USNvet147

DO NOT GIVE UP! I know that it is easier said than done, but you are going to make a great nurse and an even better one for fighting through this process. It took me a few tries, and I have horrible, testing anxiety. I spent so much money between UWorld, Kaplan, and several tutors. Additionally, I memorized Mark K’s lectures, listened to many podcasts, and drowned myself in answering 100-145 questions a day. In all honesty, answering questions every day with remediation wasn’t really cutting it for me. Many people kept telling me to just continually answer questions every day and to make sure that I had a thorough understanding of the rationale if I got a question wrong. I tried that day in and day out for months but I failed the test twice. It took me awhile to recover after failing the second time because I was so discouraged. I decided to give a tutor, another try and found one through Varsity Tutors. She was really incredible and her entire focus was going over content rather than the questions. I did very few questions periodically and focused all my attention on reviewing pathophysiology according to specific body systems and little things in between (e.g. when I reviewed musculoskeletal I went over additional things like positioning, traction, and use of assistive devices). After reviewing a specific system, I would answer some questions in Kaplan, because I felt like they were more complex than UWorld and closer to what I was seeing on the NCLEX. I did this all consistently for five weeks and just recently took the test again and passed with minimal questions. I know it’s difficult but YOU WILL PASS! Keep pushing and know that you will soon find what works for you. All the best!

@Chetan thank you for your kind words and I would absolutely be interested in meeting for Q&A’s. @courageousme I am so happy you passed and am hoping that the third time is the charm for me as well. Thank you for mentioning Remar; it has been a HUGE help!

Hi! I have taken the NCLEX now twice and have failed both attempts. It’s been over six months since I have graduated and since then, I have moved three times due to my spouse getting stationed from the west to east coast where we have recently settled in the last two months. I have been using Mark K lectures, UWorld, and Kaplan to no avail and the failures have now made me feel completely incompetent. I graduated with honors but I am a horrible test taker; I get very anxious and have been so depressed. I spent so much money on the last exam on a tutor and did a lot better, but I’m petrified to schedule my next exam out of fear that I will fail yet again. I have struggled studying lately because I just feel like a complete failure. After my time in the military, I was an EMT and Nurse Tech and I miss being in the hospital setting and working with patients so much! I’ve felt lately like I have lost my sense of purpose and am trying not to give up because I have wanted to be a nurse my whole life. So much so, that I served for many years just to ensure that I could afford to further my education to become a nurse. I am feeling very lost especially in a new place with no connections after working so hard to establish a career path only to find out last minute that we had to move after being promised that we didn’t (which I know should come as no surprise being military but it did). I’m wondering if anyone has any advice or has been through anything similar? Thanks in advance.