SO CONFUSED

If you really want to pass Nclex I say take a semester off and focus on studying for it :) GL!!

In my opinion, I agree with the post above. I think you should dedicate & put all your time into studying & passing the nclex. When I was studying for it, I dedicated at least a good 4 hours studying each day & I think that if I added school/extra classes into it, my brain would probably be fried from all the other info I was taking in.

What I think really helped me in passing was doing at least 100-120 questions everyday (even on weekends) & reading each rationale whether or not I got the question right. Never tried Kaplan but the more practice questions you can get through, the more you will feel comfortable & the better off you will be taking the test with confidence.

Good luck & dont ever give up! You'll be a nurse soon. :redbeathe

TO HAVE THE BEST CHANCE OF PASSING KNOW YOUR CORE CONTENT such as med surg, renal, endo, resp, GI, GU, cardio, dieases, labs, delegation, priority, study select all that apply ...LOOK AT THE NEW FORMAT FOR THE 2011 NCSBN. MED SURG IS THE BACK BONE SINCE THERE IS SOMETHING GOING ON IN ALL THE QUESTIONS. Touch over ob/and peds(complications). DON'T STUDY STUFF YOU KNOW WELL...THAT IS WASTING YOUR STUDY TIME. Its up to you as the nurse to attack the questions direct. USE THE SAUNDERS BOOK WITH THE CD if you don't have something already. Go over the sections and do 60 questions a day from each body system. Read the sections in the saunders helps to fill in the grey areas along with the cd. Talk out your concepts aloud to get them in your head so you can pull them back up when you take your exam. Know basic pharm tie that in with disease can help you remember it better...same goes for labs. Remember just because you have a nurse floating to the floor with 10 yrs exp....she or he stills needs the most stable patient. RN can only do teaching so remember that when you look at discharge and admissions....in the nclex hospital. NO GOOD QUESTIONS on NCLEX(SOMETHING HAPPENING IN ALL OF THEM)....PROBLEMS YOU NEED TO FIX. READ CAREFUL, LOOK FOR KEYWORDS. THINK WHAT IS THE BEST, SAFE, AND WILL CORRECT THE PROBLEM WHEN YOU ATTACK THE QUESTION. Remember we want to correct a problem in the early signs of distress or whatever before they get to the point of the might not make it phase. THEY ARE LOOKING FOR NURSES THAT WILL HELP THE PATIENTS, PROTECT THEMSELVES AND THE PUBLIC.....ALONG WITH LOOK FOR ABUSE. Becareful with labs just because its wnl of the high or low...red flag for new nurses. Goal is to get as many questions right on that exam as you can. Look for keywords read the questions slow. THE SAME WAY YOU MISSED TEST QUESTIONS IN SCHOOL BECAUSE YOU READ THE QUESTIONS TO FAST...CAN HAPPEN HERE SO READ SLOW. DON'T GIVE YOUR ANSWERS AWAYS BECAUSE YOU ARE READING TO FAST....SLOW IT DOWN ON THIS. Ask yourself does my choice make sense....and if so WHY...KNOW THE WHY TO YOUR RIGHT ANSWERS AND THE WRONGS...OR WHAT MADE THEM WRONG . SO REVEIW RATIONALS WHILE YOU PRACTICE FOR YOU EXAM. It often helps you get other key pieces in your head. KEEP POSITIVE, KEEP FOCUSED. You can do it. Also look at select all that apply questions. Hurst review is nice too. Don't get yourself so focused on medications that you don't look at other parts of the test. Its not a pharm test. REVIEW MEDS THAT GO WITH EACH SYSTEM...remember you are loooking for complications(major). So basic meds. Don't hang yourself up here....make sure you know that med surg and all thoses systems well.

My local library had the Kaplan books, you may want to try that if you domt have the $ for the course. I am a big fan of Hurst Review but it's $300.

thanks everyone for their input!! i am going to take the semester off! && work hard on this. wishinguponastarlpn why do u favor hurst??

hurst is actual content review, whereas kaplan is mostly all questions. You can't answer questions if you don't have an understanding of conent. Well you can but it does you no good.

Hurst is a nice over view...they keep in touch with the boards of nursing....to make sure they are giving you want you need. They cover what you need. And by the end of the week...you know what your strong areas are vs. the weak......I use hurst and saunders only ...i would do 60 questions for each section in saunders and read the saunders chapters...Stuff I knew well I wouldn't waste alot of time....Stuff I was alittle unsure I would spend more time....I talk my concepts out like If I was teaching which helped me correct myself I would read and then repeat it the next day talking it out...like you have this illness what treats...what are the s/s....what are the precautions...and what do i do as the nurse such as meds...hydration....repositioning ...how are the labs going to look such as high or low*even as the the new nurse I need to worry if the labs are on the low of normal or the high of normal that patients could be trending in a bad direction...or whatever...It really helped talking and getting those systems down like that... and listen to hurst review. Along with being direct when dealing with people that have a suicidal ideations are you going to hurt yourself...do you have a plan...safety check first when they come on your unit...shoes remove the laces and any other clothing... make an attempt for a contract of safety with that patient(sign). Signs of elder abuse. Know what to do in tramua situation such as protecting the neck/airway/shock... But make sure you know that med surg....