-but, that was really hard to do with the 3 kids! I could do the quick 10 questions -Saunders Quizzes throughout the day- Orange book (DVD), which helped out a lot! To tell you the truth, I really do not know how I crammed 4 yrs of nursing school back into my head. It did make it easier, that I learned the information 'right' the first time. I.e---I read almost all my chapters in ALL my nursing books during nursing school, so I think that may have helped during the re-learning (re-freshing) phase. That evolve workbook that I had talked about was awesome too! .....short and sweet and summed up content well. If I was not sure about something, I googled it to make the concept more clear.

I think that if you are a single mother, you 'really' need to have someone watch your children at some point, so you can focus, tune in and study---and study hard. Do you have any friends or family that could help you out? Daycare?

I also went through nursing school with 2 children, so maybe I was just used to studying that way. It was the same way.....I would study when my husband came home from work. 6pm-2 am......needless to say, I did not get much sleep, but I was determined to graduate from nursing school, and then conquer the NCLEX!

- If you can get help, have someone watch your little ones

- maybe daycare, if you cannot find anyone? Preschool, Early on, etc?

- Take time for yourself (exercise, do something fun, shop, etc)

- Eat right

- Get as much rest as you can before the exam....if you can

- Pray ;-)

* It is very hard to do, with kids----but, it can be done (you do need to study to feel confident, going into the test---or DO NOT RE-TEST yet......)

I hope you can find the help, as I can really understand how hard this must

be for you! You need to really believe that you can do this, because you did pass nursing school. Just keep going forward, try to get some help with the kids, and then conquer the NCLEX!!!!!

I hope this helps!

GOOD LUCK----you will be a nurse!

Amaya

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One more thing, can you have a friend/sister/brother that could come stay with you for a week or 2? Then, you would still be at home, but they could do the cooking, cleaning, bathing of the kids, and everything else child related? While this is going on, you could just go off into another room to study.......My mother had done this a few times for me during nursing school. It helped out a lot! .....just another thought.....

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