What is the best study guide for the HOAE exam?

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I am wondering what is the best study guide to buy for preparing to write the HOAE exam. I looked at study guides online on Chapters and there are so many of them! Any recommendations?

This is probably something you don't want to hear... I took the exam a couple of months ago and I got a study guide to help me. Well, it ended up doing me no good. I wish I could tell you what to focus on but the topics are honestly so broad. I got my study guide off of apple books... called PSB I believe, again didn't do much for me. Even the spelling didn't help, you just have to be a really good speller and know a lot of words. I found a lot of the questions I have never heard of before, which seemed unfair.

There is another book you can buy off of amazon..

Health Occupations Aptitude Exam Study Notes (HOAE Study Notes): Susan Hester: Amazon.com: Books

Not sure how great it is, I don't know anyone that has used it. There is another book also but I can't find it anywhere.

My best advice is to try your best and pray ! You'll do great

Thanks for the reply! Yeah, today I ordered from Amazon the "PSB HOAE Review" It looked like a popular one so I purchased it online.It came to $24.00 with free shipping so that's not bad. The link you sent me of the HOAE Study Notes 2015 looks like a good one but unfortunately they don't ship that one to Canada. (From the Amazon website anyway)

SO you took the HOAE? How was it? Did you pass? How many questions are there? Is there a lot of math and science involved? Those are my weak points and English is my strong point.

It sucks they make us write a HOAE exam after having had to take all those prerequisites! I think it's a real money grabber to be honest.

By the way, did you finish all your prerequisites before writing the HOAE? I am still working on my prerequisites and so far I finished Math and Chemistry. I just started Biology and then lastly, English. I got 84% in Math but just 71% in Chemistry. :/ The admissions advisor told me the academic score was high 80's % this year and not to bother applying to the Practical Nursing program unless I get at LEAST 80% in all four courses!! Crazy….I had no idea how hard this would be! Nursing is such a competitive program to get into! How did you do with your prerequisites?

Sorry for the late reply, I did take it... I thought it was a joke honestly, I'm better at science then math. A lot of the questions from the math were fractions and ratios, which I'm sure you will be getting with the book. A lot of the questions I've never heard of before but I come out of high school with some college health science knowledge, others I knew took it and felt the same. I know someone who failed the HOAE, and still got into the program. The only harder parts I found were the math, I didn't like that things were timed either.

Do you mind me asking which program you are applying for? I applied to practical nursing program with only my high school marks, but it was a different campus not the main. If you go farther up north the admission requirements are SLIGHTLY lower, I live in a small town area and the campus I applied to and got into, was an hour away from me. In high school, I did well in english mostly all 80's, math 70's or higher, chemistry was a 65.. wanted to cry when I got that mark... I had the worst teacher in high school, and bio 70, hard ass teacher again and I worked my ass off in her class.

Nursing is competitive, my friend applied to a collaborative program in our graduating year and was wait-listed, and then went to university for a year to gain more knowledge and was wait-listed again this year! Pretty ridiculous.. happy I'm getting in now so the admission requirements aren't growing through the roof

Hi! Sorry, I just saw your reply now for some reason. I am planning to review some basic algebra with my teacher before taking the HOAE. She recommends that I take the HOAE right after I finish the biology course. This way I will still have the science fresh in my memory. When and where did you apply? Did you get accepted? I will be applying this November as I don't plan on starting the pre nursing program until September 2016. I am 34 years old, married with 3 children ages 18 months-12 years old. I want to wait until my youngest is 3 years old, and he will be 3 next year in October.

The program I plan to apply for is Practical Nursing either at the Fanshawe college in Woodstock or Polytechnic college because they are the closest driving distance for me. I live in Simcoe, Ontario.

So where are you from? Do you live up North?

The program I want to attend is highly competitive and the admissions coordinators at both colleges told me I need at least 80% in each of the prerequisites in order to be accepted!

I have been doing academic upgrading (ACE program) at my local college since January 2014, so 16 months. So far in the past 16 months, I got my GED, completed Math (84%) Chemistry (81%) and now I just started Biology which I am hoping to get 80% for that. But I am finding it hard as well, as there is sooo much memorizing involved! Lastly, I will do English. That is my favorite subject and has always been my strong point! :)

Thanks for letting me know about the HOAE. I heard there are 75 questions in total. I bought the HOAE study guide so I will study a lot before taking the test! I heard you can't retake the test if you fail, so it's one shot and that's it! That's why I am feeling nervous about it! AND... they judge accordingly by 50% of what you get on the prerequisites and 50% of what you get on the HOAE! So I better do well writing the HOAE!

I find this funny because I attended Fanshawe for pre-health. I didn't do well on HOAE, either did my friends. Honestly, it doesn't matter about how much you study, I mean good for you but they can ask you anything - please keep this in mind. Fanshawe IS very competitive, my friend was put on the waiting list with good marks but I assume she did not get in, they do not use the wait list people often. Woodstock campus has lower POINTS system, which means it may be easier to get in because it is not the main camus, I have been told. My friend was not aware of the Woodstock campus offering and has to now wait another year to apply. Please be mindful that Fanshawe, with my experience and others, do not tell you everything you need to know, you could ask 50 people and they would all give you a different answer. Fanshawe has great programs from what I hear, just hard to get in. I don't know what Woodstock is like, I was on main campus. I never was in the nursing rooms, but the rooms/facilties are nice, the groups of students from my understanding are quite small no matter RPN/BSCN. I can't speak for Polytech college.. never heard of it.

I live nearBarrie in the country, I wanted to go elsewhere from Fanshawe, I didn't do well on the HOAE, I wanted to attend Georgian which isn't far from my house, which I didn't get into. I am attending Parry Sound campus of Canadore this fall.

Specializes in Public Health.
Fanshawe IS very competitive, my friend was put on the waiting list with good marks but I assume she did not get in, they do not use the wait list people often.

Bear in mind that no matter where you apply it is competitive, not only Fanshawe. This is typical of basically any nursing program in the country. Most programs receive 10 x more applications than the number of available spots. It's not the school, just the profession :)

Nursing students everywhere feel your struggle!

Specializes in Public Health.
I'm aware

Good :)

I just took the HOAE last week and I got my results. It was pretty general. Don't bother buying some materials, just look online.

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