NCLEX-RN® prep is a requirement to put yourself in the best position for a passing score on exam day. However, we know that finding time in an already busy schedule is a challenge for nearly every new graduate. Planning ahead and recording study sessions can help you stay on top of your studies when life...
Using an NCLEX® test plan gives future nurses a go-to guide and a strong foundation when preparing for the NCLEX®. But it’s most valuable when combined with other study materials. The plan, created by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN), is formulated through surveys of new graduate nurses that are conducted every...
The more NCLEX® exam practice you have, the better equipped you’ll be on exam day.
Don’t discount the Health Education Systems Incorporated (HESI) exam, as it’s a good indicator of NCLEX® success.
Be sure to include new question item types in your personal study materials.
It sounds obvious, but how you prepare affects whether or not you’ll succeed. And that’s never been more evident than when it comes to the NCLEX® exam practice.
The more you practice, the more confident you’ll be. The more confident you are heading into exam day, the more likely you are to stand firm in your responses (regardless of the question item type) and not second guess yourself.
Focusing on your senior-year studies and taking seriously the Health Education Systems Incorporated (HESI) exam are just a couple ways to put NCLEX® exam practice into motion.
Why Should I Care About the HESI Exam?
For more than two decades, the HESI exam has been a blueprint, ... Read more
NCLEX-RN® prep is a requirement to put yourself in the best position for a passing score on exam day.
However, we know that finding time in an already busy schedule is a challenge for nearly every new graduate.
Planning ahead and recording study sessions can help you stay on top of your studies when life gets in the way.
Everyone is busy, and it feels like there are never enough hours in the day. Between work, school, and personal obligations, squeezing in study sessions for the NCLEX-RN® can be a challenge.But when it comes to NCLEX-RN® prep, you have to make time.The stakes are high, and your career is dependent on a passing score. Consider these tips to maximize your study time.
1. Record your study groups
If you know your schedule is unpredictable and you’re not guaranteed to make every study group, consider recording them. That way you can listen to the discussions again at your own pace (maybe even while cooking dinner or getting in a quick workout). Just make sure that everyone in the group is aware and consents to being recorded. Not every state is a one-party consent state when it comes to recording laws, and you want to play it safe.
2. Plan Ahead for NCLEX-RN® Prep Time
If you’re someone who likes to schedule out your to-do list for the week ahead, add studying to that process. When you sit down on a Sunday afternoon or evening to map out your week, figure out where you can add in some prep time. Whether that’s 15-minute increments between tasks to review practice questions, deciding in advance that your lunch break will double as a solo study session, or setting aside a larger block of time for a study group, putting it down on paper (or on your phone) will make you more likely to stick to the plan.
3. Take Voice Notes During Solo NCLEX-RN® Prep
The simple act of recording yourself as you talk through a rationale or discover why your answer to a practice question was right (or wrong) can be beneficial in the long run. Similar to recording a study group, being able to listen back to your thought process will reinforce the information. That second (or third, or fourth) listen can happen when you’re driving, running errands, or even doing yardwork or cleaning the house.
4. Create a Cram Sheet for Your Most-Needed Focus Areas
There is a lot of information to absorb as you go through NCLEX-RN® prep, and some focus areas will need more attention than others. Once you’ve determined what those are (possibly through using a prep program like Slone NCLEX), you can create a cram sheet dedicated to those items. Say, for example, you’re struggling with questions about safety and infection control. The cram sheet can include key elements of that topic for you to reference as you make your way through those questions in practice tests and study sessions.
The Bottom Line
Finding time to for NCLEX-RN® prep is one of the biggest challenges leading up to exam day. You’re likely trying to balance work and studying with personal obligations. But taking simple steps like recording voice notes during solo study sessions and creating a cram sheet for your trouble spots can go a long way in helping you maximize the free time you do have to dedicate to studying.
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[post_content] => Using an NCLEX® test plan gives future nurses a go-to guide and a strong foundation when preparing for the NCLEX®. But it’s most valuable when combined with other study materials.The plan, created by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN), is formulated through surveys of new graduate nurses that are conducted every three years with the goal of preparing future nurses for the exam, guiding “item development” and how the item types are classified.Because the NCLEX® test plan has a three-year shelf life, prep programs like Slone NCLEX serve as one of many supplemental resources. But we don’t discount the value that the plan has in setting up a solid foundation for your study plan.
Why is the NCLEX® Test Plan Important?
The year-to-date 2024 pass rate for RNs taking the NCLEX® was 76.76% (data is not yet available for October through December), including first-time and repeat candidates and U.S. and internationally educated. If you want to be among those who pass on the first attempt, the NCLEX® test plan is a perfect place to start.The NCSBN-provided plan is a more than 50-page document that outlines what topics you need to study, how the exam itself is administered, and includes practice questions. Using this as a guide, you can figure out where you need to focus your studies.If after reviewing the document, you realize that the Next-Generation NCLEX® (NGN) questions are tripping you up more than others, make those a priority. If learning about the structure of the exam brings up feelings of anxiety, consider taking multiple practice tests to familiarize yourself with the flow of the exam.
How to Supplement the NCLEX® Test Plan
Your supplemental NCLEX® test plan materials should be multi-faceted, including official documents from NCSBN, prep programs like Slone NCLEX, cram sheets, and practice tests, among other items.The more approaches you bring to your plan, the more equipped you’ll be on exam day. Beyond the tangible items, you should also consider implementing various theories or strategies into your NCLEX® test plan.A scoping review published in September 2023 in Nursing Open found that active learning was one of the most frequently used strategies, followed by:
Faculty coaching and supporting
NCLEX-RN®-style question exposure
NCLEX-RN® review course and products
Remediation or tutoring for at-risk students
Simulation
From a theory perspective, the study found Tanners clinical judgement model used more often than not. The authors noted a plethora of similarities between the Tanners model and the NCBSN Clinical Judgment Measurement Model, which is part of the NGN exam.But if this becomes too much, just keep it simple. Stick to 200 to 400 practice questions per day, focusing on areas you noted when reviewing NCLEX® test plan and incorporating prep programs like Slone NCLEX whenever possible.
The Bottom Line
The NCSBN NCLEX® test plan is an important document to kickstart your preparation for exam day. However, it’s best supplemented with materials like a prep program, study groups, and taking daily practice questions.
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The more NCLEX® exam practice you have, the better equipped you’ll be on exam day.
Don’t discount the Health Education Systems Incorporated (HESI) exam, as it’s a good indicator of NCLEX® success.
Be sure to include new question item types in your personal study materials.
It sounds obvious, but how you prepare affects whether or not you’ll succeed. And that’s never been more evident than when it comes to the NCLEX® exam practice.The more you practice, the more confident you’ll be. The more confident you are heading into exam day, the more likely you are to stand firm in your responses (regardless of the question item type) and not second guess yourself.Focusing on your senior-year studies and taking seriously the Health Education Systems Incorporated (HESI) exam are just a couple ways to put NCLEX® exam practice into motion.
Why Should I Care About the HESI Exam?
For more than two decades, the HESI exam has been a blueprint, providing insight into how you’ll fare on NCLEX®. And study upon study — even as recently as 2022 — shows that the better you do on the HESI, the more likely you are to pass the NCLEX®.Much like the NCLEX®, the HESI is a computer-based test. That alone is good NCLEX® exam practice, since the NCLEX® uses a computer-assisted quizzing (CAQ) model. Don't look at the HESI as one more thing to check off your to-do list. Rather, look at it as the beginning of your NCLEX® exam practice. Your score on the HESI can help you find your current knowledge weaknesses and build a study plan around them.
NCLEX® Exam Practice Builds Confidence
The changes that came with the 2023 iteration of the NCLEX® (known as Next-Generation NCLEX® or NGN) haven’t been around long, so it might not be a shock that student confidence regarding the new question item types isn’t very high.A 2024 study in the Journal of Nursing Education found that less than one third of students in their comparative study felt confident answering NGN question.“Students' lack of confidence with certain item types suggests faculty should incorporate these item types into classroom activities or course assignments,” the authors stated. “NGN test-taking strategies also should be incorporated and frequently reinforced throughout the curriculum.”In comparing NGN item types to multiple choice questions, the results revealed lower scores on NGN-style items of bowtie and select-all-that-apply questions but higher scores for highlight table or matrix multiple-choice questions.Keeping this in mind, you’ll want to include all item types (both old and new) on your cram sheet and in your practice tests. The more you review them, the more likely understanding how to approach them will become second nature.
Don’t Forget the Basics
It's easy to get caught up in the excitement (or is it stress?) of learning how to approach new question item types. Take a breath and remember what your nursing professors have likely told you a thousand times over:
Test yourself with 200 to 400 questions per day.
Create a study plan.
Devise a cram sheet.
Lean on your fellow soon-to-be graduates for support.
Support your studying with a prep program like Slone NCLEX.
The Bottom Line
You’re not alone in preparing for arguably one of the biggest days of your future career. Everyone needs NCLEX® exam practice. Join up with some friends or classmates for a weekly study group, challenge each other by incorporating the new item types, and have lively discussions about the rationales for the right (and wrong!) answers.
NCLEX-RN® prep is a requirement to put yourself in the best position for a passing score on exam day.
However, we know that finding time in an already busy schedule is a challenge for nearly every new graduate.
Planning ahead and recording study sessions can help you stay on top of your studies when life gets in the way.
Everyone is busy, and it feels like there are never enough hours in the day. Between work, school, and personal obligations, squeezing in study sessions for the NCLEX-RN® can be a challenge.But when it comes to NCLEX-RN® prep, you have to make time.The stakes are high, and your career is dependent on a passing score. Consider these tips to maximize your study time.
1. Record your study groups
If you know your schedule is unpredictable and you’re not guaranteed to make every study group, consider recording them. That way you can listen to the discussions again at your own pace (maybe even while cooking dinner or getting in a quick workout). Just make sure that everyone in the group is aware and consents to being recorded. Not every state is a one-party consent state when it comes to recording laws, and you want to play it safe.
2. Plan Ahead for NCLEX-RN® Prep Time
If you’re someone who likes to schedule out your to-do list for the week ahead, add studying to that process. When you sit down on a Sunday afternoon or evening to map out your week, figure out where you can add in some prep time. Whether that’s 15-minute increments between tasks to review practice questions, deciding in advance that your lunch break will double as a solo study session, or setting aside a larger block of time for a study group, putting it down on paper (or on your phone) will make you more likely to stick to the plan.
3. Take Voice Notes During Solo NCLEX-RN® Prep
The simple act of recording yourself as you talk through a rationale or discover why your answer to a practice question was right (or wrong) can be beneficial in the long run. Similar to recording a study group, being able to listen back to your thought process will reinforce the information. That second (or third, or fourth) listen can happen when you’re driving, running errands, or even doing yardwork or cleaning the house.
4. Create a Cram Sheet for Your Most-Needed Focus Areas
There is a lot of information to absorb as you go through NCLEX-RN® prep, and some focus areas will need more attention than others. Once you’ve determined what those are (possibly through using a prep program like Slone NCLEX), you can create a cram sheet dedicated to those items. Say, for example, you’re struggling with questions about safety and infection control. The cram sheet can include key elements of that topic for you to reference as you make your way through those questions in practice tests and study sessions.
The Bottom Line
Finding time to for NCLEX-RN® prep is one of the biggest challenges leading up to exam day. You’re likely trying to balance work and studying with personal obligations. But taking simple steps like recording voice notes during solo study sessions and creating a cram sheet for your trouble spots can go a long way in helping you maximize the free time you do have to dedicate to studying.
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