Nursing School can be overwhelming, not only because of the massive content that is given to you but also because of the ways in which to use your time efficiently. Preparation is key and knowing your schedule before assignments are due, will keep you from stressing out and pulling all nighters!
Before each school year started, I would make sure I had a little $5 scheduler that I could carry everywhere, in order to physically look at and be reminded of important due dates…Some people prefer their iPhone calendar which is great if that works for you, although reminders on my phone weren’t enough for me…I needed to see it all MULTIPLE times a day in writing in BIG red marker/highlight
This was a major game changer because it kept me in line of timing. And crossing off those due dates and chapter reading assignments was actually very satisfying!
It meant there was a possibility I had time to catch up with friends and family knowing I had completed my work.
So on to STUDYING ….
It is sort of crazy to believe you can truly memorize and understand ALL of the content expected of you via Power Points, Textbooks, NCLEX preparation study sets, etc…SO, to get the most out of your time spent studying, try to extract the important concepts of your practice questions and ask yourself “What do I really need to know?”
Look at the rationales behind each of the practice questions and take that information and apply it to similar questions. Most likely that same concept will come up continuously but in different forms of the question.
And take it from an avid practice question taker….the more questions you do, the more you’ll understand what the question is REALLY asking.
Visualize yourself on a hospital floor and always keep in mind that your focus is safe and effective patient centered care!
Studying truly becomes less hectic when shifting your mind to think like this
Long story short- Don’t memorize but UNDERSTAND the concept.
Try out different methods of studying whether it is studying on your own, group study sessions with classmates or making study guides, find which method works best for you and stick with what makes you most comfortable.
Make sure you truly take the time out to focus your attention on the material without any distractions like social media or being a part of your friends group chat with your phone alerting you every 2 minutes…( I’ve been there) and truly learn to control your time.
Set appropriate study goals and allow to give yourself 10-15 minute breaks in between to regroup and redirect all of your thoughts.
Organizing your material ahead of time so that it doesn’t feel like such a drag to pick up a huge pile of random papers when it comes down to studying for that exam will really lighten up your spirits!
For me, I always felt less stressed when I had pre-printed sheets and hole-punched loose papers that I organized in a binder so when it came down to studying, it was all right there but everyone does have their own method and not everyone studies the same.
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