Pax Admission Test - Failed

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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Hello all,

I am so disappointed and really unsure where to turn at this point. I took the Pax exam yesterday for the second and bombed it again. I have completed a number of courses and earned A & B's in these classes but can't get past this ENTRANCE exam. I mean, I have A&P 1 and 2 complete, nurtrition, micro and so on but the admission test is so difficult for me because they are general science questions with nothing to do with nursing but rocks, clouds, physics, and laws I would need to relearn.

If I go the LPN route instead of the RN I may be able to waive this exam but will spend a lot more money for the degree JUST TO BYPASS THIS EXAM.

I don't want to quit. I can retake this exam in the summer and will, but wonder if I am just wasting my time. I read other blogs that say that test preparation is a waste because the cd and book don't reflect the questions (I have both and was going to continue using them). How can I pass the college "nursing" courses but can't pass these basic science pre-admission exams?? HELP! I just want to cry.:uhoh3: I live in the greater Pittsburgh area.

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Specializes in Medical and general practice now LTC.

Moved to the Pre-Nursing Student forum

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Actually, the study guide helped me with the physics part of the test. Did you get the study guide?

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I understand Moondog1. I take the PAX for the second time this weekend. I missed the math by 5% last time, so why do we have to retake ALL of the portions again. I have all my classes, like you, with A's & B's. If I don't pass, I don't know what to do next. It's discouraging to say the least. But someday....we'll get there!

I wish you all the best in your upcoming decisions. :flwrhrts:

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Best of luck to you too. I won't give up and have purchased the practice books. Are the retests similar I wonder

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hello Moonmax1, sorry earlier i called you moondog.. opps. Well the computer test pax test went smoother than I anticipated. And yes it seemed very similar to the one I took in Aug 2010; esp the reading comp. part. Btw, that study guide is very helpful and true to the types of questions.

I had the "if its meant to be" attitude going in, and tried to stay calm, and wala, I passed this time. It was nerve racking because you wait a few mins at the end to get your score. Out of the 35 people, I was the 2nd to last to leave. So true don't give up :up:, chances are you will pass it this time, the nerves are already out of your system! Keep me posted and when are you taking the test again?

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oh my dear how i feel your pain,you are not alone if this make u feel a little better. i did take the exam for the second time on 02/19/2011 (trying to get into ccac) and failed. i was so confident,my weakness is math so i did study mostly math this time around. as the first time i did very good in the english and science part but i failed again the math portion,i left crying because i was so sure i would make it this time,i am so disappointed. i have all my pre req done and i finished all my classes with a's and b's the only thing stopping me is this exam. i want to give up,but i want to be a nurse so very bad. i am not that young either (35 yrs old this month). i am scared and i am ******,because i do beleive that a standardized test doesn't really define if a person is cut for nursing school,but this is the system they use and we have to get along with it.

something else that got me upset is the in the exam there are 20 experimental questions for each subject that will not be count,it means that if i did anwer in the math portion all the 20 experimental right i got screwed anyway.

20 questions that doesnt count it is a large number, it is 1 every 3 questions and i can't understand why they do that,maybe to have more people fail so they have to retest and the company makes more money? a possibility.

i have heard that somebody went to an exam,there were 200 people taking it and only 38 passed........so some doubts in my mind have arised about this exam.

i did notice too that the math question doesn't reflect the study guide at all,i don't know if it is the format,but it doesn't look nothing like it.

i just got a book to help me with the math is called: davi's basic math review for nurses,step by step solutions - isbn-13: [color=#0000cc]9780803620568. hopefully it will help me to pass the math this time around.

there are not dates out for ccac for now,but i am sure that we will be able to retest around august. lets hope for the best. keep me posted

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I took the PAX about a month ago and did pretty well. I realized the science is weighted the heaviest. I got a 77 (around there, can't remember) in math, and a 87 ( again, can't remember specifically) in english, and got a 97 on the science and I came out with a 95 over all. CRAZY! I didn't do well in the science area on the TEAS but got a book and studied a lot before the PAX and it helped.

Like all of you, I've done well in my college course sciences but the kinds of questions on these entrance exams are all from high school bio and what not, how do they expect us to remember those things?! But the book that I got was a HUGE help, it went over all of those science topics in detail that I haven't had since high school and it helped reteach me those things. I would definitely suggest getting a book and studying it for at least a month before you take it again. The book I had came with practice tests and explained how the PAX was set up and how each section is graded and all that.. go to http://www.half.com and search PAX study guides. My book covered the PAX and TEAS and something else all in one book and it was great and only about $18 with shipping.

But don't give up hope, keep working hard, and study a review book and you'll pass with flying colors next time!

Good Luck!

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I couldn't remember the name of the book I used, but I just looked it up. Its:

McGraw-Hill's Nursing School Entrance Exams: National League for Nursing Pre-Admission Examination (NLN PAX-RN); Nurse Entrance Test (NET); Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS); Psychological

It's selling for $8.73 right now before shipping. This book helped a TON!

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Specializes in ER, IICU, PCU, PACU, EMS.

friendly reminder.....

please do not divulge privileged information, such as that obtained from taking the pax admission test, as doing such is giving unfair advantage to those who have not taken it. allow others to pass on their own merits.

thank you for your cooperation!

best of luck to you all.

medic2rn

co-admin

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I just took the pax for the second time and I got a 137. The first time I got a 121. The study guide is very very helpful because there are alot of questions that have nothing to do with nursing. This book will definitely help a lot. Best Wishes to everyone!

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I took the PAX on Feb. 17th for the first time, and as it was the written exam, I am STILL waiting for my score to arrive in the mail. I'm really, really nervous about it, as I thought the science portion was very difficult.

I'm also near Pittsburgh...

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