So finally pearson released my unofficial results on Saturday evening right before their website went down for maintenance, so at this point I was pretty much ready to throw my hands up in the air and give up. I was still trying the website with no luck on the board of nursing releasing my license number. So finally after the website came back up around 8 or 9 at night I caved and paid them the $8 for an answer, while the page was loading I genuinely thought I was going to throw up with a billion bad scenarios flashing through my head. Finally the page loaded and.............I PASSED. I never never felt more relief in my life! However I still needed that license number to update all my applications with different hospitals, Monday afternoon around 2 I finally had a license number! I am so glad I paid for my results, I wouldn't have made it till Monday afternoon not knowing!
Once I had that license number I was on the phone calling every hospital I had a standing application with to make sure they knew I now had a license number and was legally allowed to work as an RN! I was able to get a hold of one hospital through the phone, two hospitals let me change parts of my application online, and one hospital I still havent heard back from after leaving a message Monday and Tuesday. This hospital is one I would really really really like to work for so its a little frustrating not getting to talk to any body. I have about 6 weeks left in my lease here and I am really hoping I have a job offer before than so I am able to move and have a plan as of right now I'm kinda hanging out in limbo with no job and no place to live starting August 1st.
Like I said in a previous post I used Kaplan NCLEX review and loved it! I owe my passing to that review and highly recommend it! I also got a little congrats on Twitter from the one and only Dustin Lynch after passing so that sure made me feel pretty special! For anyone else taking their NCLEX right around this time or even in the next few months best of luck to y'all! I know its scary and intimidating but be confident in your schooling and knowledge base and remember to read every single question carefully, don't panic if your blowing through questions super quickly (77 in 60 minutes, I was so scared I went too fast), if it shuts off early it probably means your doing really good, it is ok to panic and freak out a little after everyone who has ever taken their NCLEX has been on edge till they knew their results and if they say they weren't they are either lying or didn't really care if they got their license or not.
For any of my fellow Dustin Lynch lovers here is a little motivation for the NCLEX, sure was a nice little pick me up, I prefer him to Ryan Goseling any day. Good Luck on your NCLEX!
congrats! can you please tell us your strategy. I have Kaplan as well and been doing a lot of questions but scoring in the 60's in q-bank. Sometimes in 50's which really worries me. Did you watch all the viedos. I find them really boring so I bought hurst for viedos. Any information will help. I'm taking my exam on August 5th.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I used all kaplan (did you check out my review of both Kaplan and Hurst?) I only had about a month between taking the kaplan course and my exam so I crammed for it. I did so many practice questions from Kaplan and I scored any where from a 58%-82% (those were my highest and lowest). I watched some of the videos, mostly the videos from the areas I was scoring the lowest percentages in. I have the Hurst videos and I didn't find them helpful so I didn't use them. I didn't need so much content as I did how to take the exam with practice test which is what I got from Kaplan!
DeleteYeah, I find that the decision tree does help but not for every question. I was getting a little worried about some scores so I figured I needed some content review. I got a 65 on the readiness and a 73 on diagnostic. Did you think that Kaplan questions were similar to Nclex or easier?
DeleteI felt like Kaplan does a really good job at making their practice exams incredibly similar to NCLEX. What you have to keep in mind during practice questions is that all those questions are considered above the line passing questions so if your hanging out right around a 55-65 percentage your doing really well, this is what I was told during the classroom session. Remember they don't care about the percentage just the pass fail. I went so fast through the exam I couldn't believe it was 77 questions and just about an hour but looking back on it I think I went so fast because I knew what to expect the test to look like and how the questions would be worded (I wasn't thinking that at the time) and sometimes you get those questions where you honestly say WTF guess and move on.
DeleteO I forgot to ask....did you get a lot of meds....and is answering like 50 to 75 questions good?
ReplyDeleteI honestly don't remember too many of my questions maybe 5 of them I remember. And I'm not allowed to say, its actually a federal offense to giveaway too much info on the test. but the way Kaplan presets med questions are exactly the same as NCLEX with generic and trade name given. They can cut you off anytime at 75 so you have to get to 75. Usually if they shut you off between 75-100 your good (its not going to seem like it at the time, trust me your gonna feel like you failed, everyone does). I stood outside the testing center and cried because it shut off after 77 questions.
DeleteYeah I know...lol. As you can see I am so nervous for this exam and its nice to know that people feel or felt like me once. You must feel awesome and very proud of yourself. I hope it would be the same for me. so how is job hunting?
ReplyDeleteI was a wreck for the entire day of and the days following the exam, I cried, screamed, was convinced I failed. I think you don't feel like that you didn't really car enough if you passed or if someone says they weren't nervous/scared they were lying. I honestly think job hunting is harder than NCLEX since March I've put in maybe 30 or more applications and I have been turned down for at least 21 of them. I have 9 that haven't gotten back to me yet so Im still waiting to hear something. I havent been asked to interview for any of the positions I put an application in for. I did a lot during nursing school to make my resume and applications look amazing and I have no job offers. Its pretty disheartening not going to lie.
DeleteI meant when you did Kaplan did you answer 50, 75 or like 100 a day. I usually do 50 and review the rationales and then do hurst viedos. like how was your study schedule?
ReplyDeleteI only had a month, I was doing 100 maybe more questions a day and Id only watch the Kaplan videos when I needed to take a break from questions but needed to do some studying. I also had several NCLEX apps on my phone that I would do questions from there too.
DeleteYeah, I know I hear its tough out there. They say you need to know someone in the hospital to hook you up with a job. Well you will get something it just might take some time. Have you tried volunteering...that might be a way in. Hey what state are you live in...I live in New York.
ReplyDeleteI would be less freaked out if my apartment lease didn't end on July 31st with no place to go and no job. I'm not planning to work locally due to the lack of high level neonatal intensive care units and universities offering masters degrees in neonatal nursing in my area. So I have to attempt to impress hospitals through applications alone. Ive been a volunteer in my community, an americorps member, involved in our student nurses association, volunteer lab TA, class representative. I did almost everything in nursing school, but when you come from a not so well known state or university it makes it hard. I hail all the way from the great land of enchantment New Mexico.
DeleteWow, you have done a lot and I hope you get a job soon. New Mexico....I wonder what its like there. I believe North Shore Hospital in New York are looking for nurses in Neonatal ICU...would you consider relocating?
ReplyDeleteYeah its dry and hot with lots of wild fires and not a whole lot of rain. The northern part of the state gets cold in the winter and the southern part gets chilly. The southern part spent the majority of the summer in the low 100's as far as temps. Its hot here lol. Ive applied for jobs as far as Washington DC children's (didn't get it) My big thing is I need to be close to a university with a masters program so I can go back to school with help from the hospital. It also has be at least a level three NICU to allow me consideration into a masters program.
DeleteYeah I see your point of view. I hope you do get something. At least you have the NCLEX out of the way...did you apply the decision tree to every question like Kaplan says you should?
ReplyDeleteI'm considering of watching those dreading viedos of Kaplan lol? Did you think they helped you.
ReplyDeleteI think some of them did others I would out on just to kind of have some form of noise going on, I didn't watch every single one of them. During the test I really don't know if I was using the decision tree, maybe subconsciously, I tried during practice tests but after a while your able to answer the questions without actually going through the decision tree.
DeleteThat's what I did today....I answered 50 questions on Q-bank and got 70%. like I think knowing the content is important because you can then figure it out like hurst says. One thing im horrible is developmental stages.....im so bad with that.
ReplyDeleteYour doing just fine on your practice questions,I know its hard not to panic, just pace yourself, you still have plenty of time! Developmental stages are a very very small part of NCLEX.
Deletelol thanx Ellie I will keep you posted. Thanx for the encouragement. Good luck on your job hunt and I will talk to you soon. I'm going to go over burns one more time on hurst lol. Fun times hahaha
ReplyDeletehi ellie how are you doing? How is the job search?
ReplyDeleteHi! I am still hunting so nothing as of tonight...unfortunately
DeleteO sorry to hear that but I'm sure something will come up soon! You are totally qualified. I wanted to ask you for a honest opinion about my grades on Kaplan. I sometimes second guess myself and end up choosing the wrong answer because I doubted myself. These are my grades:
ReplyDeleteDiagnostic: 73
Readiness: 65
Q trainers:
1 - 60
2 - 73
3 - 58
4 - 74
5 - 61
Q-bank: 59 percent cumulative with 38 percent completed so far. planning to finish in 2 weeks
Thank you for responding always.
Honestly those are pretty similar to my scores, you just need to be sure in your answers. Don't doubt yourself or over think things, majority of the time your gut instinct is right. Sometimes its not but the majority of the time it is. I feel confident your going to do well.
Deletethanx....I'm going to not second guess myself. How's everything with in new mexico?
ReplyDeleteAs you go along you'll notice yourself start answering questions without thinking about them too much. You'll do great and you will have to let me know when you pass! :) New Mexico is hot and dry but that is expected. lol
DeleteI am signed up for Kaplan but considering getting my money back because after the info session at my school today, I feel like they're forcing me to analyze the questions in a completely different way. I'm used to looking at a question and thinking like a nurse where I feel like Kaplan takes all the medical out of it and makes it so systematic where I'm asking myself "is this answer physical or psychosocial" "is this assessment or intervention"?
ReplyDeleteI'm so confused and just want to make the right decision. Honestly I don't mind paying for both but I feel like Kaplan is going to confuse me more than help me. :(
Angela,
DeleteKaplan does approach questions in a different way using the decision tree but honestly I never felt myself actually using that method when answering questions. They do offer useful tips and ways to look at the questions, yes thinking like a nurse is always best but NCLEX tests in a "perfect world" scenario so our nurse thinking may not always be correct according to them. I didn't find hurst helped me look at the questions and analyze them in a manner that would help me pass but do what feels right for you and what you feel you need to pass! Best of luck to you!
Hi,
ReplyDeleteI am currently using Kaplan Qbanks and questions trainers along with Saunders questions... I attempted to listen to Hurst which I have not completed as of yet. My time is running out and I dont feel that I am ready yet. But I am still very hopeful that I will make it through all this material..
Thank you for this post!! I just got my unofficial results but my license number hasn't shown up yet on the board of nursing, which freaked me out! But I'm assuming the quick results are valid?
ReplyDeletecongrats
ReplyDeleteI am three and a half weeks away from taking the test after four years of being out of school. Yikes>> Im totally freaking out. Finished Kaplan today now im going to dive into saunders for next three weeks.....so nervous I could puke
ReplyDeleteI almost feel like after four years there is absolutely no hope but im trying like He** to stay positive and focused only got a 60% on the entire qbank....a little disheartening but oh well. IM going to keep on keeping on!!!!
ReplyDeleteThank you SO much for posting this! I took mine yesterday morning and still haven't heard! My other classmates found out the next day just like yours....I still have hope :-)
ReplyDeleteYour post really helped me while I am waiting for my NCLEX results. I had all the same feelings you described, so I guess that is normal. I was also beating my self up for feeling like I rushed through the exam but I guess that is normal too. Still don't know if I passed, but feel comforted....thanks
ReplyDeleteI am hoping the same best work from you in the future as well. In fact your creative writing abilities has inspired me to start my own BlogEngine blog now. solution manual
ReplyDelete