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My first instinct is YES! Take 3 review courses! Anything to get through the madness and pass the test! Why not, right? It can only help. There is really no way that studying in a classroom can hurt your score on the NCLEX, right? I’ve heard Kaplan has a course that’s most similar to NCLEX style questions, but there are other companies out there who offer great course as well. No matter which class, here is my list of PROs for taking a review class:
- It CAN’T hurt!
- I’m a very un-structured studier, and so being in the classroom and studying might force me to FOCUS.
- A lot of the classes focus on test-taking strategies, which would be great to know since I’ve heard that SO MUCH of the test is about how you read the question.
But then, I don’t know. I did pretty well on my school’s predictor ATI… and I studied test taking strategies for that on my own. That’s actually ALL that I studied for the test. There wasn’t enough time for me to be studying what the practice tests told me that I needed to review before the test (ok, so maybe I procrastinated in studying… I couldn’t review all of the systems the night before!). I definitely think that was helpful in studying. So if I could study for that and do well, do I need a review class? Here’s my list of CONs for taking a review class:
- It costs an arm and a leg. I know it can’t hurt, but if it’s not 100% needed, then, is it worth the moolah? I am saving up for wedding goodies here!
- I’ve heard the classes are very repetitive, and long, and boring. So maybe they’re structured, if they’re boring, it’s not going to help.
- The predictor exam says I have a good chance of passing at this point… and I studied for that on my own, I think I can handle it.
So… I don’t know. Any suggestions out there? I definitely think it could be helpful, but is it really something I want to invest money in? Do I want to spend my first few weeks of freedom in another classroom? What do you think? I am open to your advice!
