The entrance exams are killing me...

LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN · May 20, 2016

Test preps are the new wave of money making, no doubt; however you realize that you have to strategize better when taking exams.

Throughout my own collegiate career, I battled with anxiety, more so test anxiety, and learned HOW to take the test and battle reading too much into the question; simple key words, identifying the subject and the appropriate answer can take at least 15-20 seconds tops, and then move along, at least in my experience.

When I had to take my entrance exams for nursing school, and study for the NCLEX, I studied the books specific for my exam-I didn't do the whole "in-class" sessions or anything else; I knew what my weak eases were, study those more, reviewed everything ele, then used mock testing to help me prepare for my exams.

I found mock exams to benefit me more than "just studying, because, in essence, most the material is known; tests are mainly a measuring tool of applying the knowledge in a standardized format.

justgonnagoforit · Jun 10, 2016

Thanks Ladyfree28. I wrote this post a long time ago and it just today, popped up on my profile. I appreciate your advise! I am now studying the teas v, but this time I have the study manual and am going through it page by page. I can't believe at my age, I still have have so much to learn about myself! Someone on here said that when ever you take a practice test, you should ALWAYS do all of the questions, not just the unfamiliar stuff. I was shocked at what I thought I knew - but got wrong! Like you said, you must learn how to take the test.

I'll keep plugging away at all this crap. I've come a long way and have NO intentions of quitting now. :)

oldsockventriloquist · Jun 11, 2016

I guess I'll mention a couple of points and these are all things you should consider as you continue studying for the ACT/SAT and if needed, nursing entrance exams tests (TEAS, HESI...).

1) Do I really need to take the ACT/SAT?

This is an important point. There are multiple pathways for getting into nursing school and many do not necessarily require taking the ACT/SAT. To be more specific, I am referring to starting off in community/technical college, where they might give you a placement test for classes, but do not require taking the ACT/SAT. It is important to understand why this pathway is often favored for older students, since the class schedules can be more flexible for your work schedule, students might have an easier time doing well, given the smaller class sizes and individual attention compared to four year universities, you save a lot of money, and you can start immediately, generally, without the headache of university admissions, and build a foundation (anatomy and physiology, for example) for taking the nursing entrance exams, if you need to. After you've completed all your nursing prerequisites, you can either apply to associate (ADN) or bachelor (BSN) degree nursing programs. It is worth mentioning that many four year state schools are required to admit a minimum amount of community college students in the state (which would be a very good thing for you).

2) If, for some reason, you decide that community/technical college will not work for you, here's the general advice for taking an admissions test:

1. Take practice exams to gauge how you are doing. The first thing you should be doing is taking a practice exam timed and then untimed, before looking at any answers. Why untimed? Because you want to see if you understand the material and if timing is what's holding you back. It might also help to write down why you selected an answer (for example, "Answer C, because the subject was mentioned throughout the passage making it part of the them"), before looking at your explanation to compare the two. Then, focus on your weaknesses. If you did poorly on all sections, then start with a general review of everything.

2. Setup a study schedule that should lead up to your test date. Have a firm date, so that you don't keep putting off your test. If you are studying one section on each day, then have questions at the end of your review, so that you understand the material (eventually those questions should be timed, see point 3). Ideally, you are not just quizzing yourself the day of each review, but reviewing the day after and even a week after that, with some new questions on the material. Finally, when you have gone over all the subjects in your weak section(s) or for your general review, start taking official (on the SAT or ACT website) practice exams. It is good to get within a range for those scores to know if you are ready. This is important, since there will always be additional material to study.

3. Since you mentioned strategy on how to read the questions, here are some points about timing and test strategy. First, you need to master the material, before you start with timing. However, once you've reviewed the material, you need to start answering timed questions, even when doing mini review questions. To do this, usually people will take the total time per section / total questions to give you time per question, which usually can come out to be about a minute or less (SAT - Expert Guide: How Long Is the SAT? ) and go off that. However, keep in mind the sections where you will be reviewing a passage, where you might want to breakdown time (minutes) per section, when using practice passages. Second, for test anxiety, it is good before each question, to take a second and compose yourself. Realize that everyone in that room is struggling and have faith that you do have the ability to do well on the test.

Third, there might be questions on material you do not know. There could be a question on angles or a vocab word you've never seen before. Do not freak out. Every standardized test from college to graduate school admissions test does this. Why? Because they want to see how you dissect a question and choices down and use your thinking to answer the question. This does not mean spending months memorizing the definition of every college level word. This does mean, for example, breaking down a word into its prefix(es) and suffix(es) to figure or realizing that an angle in a triangle cannot be greater than 180 (so all answers greater than 180 are wrong). If you can't dissect a question that way or eliminate three out of the four wrong answers (process of elimination), try eliminating the choices you can and guess. If you have no clue and can't break anything down, can't reference a passage, or can't eliminate all wrong choices, don't get hung up on one question. You might nearly have the answer, but the time you need to get the answer might take fifteen minutes. So, you might get that one right, but the other fifteen easy questions you have to guess that you would have gotten right, you got wrong. One last piece of advice on timing is to maybe divide the test up for a batch of questions. For example, you did a third of questions, therefore you should have spent only a third of the time, according to the timer. If you are behind, maybe go a little faster, but reading each question and the answers thoroughly.

4 - That last point is worth mentioning again, please read the entire question and all the answers to the last word. There are some strategies about skimming passages, but I think it is better to read every word and understand each paragraph and the main idea of each passage. That way you don't spend time searching for an answer, since this often can be a trap for readers that only scan for words rather than the authors points.

Those are just some tips. You'll probably find many others online.

Edit: Just read your second post. Many of my points with the SAT/ACT also apply to your TEAS study. I decided not to erase this information, since it might be helpful for someone else.

justgonnagoforit · Jun 17, 2016

Hey there oldsockventriloquist! I like it, lol. I wanted thank you so much for your reply. I am so glad that you didn't erase everything you wrote! I will more than likely retake the ACT. I have done a lot of reading (from good people like you!) and revisited some of my study methods. It's pretty much learning to accurately speed read and breathhhh. I jotted down a few of your points to keep in mind as I continue to practice. Thank you :)

I also wanted to let you know that as far as getting into an RN program at a community college and avoiding the standardized tests... I have yet to see anything like that. Here in NC, you take the initial college placement exam such as the Accuplacer, if needed, they will assign you any remedials. Once you get them out of the way, you can work on cores or pre-reqs. Once they are done or almost done, you are usually invited to take the nursing entrance exam, ie. Hesi, Teas V, Kaplan, ACT, or SAT. I have never, and I've looked in all states within driving distance, seen any students be accepted into a program without taking one of the above mentioned tests unless they already have a degree in something else. You even have to take the entrance exams if you go from LPN to RN.

Something else the community collages do is make you attend a required Nursing Session. Where I go, Rowan Cabarrus Community College, this was very disparaging experience for most of the group. The head of nursing did nothing but tell us all that we would never make it through the program. We literally were made to sit for over an hour and listen to all the ways we should expect to fail - if the unlikely event occurred that we should be able to place. According to them, the NCLEX is looking for a 10% higher failure rate per year. All I can remember is limping out of that room so I could get into my car and cry.

I am resigned to continue on with this journey until I see it through. One day, I will have those coveted letters "RN" following my name, and when I do... I'll be able to say that it was all worth it. Right? I sure hope so.