Your biggest struggle in Nursing School is:
Test Taking Strategy
The Good News
You’ve already have a solid foundation of nursing knowledge. When you talk to your professor during office hours, you can rattle off the answer to just about any question she asks you. Although you feel a little nervous before exams, you wouldn’t say that test anxiety has ever been a big problem for you in the past.
The Bad News
Even though most nursing students (and professors) believe this struggle is the most common, it’s actually the most subtle and rare. That’s why everybody you’ve asked for help is baffled as to why you’re not doing better in nursing school already.
What You've Tried
When professors don’t know the root problem you have, they offer the same old, generic advice: study more and practice more NCLEX-style questions. However, that vague advice makes even less sense than usual in your situation, since you already have a fairly good study routine that has resulted in mastery of the nursing content. So it’s no wonder that you’re left wondering what to do next.
The Truth Is...
Test strategy is mostly about how you organize and connect the nursing information in your head…sort of like a really complicated concept map. And it’s important for you to figure out how to do this as soon as possible, before all the added stress causes your feeling of being “nervous before an exam” to turn into legit test anxiety.
But before I share more, let me tell you who I am, because...
…these days you can get nursing school study advice from just about anyone with an internet connection and a YouTube account. Just because somebody is an expert nurse, though, doesn’t make them an expert educator.
I’ve been successfully educating nursing students for over 12 years, and I specialize in helping nursing students who work hard, spend (too much) time studying…and still can’t figure out why nursing school hasn’t “clicked” yet.
I have a BSN and an MA in Clinical Psychology…and I use both to help you get through nursing school confidently and calmly. Because there’s no point becoming a nurse if you’re already burnt out from nursing school, right?
So how do I improve my Test Taking Strategy?
It’s easy to think that grabbing an NCLEX Review book and obsessing over “those kinds” of test taking strategies is the solution. And that’s what most students who think they have this struggle will do…and if they’re borderline to passing, it might even be enough to barely push them over the edge of passing.
But you’re different. Since this really IS your struggle, then once you overcome it, you will see some pretty amazing improvements in nursing school, within a relatively short period of time.
It starts by learning to think about what the right answer should be, AND what the test writer is testing you on.
See, despite all the fancy words in the NCLEX test plan, test writers really only have ONE basic principle that they are testing you on…do you know enough to be a safe, effective, beginning nurse?
Of course, that principle can be applied to an infinite number of test scenarios, but they all boil down to that one, basic question. And once you’re able to figure out what exactly the test writer wants to “know that you know”…you will finally be able to apply your already vast knowledge of nursing information to select the best answer.
To Fix Test Taking Strategy, I Recommend...
- Watch the Silver Bullet Study System Module about Concept Mapping so that you’ll have a headstart on how to think while answering exam questions
- Review the NCLEX-Style Question Dissections mini-course, so that you can begin to “get inside” the test writer’s head
- Participate in the VIP Facebook group…pick an NCLEX-style question that you’re practicing, post it in the group, and share your rationale about what the test writer thinks a safe, effective, beginning nurse should know.
Next Steps...
Right now, you might be thinking, “Easier said than done!”
That’s why I created the VIP Tutoring Membership…to provide Live Tutoring Support, a community of encouraging nursing students, and a virtual library of online resources to make nursing school easier.
When you join, you get immediate access to all the resources I recommend to fix your Test Taking Strategy, PLUS the opportunity to attend Live Tutoring Sessions, receive help and mentorship, AND connect with other motivated nursing students in our private Facebook group. It’s like having a private tutor “on-call” to answer all your nursing school questions, while simultaneously being encouraged by a crowd of your biggest cheerleaders.
The fastest way to learn is by doing...
…and you’ve already shown that you’re not afraid to do new things! So if you’re ready to take the next step towards becoming an even more amazing, soon-to-be-nurse, then click here to learn more about Your Nursing Tutor VIP Membership.
What other students have to say...
