How to Prepare for the Nursing School Entrance Exams (Barrons How to Prepare for the Nursing School Entrance Exams, 1998)

Rating:
Summary: Good book for general review but...
Review: ...not based on what was on my Nursing Entrance Test. I took the NET today (and received a score I'm happy with) so I have to give this book some credit, with the emphasis on "some." After completing this book and using it solely as my review/study guide, I am a bit disappointed. Credit due, this was a very good, well-written, somewhat helpful book but not (known now after taking the test) what I should have been looking for. The problem being it has a lot of areas that are NOT on the test. When studying for a test of this magnitude (a requirement of a specific score to be Qualified to even Apply to nursing school,) I want to Know I am studying what is ON the NET and NOT any unessential information.

Chapter One, the Introduction, was very helpful general nursing information covering: "What Nurses Do," "Is Nursing Right for Me?" "Schools of Nursing and Food for Thought," "Financial Assistance," "Getting into Nursing School" and more. For this chapter and the practical Chapter Two: "Test-Taking Strategies and Reasoning," I give the book an extra star.
Chapter Three: Verbal Ability----NOT on NET
Chapter Four: Reading Comprehension----On NET
Chapter Five: Numberic Ability---On NET (but not a complete study review.) The NET is basically 50% math and 50% reading so this is very important. Also most of the math on the NET has a fraction, decimal or percentage which isn't dealt with as much as needed in this book.
Chapter Six: Science Review----NOT on NET (but I enjoyed it and it confirmed to me that I have a "knack" for nursing, as I did very well on it. A great overview of physical and organic sciences.)
Chapter Seven: Model Examinations----Not very helpful again because the focus wasn't on reading and math solely but lots of impertinent material.
Maybe this is a great book for some NET tests but for Tennessee, it isn't the best choice.

Soar Future Nurses!

Rating:
Summary: A lot of money for not very much book....
Review: But as long as it gives me the information I need to score well on my PSB-RN test, it will have been very much worth it. After reading the Arco guide and taking some of the sample tests, I was ready to panic...then I took the sample tests in this book and got most of the answers right. Neither this guide nor the Arco guide goes into very much detail about the level of difficulty someone would encounter on the PSB-RN test, which concerns me because I need to know just how much physics, chemistry, and biology I need to learn between now and the test. I guess I'll err on the side of caution!

As for the book...it is well laid-out and easy to understand, though some diagrams would have been nice in the science sections. I'd also have liked a section for notes and lots of recommendations for further reading.

Rating:
Summary: What's wrong with that
Review: I am giving this book a 4 star, despite it is probably more like a three. This is a good book to use as an over view, and did help prepare me for the NET exam. Compared to others on the market I would buy this one again, although I do feel it is lacking in certain areas. The math section has several wrong answers, or leaves out (+/-) signs on some questions. If you've had some algebra and need a refresher, it's a good overview. The book leads you to believe there are only four sections on the test, reading, verbal ability, numeric ability, and science review. Either the tests have recently changed, or this book is in serious need of update. The sections on my actual NET exam were mathmatic ability, reading comprehension, reading rate, learning styles, stressful situations, social decisions, and test taking ability. These are the actual titles of each section. The Science review from the book is good, but it's just that, a review, and did not pertain to the actual test in any way. There is a verbal section in the book that will make you feel like a total [dumb], unless you spend your spare time reading the dictionary as pleasure. THERE IS NO VERBAL SECTION on the test I took. I wished the book would have had more about the actual test, like the amount of time you have to complete each section and the amount of time the entire test takes (3 hours). I would also like information on how the test is graded, the differences in grading policies for LVN, or RN, and the passing grades needed for each section. And at least 10 people brought calculators assuming they could be used on the test. The book never mentions whether you can use calculators, and that is something I consider important information. There was NO information on test taking skills, which is a section of the test and asks questions a person would otherwise not know, unless they had studied specific statistics on taking tests. Such as: what is the percentage an average person gets correct on a verbal ability exam, a. 10%, b. 20%, c. 70%, d. 50% and some questions were just plain strange, like, is it safer to drive from Austin, Texas to Dallas, Texas or from Dallas, Texas to Austin, Texas. No, that's not an actual question, but similar to one. My suggestion, buy the book, it's got some good review points and a practice exam at the back (which is not exactly like the actual test) but any practice exam you can take is a good one. They really need to update their informtion, and if you can find a more recent edition of this book, go with that one. I DO feel like it helped me be more confident, and I feel I would have likely scored lower, and walked out of the test room feeling a whole lot worse had I NOT bought this book. GOOD LUCK ON YOUR NET EXAM!! If you have any questions about the NET, I'll be happy to answer what I can for you. mepco@centex

Rating:
Summary: Mixed opinion
Review: I am giving this book a 4 star, despite it is probably more like a three. This is a good book to use as an over view, and did help prepare me for the NET exam. Compared to others on the market I would buy this one again, although I do feel it is lacking in certain areas. The math section has several wrong answers, or leaves out (+/-) signs on some questions. If you've had some algebra and need a refresher, it's a good overview. The book leads you to believe there are only four sections on the test, reading, verbal ability, numeric ability, and science review. Either the tests have recently changed, or this book is in serious need of update. The sections on my actual NET exam were mathmatic ability, reading comprehension, reading rate, learning styles, stressful situations, social decisions, and test taking ability. These are the actual titles of each section. The Science review from the book is good, but it's just that, a review, and did not pertain to the actual test in any way. There is a verbal section in the book that will make you feel like a total [dumb], unless you spend your spare time reading the dictionary as pleasure. THERE IS NO VERBAL SECTION on the test I took. I wished the book would have had more about the actual test, like the amount of time you have to complete each section and the amount of time the entire test takes (3 hours). I would also like information on how the test is graded, the differences in grading policies for LVN, or RN, and the passing grades needed for each section. And at least 10 people brought calculators assuming they could be used on the test. The book never mentions whether you can use calculators, and that is something I consider important information. There was NO information on test taking skills, which is a section of the test and asks questions a person would otherwise not know, unless they had studied specific statistics on taking tests. Such as: what is the percentage an average person gets correct on a verbal ability exam, a. 10%, b. 20%, c. 70%, d. 50% and some questions were just plain strange, like, is it safer to drive from Austin, Texas to Dallas, Texas or from Dallas, Texas to Austin, Texas. No, that's not an actual question, but similar to one. My suggestion, buy the book, it's got some good review points and a practice exam at the back (which is not exactly like the actual test) but any practice exam you can take is a good one. They really need to update their informtion, and if you can find a more recent edition of this book, go with that one. I DO feel like it helped me be more confident, and I feel I would have likely scored lower, and walked out of the test room feeling a whole lot worse had I NOT bought this book. GOOD LUCK ON YOUR NET EXAM!! If you have any questions about the NET, I'll be happy to answer what I can for you. mepco@centex

Rating:
Summary: What's wrong with that
Review: I haven't actually read the book yet but the review from Hoboken "Egregious Mistakes" actually had the wrong answer and the book had the correct answer to calculate (3/4)(7+13)/4(3*2)+15 the answer lays in putting everything in the same terms such as fractions relating to fractions. You can simplify 3/4and 20/1 to 3/1 and 5/1 and do the multiplication then divide by the 39. In this case multiplication does take precedence over the divison. The book had the correct answer in 15/39 being .3846
NB Canada

Rating:
Summary: Excellent prep for exam!
Review: I really feel that this book helped me prepare form my nursing school entrance exam. It has excellent practice tests and a lot of them, so you can really get a lot of use out of the book. I did extremely well on the exam after working with this book. Highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Great book
Review: I thought this was a fantastic book to use as a review for the pre-entrance RN test. It wasn't too in-depth on any subject yet provided the necessary information for the test.

Rating:
Summary: future RN!!
Review: I thought this was a fantastic book to use as a review for the pre-entrance RN test. It wasn't too in-depth on any subject yet provided the necessary information for the test.

Rating:
Summary: How To Prepare For the Nursing School Entrance Exams
Review: If you need to concentrate on math review this is the book to buy! It breaks the answers down & explains them to you. This book refreshes your memory and teaches you what you have forgotten.

Rating:
Summary: Egregious mistakes
Review: In the chapter "Numerical Ability," the book incorrectly solves the sample problem, Calculate: (3/4)(7 + 13) / 4(3 * 2) + 15. It makes two egregious mistakes: it misstates the rule of precedence and then even incorrectly applies its own rule. This gives the wrong answer, 0.3846.

In the same chapter under the section "Order of Operations," it incorrectly states that multiplication takes precedence over division and addition takes precedence over subtraction.

By the way, the correct answer is 37.5 and multiplication and division have equal precedence, as do addition and subtraction.