preparing for the NCLEX

From what most nurses have tried, the Kaplan Course seems to be effective. I plan on taking it before my 2nd exam attempt.

:)

For those that have just graduated and passed the NCLEX, are there any secrets to studying for this big exam that someone could share with me? I have 3 different types of study guides but is there something that could help more?

I spent 2 weeks going through my textbooks, the Mosby pre-test and the Saunders pre-test and nothing was worth the anguish. My advice is do not study. Work on your critical thinking and you will be safe. The study guides are not worth the stress.:)

For those that have just graduated and passed the NCLEX, are there any secrets to studying for this big exam that someone could share with me? I have 3 different types of study guides but is there something that could help more?

If you can get Lippencott's review for the NCLEX, get it! Excellent book. Also, if you're a visual learner, you may want to get Nursing made insanely easy by SYlvia rayfield. It uses pictures, acronyms, and nmeonics (SP?) and those really help. I didnt take any review courses, but I practiced, practiced, and practiced some more from the NCLEX books. Besides Lippencott's (my fave) I had NCLEX-RN-comprehensive study guide by JoAnn Zerwekh, and NSNA's NCLEX-RN review, and Kaplan's cd-rom, lippencott's cd-rom. Just keep answering questions every day, and you should be ok!

Good luck!

How long did you study for the nclex (ie. how many hours per day, how many books did you go through)?I graduate end of April and I am planning on taking it (hopefully) by the end of summer. Where did you get that book by Sylvia Rayfield? From the library or bookstore? Any other advice you can give?

thanks,

amy

If you can get Lippencott's review for the NCLEX, get it! Excellent book. Also, if you're a visual learner, you may want to get Nursing made insanely easy by SYlvia rayfield. It uses pictures, acronyms, and nmeonics (SP?) and those really help. I didnt take any review courses, but I practiced, practiced, and practiced some more from the NCLEX books. Besides Lippencott's (my fave) I had NCLEX-RN-comprehensive study guide by JoAnn Zerwekh, and NSNA's NCLEX-RN review, and Kaplan's cd-rom, lippencott's cd-rom. Just keep answering questions every day, and you should be ok!

Good luck!

I did Kaplan online because my hospital paid for it. I only listened to the first two lectures and spent the rest of my study time doing the practice tests and reading the course book that came with the class. I honestly thought that the NCLEX was easy compared to the Kaplan review tests. I kept waiting for my questions to get harder during my exam but they never seemed to. When my test shut off at 75, I knew that I had passed because I knew that I was answering the questions correctly. I studied for about 2 hours a day for 2 weeks. I think that the test taking strategies I learned from Kaplan really helped me to be successful. Good Luck :)