Selecting Fitzgerald studying guide

Christen, ANP · Jan 6, 2011

I'd go to her seminar if you can. I found it well worth the money and a great overall review. I can't tell you much about the cds, though. Her review book is good, but I would get one of every review book you can find. Variety is the spice of life and all that! LOL - the different content in each book helps you get a nice, well rounded review. I'm actually about to list all mine on ebay, so pm me if you want a list of what I've got. :)

Blessedx3 · Jan 8, 2011

I did the live review..BUT the audio CD's are invaluable..I listened on the way to clinicals for months. When you do Peds-she offers a Well Child and Sick Child CD. It condenses what you really need to know for each major topic. The live review was good--but it's exactly what's in the Live CD/review you can purchase. I would start listening NOW to the CD's... The Leik review book is excellent as well.

labbio · Jan 14, 2011

Blessedx3, could you send me a PM, please?

llltapp · Jan 14, 2011

The review book is GREAT. I take it to work as a quick reference and it is great to take with you to clinicals. Get it now, and use it to study for your exams while you are in school. I did and my exam scores shot up. The CD's are also awesome. They helped my clinical while in school, prepare for the test, and I still listen to them now that I have graduated and passed boards. I also went to the seminar. It was great, however it was exactly the same as the CD's. except that they give you great book and handouts in the course with extra CEU's.

After doing the above, I came out of the boards thinking, that was nothing! (ANCC)

What more can I say :) good luck!

Frogger511 · Jan 16, 2011

I would recommend using her review book through clinicals. I am taking the AANP exam in a short while and which I had started the review much sooner as it would have helped me GREATLY and prevented the cramming I feel like I'm doing now! I have her CD's (which are a recording of her live seminar with a book that goes exactly with the CD's) and her review book. I personally like the book a little better. The format is efficient - questions, answers, then review of the topic you just answered questions about. It's nice to get a feel for how well you know the information before you review the topic so you can better know your weaknesses.

I also ordered Hollier's book with just questions and answers. I haven't started using it, but have heard that it's good to use one book to study and another to answer questions. Gives you a little more to work with since one author typically writes questions on the same stuff he/she reviews...maybe even asking the questions just a little different will help solidify the information in your brain.

Anyhow, best of luck! I'm frantically preparing for boards and just hope what I'm doing is good enough!

Spacklehead, MSN, NP · Jan 16, 2011

I'm going to be honest here, so I'm sorry if this comes across as blunt - it's not meant to be that way. I don't know why so many people spend so much money on the CDs, review courses, etc., especially if you are taking the exam within 6 mos. of graduation. Your program should have prepared you well - you really shouldn't need to spend all of this money on these courses. Yes, they probably do help; but, you can do your own review just using the review books and maybe getting a study group together with friends.

I don't know, I just hate to see so many people spending so much money on info they already spent a bunch on by going through an NP program. The board exam, BON licensure, malpractice insurance, etc. all cost money. Why spend more on info you should already know?

If you really do believe it will help you, then by all means go for it. I just think many of you aren't giving yourselves and your NP programs enough credit - you already should know the info, you just need to review it. The review books alone should be enough to help you with that.

Best of luck to you all!

Frogger511 · Jan 16, 2011

I agree that I wouldn't spend a fortune on resources, but at ~ $50, I think Fitzgerald's book that I referenced before (ISBN 0803621329) is a great resource and well worth the money spent. I only wish I had gotten it sooner and definitely intend to use it as a reference in practice.

I also have her CD's and felt a bit more overwhelmed at listening to those as a means to study for boards. I did listen to them some throughout clinicals and found them helpful. But at the high cost, I wouldn't suggest that they are necessary.

amberfnp · Jan 18, 2011

I used CDs and books...I liked them both. As for the CDs, if you choose to purchase them, check ebay and amazon. I bought a Hollier set of CDs off of ebay for $100 less than the APEA website and after I downloaded them to my computer for my ipod and decided I was done using the CDs, I reposted to ebay and got back what I paid for them. Classmates relayed the same re: Fitzgerald. Just remember when you buy used, you may or may not get the review book that comes with them.

Frogger511 · Jan 20, 2011

First of all, I can't send private messages....not sure why.

The review book I'm talking about is a bounded book listed on Amazon for $51.70 (current price). ISBN 0803621329.

This book doesn't come with CDs. The CDs can be purchased from Fitzgerald's website and cost around $420 (2010 version) or $446 (2011 version).

I like the review book better because I can pick and choose how long I spend on each subject. However, had I started listening to the CDs sooner, I would have liked them too. I listened to them briefly during clinicals, but am running out of time, so I had to move on to the book so I could get through something.

I take boards too soon and only have a few days off of work to finish studying. I'm not doing very well on the practice questions. So, it'll see if all the hours I've spent studying pay off. But I'm trying to stay positive. So - I will take and pass boards very soon!

Signing out for awhile. I hope this helps.

amberfnp · Jan 20, 2011

In my above post when I mentioned the workbook that comes with the CDs, that is a different book than what you can buy in the bookstore/Amazon etc. There is one specific to the CDs and live review course that you cannot buy individually.

I found both the workbook and store bought books to be useful for school and AANP exam prep but more often than not I referred to the store bought book. As another poster stated, it would also be a good quick ref to have in practice.

As I used Fitz the majority of my time in school (Cds and books), by the time it came to study for AANP, I found that she repeats a lot of questions and I knew the answers just due to hearing them over and over. So that's when I switched to Hollier. I liked her online practice test too.

kimsherr00 · Mar 8, 2011

I am getting ready to graduate and have been listening to Fitzgerald CD's. Did you find them helpful? Which test did you take AANC or AANP