Laurie888

Wrestling with it for how long? Long enough to get away for 4 weeks and come back? Doing what you are doing isn't going to go anywhere while you take a break for your family. Similarly, any company that springs up overnight -- is it going to last for more than overnight? Not knowing the story there, of course, no one can judge but you. Above all else you need to be able to listen to your instinct. You can laugh all you want, but it wouldn't hurt to try: Sit still, calm yourself, and ask about each option and literally listen to your gut. Right around your solar plexus there -- listen to the response it gives you. Don't question those feelings. Above all else always, always, always trust your instincts.

I was in Excelsior with no prior nursing/hospital experience -- I got in via the 'more than half-way through' a traditional program route. I did have SOME nursing assistant hospital experience, which I did mostly so that I would feel more comfortable going up to a patient during the CPNE and doing whatever was necessary. Most people will tell you, you don't learn the bulk of the job until you are ON the job. They let us actually 'do' next to nothing in nursing school. I don't find Excelsior lacking in the least. If you have much of your clinical work behind you you are every bit as qualified as any other ADN graduate, depending of course on what you put into it. Myself, I am an RN finishing my first year in a Renal/Med Surg unit. I actually started out in Corrections. I was graduated April 2005, passed my boards in June 2005. Would have taken them sooner, but couldn't decide which state to go with, living/working in an area where 4 states were within reasonable commuting distance.

Won the appeal today. I, and a couple other students who went with me to the BON meeting today, can at least be licensed in Maryland now. The change in policy is at least now on the MBON website: "Attention Excelsior College Graduates and Students: Effective July 25, 2006, all Excelsior College students who are enrolled in the nursing program before July 25, 2006 and who graduate before December 31, 2007 may apply for the NCLEX examination or, if already licensed by another state, for endorsement." Better than being denied licensure after completing the program at least, and Excelsior has been invited to present in the Fall so there's always *some* hope. For now, this is the policy in Maryland. Exelsior of course will be working on

I'm in the eastern panhandle of WV so I have a variety of states I can work in, but Maryland is where I've been working. Now Maryland is having a problem in allowing Excelsior students to test for RN licensure. Appealing that on Tuesday. If I move a couple miles down the road to Virginia and switch my license there, I can work in Maryland with no Maryland license. Once I work 500 hours (at my pace that's about 7-8 months at substandard pay) in WV I'm also good to transfer but ONLY because I know for sure that Excelsior grads were being approved as of the date I graduated (but I dilly dallied about a month before sending in my app). But this is what takes the cake. My own boss in Maryland is hesitant to hire me as an RN (I'm not an LPN) because it's been so many years since my clinical experience in college (8 years), which I kinda understand and at least she's not saying no never and I did start an internship to kinda 'show my stuff' but didn't really have time to finish it because my mother is terminal and it's unpaid time. That's not the cake taker. The cake taker is that another hospital in rural WV hired me, no problem! THEN 3 weeks into my orientation, after my preceptor was pretty much letting me handle the whole (small) module by myself, they call me in and start asking questions about my education and pretty much suspend me pending a decision. Of course I'm not interested in going back there no matter what they decide, fortunately I never quit my other job (keeping my foot in the door pending my appeal to Maryland BON). I know most people don't have this much trouble getting a job after graduating but me, let's just say this is not fun! I don't mind nursing home work but I really wanted to get my year or two of acute care done so I could do some traveling when my boychild comes of age and leaves home in a few years.

First, though, Excelsior is NLN accredited. Second. They didn't ask me for more information. They just plain rejected my application (and took my money :angryfire ) Now that I am officially licensed in WV while I'm busy accumulating hours at a pretty lousy rate of pay I will start my official paperwork in trying to track down how to appeal. I have gotten no return phone calls, no return emails, and there is no information on the website. Reminds me of a kid that has done something wrong ... hiding.

I loved the CAT -- the questions were right in line with what was on the NCLEX, too, so as far as what to anticipate and the rationales for studying, it's all good in my book. It did, however, take me 160+- questions to pass the NCLEX. But, pass, I did, and I imagine if I hadn't started freaking out as the number of questions grew I probably would have been able to prove myself with fewer questions. So don't let it get to you if you happen to hit question #76 or even #100 ... the higher the numbers went the harder it was for me to focus on anything but what number I was on!! I'm sure that hurt me a lot. It's really important not to get hung up on that number. I'd be willing to bet a fair number of people who fail at the higher numbers do so for that very reason! Also, once I got my ATT there was actually one test center (the one I ended up going to) which had test dates available the very next day. I decided to give myself a week. I almost wish I had just gone and done it!

The NCLEX is unlike any test you've ever taken. At least, that is what I found. Studying for the NCLEX, likewise, isn't anything like studying for anything else. Whatever you study, they'll refer to something else. You know this stuff, you went all the way through nursing school, and 85% or better of those who do that pass the NCLEX the first time. As a nurse (graduate from last year) at work said, there really IS no way to study for the NCLEX. Boy was that encouraging (NOT!) but true. Except for those labs and vitals for various ages from premie to older adult) there's nothing left to 'learn' or 'memorize', but do refamiliarize yourself word roots and medication clases (-ines, -ides, etc.). Studying probably isn't what you need, what you need is PRACTICE using those critical thinking skills (because THAT is what is being tested!) and the best way to do that is to practice a lot of questions. I took the Mosby CATs, one or two a day, and found them very helpful and identical in structure both of the questions and the way the CAT works. I printed out the WHOLE thing each time (30-60 pages!) and read them over so I'd understand the rationales when I couldn't read online. Knowing WHY something is right helped a lot for me, seeing how the test works helped hugely with anxiety and so on ... if I had gone in there without seeing how this test is set up I probably would have freaked out, so those for me were really valuable. Good luck, Laurie

When I viewed the WV webpage at 7 pm I thought to myself I was being pretty silly, I just tested this afternoon. I mean, morning. But I still checked again at 8pm and -- guess what? I PASSED! I have a permanent license in WV as of today! And this morning (yes! It was just this morning! I left the test site just before noon!) I was sitting at a computer ready to cry because the danged thing wouldn't shut off!

I've got the website, that's how I registered for my exam. But it states that my state BON does not participate in quick results, so I'm doubting that will be available to me when the results come in.

LOL I was just searching to see if you passed. I'm not sure how I feel. According to Vue, "Your Board of Nursing does not participate in the Quick Results Service" I don't know if that means I can't even pay to look up my prelimiary results, I can't find the page now that said for a fee I could, in 2 days. We'll see.

Or something like that -- after I passed 100 I simply cringed every time it moved on to the next. At 110 I got a pretty blue screen and smiled -- until I read what it said (you may take a 10 minute break if you want). I had taken several CAT tests and consistently cut off at 75 with a 94% chance of passing. The Assess Test gave me a 95% chance of passing. This thing was HARD. I also lost count of the number of alternative questions -- it was more than 10. Everything seemed to be mental health! (I had to take the nursing concepts 5 3 times before I passed -- probably because of mental health issues at home (this is only a test...).) I have absolutely no feel for how I did. Except it was hard. And by 160 questions I was in tears -- and probably not doing too well I was so upset.

Wendy, This won't be the most popular answer but I wouldn't worry too much... worry gets you no where! I was several years out of nursing school (went 3/4 way through) before I went to Excelsior. I was told often and often loudly that I needed more clinical experience, that I'd been out of school too long, that even if I passed I might not be safe ... and I care, I really care about being safe. BUT I knew that I personally had kept up with all the medical knowledge. The skills? Well I remember.. I remember clinicals in school. We weren't allowed to do much of anything frankly. They tell LPNs to wait a year or so before continuing .. I had finished 30% of an LPN program before going into an RN program and ultimately having to quit because of finances and divorce. Frankly I learned more in LPN school than I did the entire time I was in RN school. Maybe it's the way it was taught. My supervisor wasn't real comfortable with the time since my last traditional clinical so I offered to do an internship. Never quite finished (that's another story) but I was allowed to do anything a student nurse could and on my floor was treated/trained just as if I were a new grad. No problems. A little slow, like any new grad, but as near as anybody can tell I seem to have the knowledge and skills of a -- new graduate RN. And that's what I am. I DO work in a hospital, as a Unit Secretary and for the last several months before my CPNE, as a nursing assistant. I think that helped in the way of refamiliarizing myself with not so much clinical skills but people skills! You have to be able to walk into your patient with a certain amount of confidence. With the things CNAs are supposed to do these days (foleys, dressing changes) it was easy to see that the skills I practiced in school were still intact. I know how to give meds, carefully. That didn't change. So working on the floor definitely gave me a confidence boost but I probably could have done without it. No, I take that back -- I failed the CPNE the first time strictly due to nerves and a recent medication change which made them even worse ... second time I breezed through. So I don't know. What I do know from my own clinical experiences as well as watching the students that come to the hospital is that -- I remember what I did, and all the things we couldn't do. I was able to perform as a new graduate RN at the CPNE because that's what I was ... (almost) and that's what I am! NCLEX in 2 days!

That is for the Assess Test, not for the CAT. The assess test login is sent after you have a graduation date, but before the actual date ... it is the whole test, 265 questions and you take it ONCE. The CAT is the computer adaptive test to simulate the real deal, and you can take it an unlimited number of times within that 30 days. There is a glitch on the site that seems to be more than the 'sometimes' they say it happens, but a quick phone call and they set you up and you can get going right away. I've taken the CAT 3 times so far, and the assess, and all give me a 94-95% probably of passing. I'll probably be at the computer all day tomorrow, I test on Wednesday! 94 just doesn't seem right to me, or realistic when I am only getting about 68% correct! So I'd be interested in seeing how accurate that prediction really is.

I did finally get my ATT in my email today -- and that can't be bad!!! I scheduled for a week from tomorrow. There was a date available tomorrow and I was tempted ... but with all the frustrations dealing with the Maryland BON (they decided out of the blue a few weeks ago to deny Excelsior graduates) and getting my paper work into WV (where I have a job offer anyway, but I wanted to stay at my current hospital too) I haven't exactly been studying! Time to get busy, I guess!

I went directly through Excelsior. Took me three years, but that was taking a year off because of my son being hospitalized right after enrolling and some dry periods where I couldn't come up with the money to take the next exam. I did not enroll with a studying company. However. I DID use guides from College Network and Chancellor's to help me get organized for study, I bought them used then resold them one at a time. I did NOT use them for all the courses. For NC 4 I passed solely using notes from others found in Yahoo groups -- and I used notes from these groups on all 7 tests. I like the cassettes with Chancellor's, I really liked being able to listen as I drove. I'd recommend NOT putting all that extra money into a publishing company, when you'll probably want to be using other resources as well to be sure you have the material down. When they started offering the practice exams I used those as well, well worth the money, if you have extra to spend on study aids I personally think that is the single best thing you can invest in. Buying used guides also lets you "try before you buy" and get a feel for the style in each company. I would not even try Rue from the negatives I had heard about them at the time, I don't know if things have improved or not. Chancellor's Care Plan workshop is an excellent workshop for the CPNE that many who haven't otherwise used a study aide have used. There were people there had that been to Excelsior's workshop and found it to be lacking. I almost wish that the new current requirements for Excelsior had been in effect when I went, that pre-cpne clinical related thing sounds like it should go a ways towards helping on the clinical end. I wouldn't sign a contract, not with so many other aids out there. You don't have to go buy books, I used my old nursing books, and you can still use the guides if you feel it makes it easier for you. Don't overlook anything in the way of study aids, there are tons of them out there.