Tips for first semester finals?

Nursing Students Student Assist

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I got through my first semester! However, our final counts as 45% of our grade!!!!!!!!! Thats insane! But anyway, it is a 100 question "comprehensive final" for both Fundamentals and Health Assessment. There is just no way for me to sift through all the information thoroughly, and it is honestly discouraging me. I'm having a hard time actually reading through everything just because I keep thinking I won't get anywhere anyways. I'm starting to think that (since it is so much of our final grade) it can't be as hard and in depth as our unit exams, and maybe I am thinking too much about it. Anyone have any input from thier past finals? Anyone else's count for that much of their final grade? And...any pointers on knowing what I need to spend time looking at? We finished our last unit exam yesterday, and have the finals tuesday...a whole 5 days to study! With no guidance or study guide either, btw...

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I found that most of our finals were easier than the the unit tests but it may just of been because it was all stuff we'd been tested on before. We got study guides for each of our classes, or where to focus our studying. Good luck!!!!

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When we had finals in first year we got to come in and look at our semester tests the day before and tune in on where we did poorly. Then I would just go home and study those parts of my notes and/or chapters. Look back over the semester and see which exams you did the poorest on, by your grades alone if you don't get a test review, and just go back over that material. Once you get into body systems more in med/surg you can do NCLEX questions to get ready for Finals. Of course you can do that now if this semesters tests covered any of that material over disease processes and patho.

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Depending on the subjects you are covering, I have found going to the end of each assigned chapter and reading the "things you should know" summaries are helpful. Another thing I've been doing is 1 hour of nclex questions a day. My grades have gone up by 10pts, on average since doing the daily nclex questions.

A couple of books I've found very useful are : Med-Surg Nursing reviews and rationales

Med - Surg success

Pharmacology Successs

Saunders NCLEX Review 4th edition

Good luck.

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We just completed our final exam but it a Hesi exit exam and it only counted as 20% of our grade. I studied NCLEX review questions from the Sunders 4th edition book and the key summaries for each chapter and it seemed to help.

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I just completed Fundamentals, too! I am studying by working through the book Fundamentals of Nursing Reviews and Rationales by Prentice Hall. It is a great book. The book entails pre test, content, post test in each subject of Fundamentals. If your school is subscribed to a testing service such as ATI study the ATI book, it helps. The ATI books puts in the information in short sweet condensed format. Good luck!

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Hi!

I just finished up my first semester as well! It's so exciting to move on to something new. Anyways, yes just take a deep breath! I promise you'll get through it if you have the confidence and knowledge. From everything you know, apply it. Keep reading, it'll benefit you! Also, yes you're probably just way too nervous, but it's understandable. I was so worried about our final as well. We had a Capstone exam for our Fundamentals class. We had a scenario situation and had to perform 5 random skills, using critical thinking of what you would do first, in front of our instructor! Talk about intense! Yes, 45% of our grade, too! I was so nervous, but I did it. Review, review, review. I know you'll get through it! Good luck and I wish you well!

CoffeeDrinkin'BJ :smilecoffeecup:

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