The adaptive ATI tests (CAT tests) were helpful for me to learn test-taking strategies for myself. I learned that I can typically do 50-75 questions before losing focus and that if I take a 5-10 minute break I can get back on track and improve my performance. I noticed that when I get tired, I often confuse questions that ask for what answer is incorrect for ones that ask what is correct. I flip those common roots of questions in the rush and can eliminate this by taking thoughtful breaks. During the NCLEX I can take as many breaks as I want, but they will count towards my total time of 5 hours. I think that as long as I am on track of 1 minute per question, which is already longer than I take on average, then I will be able to take breaks as often as I need to make sure I can focus.

Taking the CAT exams helped me to better understand the wording used and see more roots of questions. Being comfortable with the root allows me more time to focus on the details of the question, instead of spending more time interpreting the question. I found throughout the tests that management of care was one of my lower scoring areas, so I know to spend more time on what to delegate and what different positions in the hospital can have different responsibilities.

I learned that allowing myself breaks throughout the exam and slowing down on questions allowed me to better focus on the questions. I also found through the semester that I needed to learn how to prioritize relaxation time for myself. I had one day off a week for a couple of weeks in a row due to the combination of classes and preceptorship, and I regularly spent that day doing homework for about an hour or two and the rest of the day at the beach or hanging out with friends. I think if I had spent that time studying only, I would have driven myself to madness. Instead, I did my homework after preceptorship most days for about an hour or two so I would have time on my day off to enjoy my friends and the summer. This really helped my motivation, and I felt fine doing homework for an hour after preceptorship if it meant I would have a mostly free weekend day.

In this class, I have learned a lot about how to try and protect my license. If there is ever a time in which I am questioning my actions, I will look up the policy or ask someone in charge if there is a gray area. I do think the talks we had about our licenses made me more nervous to practice, but I think it’s a healthy fear as it will make me double and triple check everything I do and document and take credit for everything I do or attempt to do with my patients. I think there is a good balance of confidence and hubris, and I hope to build confidence throughout my career, but I hope to never reach a point of hubris where I get too confident and think I can skip steps of a procedure because I know the ins and outs so well. This semester discouraged any chance of that and made me alert to when I saw that in nurses throughout my preceptorship. Being alert and focusing on each step of a med pass is critically important, and I will take that caution with me throughout my career.