Let’s talk studying!
Now that we have touched on what to expect in nursing school – how to organize all that’s been thrown your way, how to be productive when you’re overwhelmed, how to start making positive changes, and the many learning styles out there – it’s time to share some of my insight on nursing school-specific studying techniques.
At this point, you’re developing your own learning style, which is great! While Google and YouTubed are your friends, Nurse Duda’s got the 411.
A million-and-one NCLEX styled questions!
You need to start doing as many NCLEX questions as you can now, regardless if it is exactly the material you are learning. The more questions you do, the more you understand the rationales to these crazy, foolish questions, the more you start thinking like the NCLEX.
Start now; start training your brain to think in terms of the “most right” answer. The only way to train that instinct is by doing questions and reading rationales. You will start to recognize patterns to these questions.
Here are a few of the places I found some of the best NCLEX-styled questions that I used throughout the program and the current prices as of October 2019.
ATI RN Mentor – NCLEX Prep
$0.00 (FREE)
This app was great because my school actually used this platform so it directly related back to the questions I would see throughout the year as well as the ATI exit exam (the exam you have to pass at the end of the program to officially earn your degree and be eligible to sit for the NCLEX).
This app is great because you can break up the tests by Clinical Area, NCLEX area, or by Body Function.
$29.99/ mo $59.99/3 mos $119.99/12 mos
This is the app I used before and during school to brush up on all my subjects. It gives the option to say whether you “know” “somewhat know” or “don’t know” the answer to the questions so you avoid reviewing the same info that you already know for certain.
$149/ 60 days $179/ 90 days $249/ 180 days $299/ 360 days
This app was a little on the expensive side, so I waited to pay for this until I was much closer to finishing the program. The questions are so closely related to what I saw on the NCLEX – using diagrams, sounds, animations, SATA (select all that apply), etc. It also provides the percentage of students that selected each answer and tells you how difficult the question is.
$0.00 (FREE)
I have been using quizlet since the 6th grade and it has yet to let me down 12 years later! Try searching for whatever you’re learning and just add “nursing NCLEX questions.”
For foundations, I remember doing sets on safety, documentation, delegation, skin, vitals, assessment, diagnosis, etc. Quizlet is created by students, for students! I remember making a few sets myself through nursing school.
Feel free to search for your own specific program as well, because a lot of us labeled ours as “ACE” making it super easy to share with each other and for future students going through the same thing we did! Click here to check it out!
Don’t take the prioritization questions lightly
They may seem super easy and straight-forward right now, but these questions will haunt you until the day you pass that NCLEX!
Nurisng school LOVES these questions: “You have 4 patients, which one should you see first?”
That’s it. That’s the whole freaking question. You will get this in foundations, in allll of your adult classes up to critical care, in maternity, in peds, in mental health, and probably any other class in your curriculum.
Because the majority of us start on general med-surg floors, and we are given 3-5 patients, it is so important to have a general handle on what is happening with each patient and their level of acuity.
As annoying as these questions are, they are so relatable to real life. Every morning I plan out which patient is the “most sick.” I always make the effort to at least peek on them and make sure they are alive and stable and get a game plan for how I’m going to handle the day and how much time each patient is going to require.
Prioritization really is your launch pad for daily life as a nurse. If I have a patient with a difficult airway (trach/laryngectomy) I always want to make sure they are comfy in bed and showing no signs of distressed breathing. Yes, the angry patient down the hall, screaming in pain is toward the top of the list too, but when in doubt always go back to the basics… AIRWAY, BREATHING, CIRCULATION. No questions asked. Do not second guess yourself. ABC. ABC.
Be the test creator
One thing that made a big difference in my studying is when I started reading my material, thinking like my professors and writing my own questions for the tests. It might sound weird because you still feel like a lost nursing student. However, it’s never too early to start going through your notes and pick out those “need to know” topics and take a step back and ask, “How would I make this into a question?”
Take special notice of lists, specific numbers, names of tests, and priority situations in your notes and create the dreaded “select all that apply.”
As you do this, keep creating those rationales as you go, because if you can justify your answers, you’ll feel your confidence as a nurse start to skyrocket.
Study BIG, then zoom in
Another study tip is to study everything and anything before you really narrow your focus a day or two before the exam. As you’re reading your notes, go ahead and look up every disease, medication, test or procedure that you don’t know or recognize. When I say that everything builds in nursing, I’m being completely serious and it builds fast.
Take, for example, the heart. Right now in foundations, you are learning about cardiac anatomy, the assessment as a nurse, how it affects the peripheral vascular system, and the types of things you’ll see at the bedside. In patho, you touch on all the major cardiac disorders and conditions with signs and symptoms, diagnostic tests, and treatment options.
As the semesters progress, you will continue touching back on the heart, but the information will become more and more in-depth. Those procedures, surgeries, medications, tubes and drains that were briefly discussed in semester 1 will now be showing up on your tests.
You will likely go through all the systems again and again in the adult and pediatric population as well as your pharmacology class. Take the time now to expose yourself to the more complex and confusing topics.
Make it a habit to automatically google it or stop and watch a youtube video on something you don’t know! Take those extra 30 seconds or a couple of minutes because I guarantee if you see it in your first semester, you will absolutely see it in later in the program and on the job.
Be curious about everything and stay away from the excuses “well no one taught us that.” Because everything you’re learning in nursing school has some kind of notes or videos related to it on the internet. Just like I told you to be your own cheerleader, go be your own teacher when you need to; take responsibility for your education.
Find your good vibes study spot
I could probably actually count the number of hours I studied in my apartment on one hand. For whatever reason, I would just get so distracted and somehow found a million other little things to do even though my studio was about the size of a walk-in closet. So, I did about 90% of my studying right in the 24/7 library.
I practically conditioned myself to know that once I sat in that computer chair and opened my notes, it was time to block out the world. I knew when I got there that I was going to be productive and I could count on getting work done with no distractions or interruptions. Be a Pavlovian subject and start your classical conditioning now! Editors note: Once, I classically conditioned Duda. She’s always had this nervous reaction whenever someone came near her neck. I capitalized on it by pretending to go for her neck and making a *tssss tssss* noise. Eventually, I could just make that noise, and Duda would instinctively shield her neck.
I also studied in the middle of the night, which I totally understand may not work for everyone. But, on days before tests, instead of staying up really late and cramming like I used to do, I would actually go to sleep around 8 or 9, wake up at 2 or 3 and be in the library by 4am. That way, I could use the next five hours to really review all my notes, while being somewhat well-rested, and no one was awake to bother me.
This way, I could fly through notes and practice questions right up until the test, grab some coffee, get some fresh air on my walk from the library to the classroom and be ready to ace my test. Like I’ve been saying, try different techniques now because never did I think I could really be an early bird until I saw how much it improved my studying.
Don’t forget to feed your brain
Pack snacks so you don’t distract yourself by getting up to go to the vending machine or the pizza shop down the street every other hour. I used to make sure I packed at least 4 or 5 snacks whenever I went to go study or even just for class. It helped keep me awake and stimulated because God knows I’m not remembering shit when I’m hangry.
I usually had a mix of healthy/unhealthy snacks. My go-to foods were usually string cheese, crackers, healthy popcorn, hard-boiled eggs, yogurt, trail mix, granola bars, fruits/veggies, Cheez-Its, and cereal. Typically, I’d make little snack bags up as soon as I got back from the store, so I always had food ready to grab and go in the morning. This not only saved time when I was rushing, but also saved me so much money! Reduce stress in all areas and pre-plan your snacks.
Chill TF out when you can
One of my biggest struggles with studying was that I felt like I should ALWAYS be studying. I often had a hard time sitting back and relaxing during the rest of my life because any free time that I had seemed like it should be put to good use. This can not only cause you to miss out on happiness through the program, but it just adds to the anxiety you feel through school.
As I started to know myself in nursing school, I could start to predict how much time I would need to study for a test or quiz to get my A. I’d take a step back and see my big picture for the week and start to plug in my study times. I started trusting my conditioned self to know that I would be productive whenever I showed up to the library.
This allowed me to be able to go back to my apartment and throw on Netflix or take a weekend to go back home and enjoy my friends and family without the crippling guilt monster breathing over my shoulder. I knew that as long as I stuck to my plan, I would get the right amount of studying in, and I could balance both school and life much more successfully.
Start becoming consistent and building that trust with yourself now. Don’t miss out on events or special times in life just because you feel like you should be studying.
Beat procrastination
I struggle with procrastination. I did through undergrad; I did through nursing school; and here I am right now procrastinating this blog post (just ask Lor, my editor.) Editor’s note: it is true. Just ask this post that doesn’t have a graphic yet. And, unfortunately, we often feed each other’s procrastination habits. But we’re always there for moral support when one of us ruins a whole banquet because she waited until the last minute to edit the event video and her computer crashes.
Sometimes I’m just unmotivated and sometimes I struggle with perfectionism. I want things to be perfect and I want to understand something the first time I learn it. It feels scary and overwhelming, so I wait to just figure it out later. But then later comes and I go to get started and realize, “oh shit, I SHOULD HAVE JUST STARTED SOONER.”
So here are 2 of my favorite and underrated tips that I learned along the way that I still try to implement to combat these tendencies:
Do it for 2 minutes.
When we have such big goals and overwhelming tasks, the whole process can crush your motivation to even start. So tell yourself that you are going to read through your notes for just 120 seconds and then you can be done. I vividly remember doing this when I was on the verge of saying “yes” when Netflix asked “are you still watching?” rather than studying.
I opened my notes and set a timer for 2 minutes. When the timer went off, if I realllly didn’t feel like studying, then fine I was off the hook and could stop. But 99% of the time, once I got started, I actually enjoyed studying and just needed to physically get myself started.
The 5-second rule
Mel Robbins is a motivational speaker and crafted this rule that states that the second you realize you don’t want to do something or that you should be doing something, you pause and countdown, 5-4-3-2-1 and then move. The idea is that by counting, you interrupt your mind’s habit to make excuses or talk yourself out of something. In those 5-seconds you allow yourself to shift from autopilot to activating your prefrontal cortex which in turn, wakes you up to take action. Click here to get a better understanding and start implementing today!
You are doing fantastic and you are on your way to becoming a nurse, don’t forget that! Try something new this week and remember that you are growing! Good luck and stay positive 🙂
xoxo, Lindsey