8 yrs post nursing school

roser13, ASN, RN · Jun 27, 2015

First, check with your state's Board of Nursing. Look on their website to see how long you have after graduation to challenge the NCLEX. Find how many tries are allowed in your state.

If you actually call the BON and reach a live person, ask what refresher courses are available or are recommended. A course will definitely be the way to go.

nrsnggirl · Jun 27, 2015

I applied to re-test and was approved, I don't need to challenge it, I actually went through a nursing program and have a diploma. I took the test before and failed, it's just been a long time since I did. Thanks, I'll look into some review courses. I'm just not sure which ones.

OCNRN63, RN · Jun 27, 2015

Check out this website. It has some free quizzes, and the admin. of the site has review courses you can pay for, as well as one-on-one tutoring.

You should also check out the NCLEX sub-forum under the "Students" forum. There have been several people in your position who have posted here. Check out the "Search" feature to find other threads from people in your situation.

Delegation, Prioritization, Infection Control, Pearson Vue Trick Ultimate Guide & Tutoring for the NCLEX

nrsnggirl · Jun 27, 2015

Thank you! I will check it out!

dream'n, BSN, RN · Jun 28, 2015

None of my business, but I'm just curious. After the hell that can be nursing school, how could you just "let it go?" Didn't you need to work and make a living? You don't have to answer, but most nursing graduates focus so much energy on passing the NCLEX and you didn't even really fight for it at that time?

ExpBrittany · Jun 28, 2015

I too have always been puzzled as to "why" people decide to not get licensed and years later want to. I'm sorry, but there should be some type of law against this in all states. A time cap. Scary to know you received permission after 8 years. I could see if you were licensed, worked & then decided to not work and wanted to start back. 8 years is a VERY long time to be out of school. Hell, most schools won't even accept science classes after the 5 year mark.

Nursing care & evidenced based practice is always changing. I'm not sure how much of a "review class" can help you. You couldn't pass nclex after graduation fresh out of school. Now you want to test after 8 years???? You already said you were feeling overwhelmed with all the review courses & study material available to you. I would hate for you to spend money on review classes, one on one tutoring & have a hard time finding employment due to almost a 10 year gap from graduation & being licensed.

BUT another part of me is saying go for it! There are plenty of *paid* review courses, online videos & review books to help. Once you are licensed, all you need is ONE employer take a chance on you. Maybe get work as a CNA in a hospital or nursing home to get your foot in the door as well.

Wishing you the best of luck :)

Bobjohnny · Jun 28, 2015

I don't know you particular location but, this guy knows his stuff: Home . Really helped my wife and I when we took our NCLEX, although we took ours right out of school.

nrsnggirl · Jun 29, 2015

I'm clearly not here to be judged or be put down by anyone... I have read plenty of reviews from other students that were out of school just as long and even longer (18 yrs).... I'm not here to share my life story, but clearly life isn't always as you plan it to be. Some times things happen in life unexpected, such as kids, death in the family, divorce, physical and mental abuse, some sort of health issues, and such. Don't be so quick to judge if you haven't walked in my shoes. All I asked for, was some positive advice, if you can't give me such, than don't say anything at all. Thanks

nrsnggirl · Jun 29, 2015

@ Bobjohnny, thank you, I will look into it!

SierraBravo · Jun 29, 2015

I'm not going to sugar coat it for you, but you have your work cut out for you. You have a very big uphill battle ahead of you if you want to now get licensed and work as a nurse. I get it, life happens. We all have issues in life. I'm sure that nobody is here to judge you. If you failed the NCLEX when nursing school was fresh in your mind, your odds are worse now that you've been out of school for 8 years. I agree with ExpBrittany, I think there should be a time limit from when you graduate from nursing school and get licensed. If you exceed that time frame, then you should have to go to nursing school all over again. I digress...

The reality is that your skills which you learned in nursing school, for all intensive purposes, need to be relearned. Just doing a review course may be enough to get you past the NCLEX, but I guarantee that you're going to have a heck of a time during orientation trying to get your footing. It's hard enough for new grads who just graduated, let alone someone who graduated 8 years ago.

If you've been allowed to take the NCLEX again, then the real question you have to ask yourself is are you confident that you can provide safe, effective care to patients considering your circumstances? Only you can answer that question. If you do happen to pass the NCLEX now, the next reality check is going to be explaining to a nurse manager (assuming you get an interview) why it's been 8 years since you graduated and just now passed the NCLEX. Just giving them a sob story about how tough your life has been is not going to get you very far, you're going to have to illustrate (in detail) why you failed initially, and now want to get into nursing. I don't envy your position at all. I'm not saying it's impossible, just that it's going to be a very difficult road ahead of you. So what I'm saying is to prepare for all of this beforehand.

And don't bother telling me that I'm being insensitive because like I said, EVERYONE has issues and challenges in their lives. That is just part of life that everyone deals with. Some people just happen to deal with those issues and challenges in a more effective way.

Libby1987 · Jun 29, 2015

I would want to retake some courses. Depending on what I might have struggled with and what came inherently easy for me but I'm thinking physiology and pharmacology.