tmac19

Just wanted to add that before I took my NCLEX, I was scoring about 60% on practice tests. As it turned out, I passed the NCLEX in 75 questions. Therefore, I don't think that the prep tests are that accurate in reporting how well you will do. I think as long as you are trending above 50%, I think you should be fine. Don't let yourself be discouraged by your practice test results--just keep studying!

I definitely will pray for you! Hope you do so well @PriyaAadhi

I would say that it is possible to get an ICU job right out of nursing school, simply because I have seen it done in the hospital I used to work at. However, I would say that most hospitals would not hire new grads for ICU simply because the learning curve is incredibly steep. I think that many need that time in some sort of med/surg environment first, to solidify skills in an environment with more support and somewhat less stress. I don't know your particular level of experience as an EMT, but for example, being confidant with inserting NG tubes, managing PICC lines, inserting IVs, inserting foleys, dealing with a CODE situation, etc... are all things that will be so helpful to be experienced with before also learning the additional the skills that go along with ICU nursing. There is so much experiential knowledge that you can gain in med/surg units that is so foundational for anything you go on to pursue later on. Having said that, every nurse is different. You know what you want, and you need to follow your heart and put in the work to get where you want to go. I'm sure you will get there!

I completely agree with the two above. You need to gain the foundational knowledge that nursing school will teach you first and foremost. Also, so much of prep for the NCLEX is just making sure you understand the concepts presented in nursing school. Understand those, and you'll be better equipped to take the NCLEX when that time comes.

I am also an internationally educated nurse who just passed the NCLEX last week on my first try. I have just posted a long thread about my prep methods if you are interested in reading it. You can do this. Don't be discouraged. You have a good amount of time to study and your experiential knowledge will definitely be an asset to you as it was to me. I primarily used the HESI Comprehensive Review for the NCLEX-RN Examination (Sold here on amazon: HESI Comprehensive Review for the NCLEX-RN Examination: 9780323065856: Medicine & Health Science Books @ Amazon.com )

Hi everyone! I have read a lot of threads that were very helpful for nurses who studied in the US, but not many relating specifically to international nurses. So, I thought I would add my piece here, just to encourage all you international nurses wanting to take the NCLEX. First of all, I just wanted to encourage you not to be discouraged by the statistics. I made the stupid decision to read up on the passing rate of international nurses a couple days before I took my NCLEX. Doing so only gave me additional stress, in a time where I was anxious enough already. You are an individual and you are more than a statistic. Therefore, work hard--study to the best of your ability--and don't worry about the statistics! A little background info: I graduated in 2011 from a nursing school in Canada. About a month after graduation, I took the CRNE (the licensing exam), which was very difficult. I remember being completely unsure if I had passed or failed. Thankfully, I did pass and started to work in a med-surg environment a couple months after passing. I loved my job. Fast forward to just a couple months ago. I decided that I wanted to take the NCLEX in order to expand my options in the future. Therefore, I applied for my ATT and received in within approximately a month or two. I scheduled my test by phone for July 2nd, 2014. Since I had a heavy workload at graduate school this past semester, I decided not to study for the NCLEX until May when I returned home from school. That left me with about 6 weeks to study. Yes, I did study pretty much every day. I probably studied about 4 hours a day, until the week before the exam, in which I studied about 8 hours a day. I did not create a strict daily schedule for myself, because I knew that for me personally that would not work and would only lead to feelings of failure. I also made sure to have days where I didn't study at all and just spent time with family. I was lucky to have friends who are nurses in the US who leant me study guides. I primarily used the: 1) HESI Comprehensive Review for the NCLEX-RN Examination (3rd edition) ---> I went through this book in its entirety. I took notes throughout and made sure that I sought out additional resources if there was a concept in this book that I did not understand fully. The questions in this book are not formatted like the NCLEX, but I would say that they are extremely helpful because they cause you to use critical thinking. I also accessed the online practice questions that are included with a code on the inside flap of this book. 2) Saunders Comprehensive Review for the NCLEX-RN Examination (5th Edition) --->I did not use this book a great deal (it's overwhelmingly huge!). I only used it to study maternity nursing more in depth, because my nursing program did not spend much time on this area of nursing. I also used YouTube videos to help me understand difficult concepts. One of my favourite YouTubers for explaining clinical concepts was called "ProfRoofs." There are many similar channels that have excellent videos. The day of the exam I was very nervous. As I mentioned previously, I was worried because of the poor passing rate of internationally trained nurses. I had read several threads in which students explained that they had done thousands of practice questions before the exam. I questioned my study methods, as I had only done maybe 500 practice questions, max. Only about 10% of my exam was in the simple multiple choice format, and the rest were in other formats that I had not practiced very much. So, when the computer kicked me out at 75 questions, I was sure that I had failed. Two days later I paid the $8.00 to receive my unofficial results. I was ECSTATIC to read that I had passed!!! My advice to you, as an international nurse, would be: 1) Don't let the statistics get you down. If your goal is to pass the NCLEX, put in the work, and you can do it. 2) Remember that you have experiential knowledge that will be a great asset to you. I cannot even tell you how much my clinical experience helped me. For example, since I have spent hours and hours giving patients meds, I was familiar with many meds without having to spent a lot of time studying them. 3) Seek to understand concepts instead of seeking to memorize concepts. If you understand a certain body system, you will have the critical thinking skills to help you to pass the NCLEX. Conversely, if you simply try to memorize everything...well... that is impossible. Just take a look at the size of any of your textbooks! 4) Try to enjoy studying for the NCLEX. Why? Because the material that you are studying is not only going to help you pass the exam. This material will help to make you a better nurse. Isn't that really what the end goal is? 5) You don't need to shell out hundreds of dollars on prep courses and textbooks. I did not take any courses and I used textbooks that were borrowed and technically "out of date," and I still passed. Courses may be helpful to you, but they are NOT the be-all and end-all of passing this exam. Don't let fear bully you into spending $100s of dollars that you do not need to spend. 6) Sleep well, eat well, spend time with your family. These things are important for your mental health, which is vital in taking such an intense exam. 7) Lastly, take your time during the exam. Read the questions thoroughly. Use the white board to clarify concepts in your mind if needed. Take the questions one at a time, as if your current question is the most important question. Anyways, I wish you all the best in your preparations for the NCLEX exam! :)