Valley Anesthesia: Should I go or just get the sweat book.

[SigmaSRNA]

The class is alot of money (as all of you probably know). Is the actual classroom that helpful to where missing it would cut my chances of passing boards significantly? If I study the sweat book diligently would that work? Any recent anesthesia school grads who've taken boards would be a big help.

[susswood]

According to the AANA, there is no statistical difference in pass rates between those who take a review course and those who don't.

That being said, of those who did NOT go..... how many of them studied Valley materials? Probably quite a few....

I think it comes down to your personality and what kind of study habits you have.

[underdog]

Hey Sigma-

I took cert exam last September. I was one of about five people that I know of in my class that did not attend a Valley review course. My study partner and myself obtained a year old Valley Sweat Book and Memory Master. I devoted probably 95% of my time to studying these, and the other 5% to some review materials provided by my program. I felt I knew the sweat book very well, but I went through the entire memory master only once. I got the minimum 90 questions and passed, as well as my study partner. Good Luck!!

[Focker, CRNA]

Hey susswood, can you post a link or point me in the direction of where the aana says there is no pass rate difference between those who take valley and those who dont. Im interested to see what else it says.

[SproutRN]

Hey susswood, can you post a link or point me in the direction of where the aana says there is no pass rate difference between those who take valley and those who dont. Im interested to see what else it says.

I'm pretty sure you won't find any information regarding that from the AANA. I would find it hard to believe they endorse a course that is partly based on information from individuals who provide them with board questions.

I did take the course and highly recommend it. I had several "ah ha" moments during the course, suddenly things that sorta made sense became much clearer. This was also the case for most of my study group members. The information they provide was an excellent source for organizing my board preparation.

SproutRN

[zrmorgan]

studied sweatbook, memory master, and a couple of the mixed reviews...did not go to class, which is a requirement I think for the mixed review mailings....I got my mixed reviews from classmates who went to the class. Pretty much studied valley exclusively...if something seemed vague, or sparked a study idea, I would consult my texts, or notes from lecture. did this for about 5 weeks before the exam.

I passed.

good luck

[susswood]

Hey susswood, can you post a link or point me in the direction of where the aana says there is no pass rate difference between those who take valley and those who dont. Im interested to see what else it says.

I didn't get the information online.... it was presented to us in a lecture through school. You will notice when you fill out your application for candidacy for the exam they ask you how many review courses you took. They definitely collect and track this info, but I don't know how available it is.

Maybe you can ask your program.... I'm sure they have the info.