How Do You Start Studying for the NCLEX?
Studying for the NCLEX can become very overwhelming and you may question how to start studying for the NCLEX. The very first part of studying is to make sure you have the resources you want to study with and set an NCLEX date.
Set your NCLEX date with a realistic study time frame
Giving yourself ample time to study is key. Remember though that the longer you are out of nursing school, the more material you will forget from school. Take a practice NCLEX exam and evaluate the gaps of information you have. You may feel like you only need two weeks of studying or six weeks. Setting an NCLEX date is vital to starting the study schedule because you are giving yourself a realistic goal and a deadline to work towards.
NCLEX Study Materials
Purchasing NCLEX study materials that work with your style of learning is going to be the most important aspect of your studying. There are a vast amount of resources including nursing study guides, nursing study notes, online course programs such as Hurst Review and Nursaing.com, question banks such as UWorld, and reading material such as the Saunders book.
Set an NCLEX Study Schedule
Studying for the NCLEX starts with setting a study schedule for yourself that you will stick to. So if you set your NCLEX date for three weeks out, then set a three-week schedule. A schedule could include an hour-by-hour schedule of studying and then breaks. A schedule could also include specific topics that you want to study each day. Such as renal one day, and pediatrics another.
If you do not set a schedule, you might find your studying sessions are not disciplined and you may find the motivation to study is difficult.
Where to even start studying?
Take a simulation NCLEX exam and then note your weakest subject. Start by studying your favorite nursing topic to give you the motivation to keep going. Next after your favorite subject is studied, hit your weakest subject. You may find that in your journey to studying a topic you are weak at, you build on other topics you are also weak at. For example, studying renal may allow you to build on labs and pharmacology at the same time that way you can tie all the information together.
Starting to study process gets overwhelming at first but once you start, you will go on a roll.
1) Take NCLEX simulated exam and note weakness
2) Study favorite topics such as cardiac, maternal, or pediatrics.
3) Start your study schedule with your weakest subject first on move on from there
4) Use all your materials to study the same topic at once, as every resource has something different
5) Take practice questions at the end of that subject being studied
6) Come back to all the subjects at the end of your studying schedule to summarize all your learning
Now that you know how to start studying for the NCLEX, you are probably curious about what the actual testing day will look like. I wrote an article about what the NCLEX testing day looks like and how to navigate the day.
I hope you learned how to start studying for the NCLEX after reading this article!
