6 Tips To Finally Pass The NCLEX
Even If You Were Unsuccessful In Passing It For The Fifth Time
Yes, I know. It’s easy to feel defeated, especially when you’re reminded of failing the NCLEX five times. It might have even crossed your mind that nursing isn’t for you. Don’t beat yourself up. This exam is hard, and it only goes harder every year. Still, I guarantee you, it’s not the end of the world.
It’s probable that you might have missed something, you were overthinking, or you’ve over-evaluated yourself. Whatever the case may be, here’s your chance to prove to anyone, especially yourself, that you deserve to be called an RN!
Here are 6 tips that will help you (finally) pass the NCLEX.
1. Know Your Study Style
There are four types of learners: Visual learners, Auditory learners, Read/Write Learners, and Kinesthetic learners.
Since you’ve already passed the nursing school, you probably already know what kind of learner you are. In many cases, people tend to combine two, or three, or even all learning techniques to better understand what they are studying.
Drawing out sketches of the chambers of the heart or using color-coded medication classes will greatly help you better understand ideas if you’re a visual learner.
Listening to podcasts that talk about NCLEX or watching YouTube videos that showcase lectures online will also be effective if you’re an auditory learner.
Do you understand things better when people brainstorm with you? Organize a study group to discuss concepts together.
Having a hard time understanding complicated topics? Use visual materials that will help enhance attention and retain what you’ve studied.
Also, don’t just keep on reading what you’ve already read or keep on writing old notes – this isn’t 100% effective. What’s effective is to associate everything you’ve learned and relate it to every clinical experience you got from school. Trust me, you’ll have a lightbulb moment every time you get to connect a dot to another.
2. Create a study plan
Committing to the preparation before reviewing or studying will help you win half the battle that’s why you need to plan how you will study.
Formulate a schedule where you will pick days that you will study when you’ll take a break and days where you’ll be taking practice exams.
It’s also a great help to create a goal before every study session. Here’s an example:
Do a checklist that will state that your goal for the Monday afternoon study is to master a specific topic, followed by doing 20 practice questions about said topic.
Does it sound complicated? No! Because having a study plan will help you properly start your review.
Having no study plan is going to be a complete waste of time and WILL NOT help you succeed in passing the NCLEX. It doesn’t matter how many hours you put in on studying, it will always be about how you use those hours.
3. Do not Self-Evaluate Before or During the Test
This might be the fourth, sixth, or seventh time you’re taking the test. By now, you should know that assuming that there will be easy questions will not help. What you need to do is to just focus on every question that will come. Aside from that, you need to understand that what might be easy for you may be complicated for someone else. Keep in mind that every question that appears is as important as the next.
4. Look Into Investing in Test Prep Resources
Investing in effective practice examination books and/or enrolling in a classroom review course is a must and a worthwhile investment to pass the NCLEX. Feuer Nursing Review offers comprehensive review materials that can help you put this examination in the bag.
Exam companies, including Feuer, can provide noteworthy guides that can help you prepare for NCLEX. It won’t also hurt to spend extra time browsing the internet for other guides that will best suit your review needs.
5. Keep on Honing Your Test-Taking Skills
Knowing how the test is written and knowing what the correct answers are is what NCLEX is. Strategizing is important when taking this test.
Before choosing an answer, try to eliminate wrong answers first. “Extremes” like NONE or ALL answers should be avoided, and whatever happens, always make sure to put patient safety first.
Practicing these techniques will help you notice the ideas in the answers:
Assess the patient first, always. Calling for a doctor isn’t always the best thing to do. Use the Airway-Breathing-Circulation approach, etc.
If you’re having a hard time coming up with an idea about a concept or topic, use deductive reasoning. If it doesn’t work, you could always rely on your “nurse intuition”.
You will for sure, meet the dreading select-all-that-apply questions. Don’t panic. You can always use the same approach we have discussed to remove wrong answer choices using your knowledge and by investigating the wording of answers.
6. Find a way to completely manage your stress
Test anxiety is real. It’s possible that no one had told you or you didn’t know about it on the first few times you have taken the test. That’s why you had a hard time taking it. Don’t worry though, for everybody, especially for nervous test takers, there’s a way to completely manage your stress.
Prepare for the examination with focus and determination but do not make it bigger than your life. It’s vital to still make sure that there’s a test-life balance in the days, weeks, or months leading up to the examination.
Schedule activities in your days to do something fun, get proper sleep, and exercise. Doing this will help you keep a balance – your mind won’t build stress when you do this.
Say that the test is only a day or hours away, DO NOT cram information. Doing that will only make things worse. You need this time to relax, to calm, and to clear your mind. Do something that will help you stay grounded. Cook a hearty breakfast, listen to your favorite music tracks, go on a run. Do anything that will help soothe and calm your senses.
Also, the best way to lessen getting anxious before the test is to study and review properly. Knowing your study style and planning how you will study are ways to make sure that you’ve taken information appropriately. Trust me, NCLEX won’t seem frightening when you feel confident that you’ve done your review properly.
