Passed NCLEX 2nd Time With 75Q!

I'm posting this because I want to help motivate others who have failed to keep pushing and to not give up. Trust me, I FAILED EVERY SINGLE PROCTORED KAPLAN EXAM DURING NURSING SCHOOL... So, if I can pass the NCLEX, you can too! But you gotta put in the work!

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Passed NCLEX 2nd Time With 75Q!

Preparation for First Attempt of NCLEX

My school used Kaplan and let me tell you, I SUCKED at Kaplan. I hated it. I thought their questions were so stupid and it just never made sense to me LOL. I didn't even bother to practice Kaplan questions because I wanted to find another resource that would be more beneficial for me... I heard so many great things about UWorld. Most of my classmates only studied for a few weeks with just using UWorld and easily passed the NCLEX with 75 questions. I thought to myself, "Wow, the NCLEX shouldn't be THAT bad then." -- WRONG. I was totally wrong. I should have never had this mentality as I began to study for the NCLEX. I studied for about 1 month, did about 50 questions/day (10-20 questions at a time - untimed which btw wasn't good because I wasn't building up my stamina of taking multiple test questions on time-mode), didn't really take notes and didn't truly try to understand why I got certain questions wrong or right. My scores ranged from 43-55% (definitely low scores) on UWorld but for some reason.... I still assumed I was gonna pass the NCLEX since all of my other classmates were easily passing. Clearly, I was overly-confident for someone who didn't really study. HUGE MISTAKE.

First Attempt of NCLEX

As I walked into the test center, I began to get nervous. When the first question popped up, BOOM. I completely blanked out! My anxiety was OVER THE ROOF... Looking back, I had many easy questions but I couldn't seem to figure it out because so many things were running through my mind that I couldn't think straight. 75 questions passed and its been about 3.5 hours. 80, 90, 100, 168.... I RAN OUT OF TIME. It took me 6 freaking hours to answer 168 questions. I immediately knew I failed. Before I even stepped out of the test center, I broke down into tears, went to my car and began calling my family. I was sobbing. I was hysterical. I was angry. I felt defeated. I was filled with disappointment. I didn't want to go through this again.

Preparation for Second Attempt of NCLEX

For 2 whole weeks, I decided to give myself a break. I reflected on myself and went over what I did wrong so that I can take better action to prepare for NCLEX the 2nd time. LOTS OF PRAYERS AND THE SUPPORT OF MY LOVED ONES IS WHAT HELPED ME PERSEVERE THROUGH THE 2ND ROUND OF STUDYING. I not only prayed to God, but I also prayed to Mama Mary, my guardian angel and many Saints such as St. Joseph of Cupterino; I asked them to intercede for me so that I may overcome the fears and anxiety of retaking the boards. I prayed throughout the first round of studying as well, but I had just assumed "God's got my back" LOL even though I didn't put 110% into studying. Totally no one else to blame, but myself. THIS TIME, I made damn sure that I gave my 1000000000% into studying — because you gotta meet God halfway... DO YOUR PART, AND HE WILL TAKE CARE OF THE REST.

For 6-8 weeks, I treated studying like a full-time job. This was my schedule for about 6-8 hours/day Mon-Fri:

  • Gym in the morning
  • 75 questions (timed-mode)
  • Remediate on both wrong AND right answers
  • Listen/take notes to at least one of Mark Klimek's lectures
  • Do additional questions from LaCharity
  • Don't forget to take breaks here & there

On the weekends, I would look over ALL of my notes so that it will engrain in my brain and I won't forget it. In total, I did about 2,000+ questions. You can scroll all the way down to view my scores.

RESOURCES

Kaplan: This time, I used Kaplan and it helped so much! I used to despise their questions but tbh — their questions were much more similar to NCLEX.

UWorld: I used UWorld for a bit as well, and my scores were so much higher this time.

LaCharity Prioritization, Delegation and Management: THIS BOOK SERIOUSLY HELPED SO MUCH WITH PRIORITY QUESTIONS.

Mark Klimek: YOOOO. I swear to you, if it weren't for Mark Klimek I would have failed my NCLEX! He teaches you all the basics you need to know to be successful in tackling the NCLEX. All of his lectures are avail on Spotify! Every day that I went to the gym, I would listen to Mark Klimek instead of music — even if I already heard the lecture, I would still replay his lectures over and over again.

Notebook: Make sure you write EVERYTHING down and split your notebook into sections e.g., RENAL | CARDIOVASCULAR | GI | etc.

The more questions you do, the more you will get a feel of how to answer certain questions correctly. NCLEX is VERY STRAIGHT-FORWARD. Many questions were one-sentence questions (similar to Kaplan). Make sure you know your basics and lab values! Once you get this down, you will ace the boards.

Second Attempt of NCLEX

I woke up at 5am, worked out, ate breakfast, prepared food for the boards assuming I'd stay there for 6 hours, visited the chapel and took my exam at 8am. I WAS CONFIDENT and I knew God was by my side guiding me as I took the exam. I was one of the last few people to get checked-in, but I was the first one to finish! It took me one hour and 15 min. (I built up my test-taking stamina by doing 75+ questions/day on timed-mode.) The computer shut off on me at 75 questions and I KNEW I PASSED. Instead of waiting and paying for quick results, I logged into Breeze exactly at midnight the day after I took my boards and my license id # was posted! I WAS SOOO HAPPY! I could not sleep (I ended up sleeping around 6am hahaha). All that hard work and prayers paid off... GLORY BE TO GOD! Thank you Mama Mary, my guardian angel and all of the Saints for your intercessions. This success is dedicated to my parents, family & loved ones. GOOD LUCK if you are taking/re-taking the NCLEX. If I can do it, YOU CAN DO IT!

BSN, RN. Woo woo!!! ?

Also... here are my scores 2nd time around from studying:

Kaplan TEST SCORES
75's:
- 47%
- 60%
- 41%
- 53%
- 52%
- 52%
- 49%
- 55%
- 60%
- 53%
- 48%

NCLEX SAMPLE TESTS:
- 58%
- 48%
- RETAKE: 90%
- 87% *who do you see first*
- 22% SATA
- RETAKE: 52%

Q-TRAINER TESTS:
1. 67%
2. 55%
3. 49%
- RETAKE: 72%
4. 59%
5. 57%

READINESS TEST:
63% YAY!!! ? *pat on back* (Kaplan recommends 60% or above)

UWorld TEST SCORES
10's:

- 60%
- 90%
- 70%
- 80%
- 50%
- 70%
- 50%

25's:
- 76%
- 60%
- 60%
- 56%
- 48%

75's:
- 80%
- 52%
- 57%
- 50%
- 49%

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Specializes in LTC/ TCC/Hospice/Clinic Supervisor/Med-Surg.

Wow!!!’ Congrats! This is so inspirational . I pray I make it the second time around. I’m utilizing Uworld & Lacharity.

2 hours ago, LvANrse80 said:

Wow!!!’ Congrats! This is so inspirational . I pray I make it the second time around. I’m utilizing Uworld & Lacharity.

Thank you so much!!! Uworld and LaCharity are great resources! Listen to Mark Klimek, I promise you he is worth listening to. Just keep practicing questions daily, remediate, take notes and consistently review! You've got this! Praying for you!

Specializes in LTC/ TCC/Hospice/Clinic Supervisor/Med-Surg.

Thanks a Million. I will keep you posted.

I could not find Mark Klimeks lectures on Spotify but I do have the “ Keep calm and pass Nclex Review from him” .

Specializes in Med/Surg, PCU,.

Thank you for the post! Because of this post I started listening to Marks lectures. I take NCLEX tomorrow but listening to Marks lectures has eased some of my nerves!

8 hours ago, LvANrse80 said:

Thanks a Million. I will keep you posted.

I could not find Mark Klimeks lectures on Spotify but I do have the “ Keep calm and pass Nclex Review from him” .

Aw really? I just checked rn and I guess they deleted it. What is your email? My friend sent me the audio files of them as well.

2 hours ago, Nursee2019 said:

Thank you for the post! Because of this post I started listening to Marks lectures. I take NCLEX tomorrow but listening to Marks lectures has eased some of my nerves!

YES! Good luck!! You got this! ?

Specializes in Med/Surg, PCU,.
11 hours ago, LvANrse80 said:

Thanks a Million. I will keep you posted.

I could not find Mark Klimeks lectures on Spotify but I do have the “ Keep calm and pass Nclex Review from him” .

Check YouTube before they’re deleted! Also if you google it you’ll find it on a reddits page...

Specializes in midwifery.

thanks. this is really going to help. I my self took the nclex several times before cracking it and i assure you that it's not an exam you can be 'over-confident' about without being 'over-determined'. I'ved used almost all the reviews available out there and actually made my own Qbank of questions. Please always know the secret to passing nclex is studying full time. It usually difficult for nusing mothers and those with other daily job. Studying for nclex alone is a full time job. I've a lot of pass questions and experience i could share.

Specializes in Med/Surg, PCU,.

I took the NCLEX today and don't know how to feel. It was hard! I waited two hours to try the PVT and it said "Our records indicate that you have recently scheduled this exam. Another registration cannot be made at this time." I'm so nervous! I won't believe until I see the official results. Really hoping I passed.

Specializes in LTC/ TCC/Hospice/Clinic Supervisor/Med-Surg.

Congrats!!!! That means you passed!!!!!!’ ♥️

I found the lectures on YouTube .

Specializes in Med/Surg, PCU,.
34 minutes ago, LvANrse80 said:

Congrats!!!! That means you passed!!!!!!’ ♥️

I found the lectures on YouTube .

Thank you ? I really don’t want to get my hopes up. Glad you found the videos! Listen and take notes if needed, I wish I knew about his videos sooner. I’m not sure how old they are but they were so helpful!

Specializes in Med/Surg, PCU,.

Just an update that I passed! PVT worked! I was stressing when it was right all along !