Wanna be nurse!

I have taken the nclex two times and failed once with 75 questions and the second time I took it I failed at 265 questions. AHHHHHHHH!! I was a good student in school but it doesn't seem to help me with that darn test! I think that the problem is that I can memorize anything but applying it in a deeper manner is difficult for me. Does anyone have any good study methods or advice? I would appreciate any help at all.
I have so much stress right now I lost my job during nursing school and now the bank is foreclosing on my house. I have six children and have to worry about being homeless. I have to pass the test in order to get a job but I have so much going on in my life that I cannot focus properly. Thanks for listening. Kristy

Welcome to the site, Kristy! Sorry to hear of your plight.

I had used NCLEX 3000 while in school. Unsure what they are using now, especially since they changed the test 2 times since I took Boards. I'll think on this.

Where about are you located---general location?

>:D< Welcome to the site. Suggest you get a copy of Saunders Comprehensive Review, the Linda LaCharity book on prioritization, and the Kaplan review book for test strategy as a start. Map out a plan toward your test date and study as if you had never tested before. Do as many questions as possible and study the rationales. Relax the day before the test, practicing your relaxation techniques. Just do not give up. You can do this.

Hello Kristy,

Sorry to hear you are having such a hard time. Can't be easy when you're worried about losing your home and taking care of six kids all at the same time.

My personal advice for passing the board exam is this.

Buy or borrow five different NCLEX® Review books (libraries usually have several). There's AJN, Barrons, NLN, and a dozen other brands. Any review book with an index and explanation of answer rationales will do.

Then sit down with a medical dictionary, a drug book and your nursing textbooks handy and start going through questions.

Set aside at least a few hours/day for several weeks to a month before you're scheduled to take your test.

My classmates and I did an average of 6 hours/day just going through questions and different review books for a month before we took our boards.

We each answered 75 questions and passed on the first try.

As we went through, any terms we did not recognize, we looked up in our med/surg books and flagged it for review later.

In a good day, you can get through a few hundred questions. Do as many as you can stand in a sitting.

When you need a break, go for a walk, go shopping, have a snack, then go back and do some more.

As you go through the books, you'll start to recognize more and more terms, start building more confidence.

The ones you need to look up the first time, you''ll remember the next time!

Even if it all seems unfamiliar at first, it will pass as you do more questions and review the items you're unsure of.

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If you have the money, buy the books (even if they're a few years old the questions will help you focus on what you need to know).

We marked ours up liberally as we studied, jotting down the page # in our med/surg books next to the question in the review guide.

It saved a lot of time when we needed to look things up for a second time or when we needed to review.

Hope that is helpful! Andrew Lopez, RN

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