What Should You Study?

   

Studying/testing

What should you study? Good question. Probably one of the best answers to this is to find someone who is a semester ahead of you, and ask what helped them the most. This is IDEAL. You'll find that most instructors have different test-building strategies

·         You may have no choice but to do a variety of things… but in general, the Syllabus questions give you a very general idea of what you will be tested on. The ONLY instructors I've found who very much stick to the material they lecture on (thus, you need to know the powerpoints backwards and forwards) are Mr. S and Mr. K. You may or may not find their test questions refreshingly focused on the specific things covered in their lectures. 

·         Pay attention to the nursing diagnosis sections and the boxes and charts in the textbook. The nursing diagnoses give you invaluable information: what the priorities are with any given disorder, and then lists what specific actions to take as a nurse. It is most important to remember what we will need to do as nurses here... not what a doctor will do! 

·         *Disorders: break everything down (make charts!) Probably the most essential things to know about any given situation are – and probably in this order:

a.    Signs and symptoms and Nursing Actions

b.    Complications

c.    Teaching (could be as simple as: “don't rise quickly from a laying position”)

d.    Diagnostic tests

e.    Medical treatments (ESPECIALLY SURGERIES)

·         If there's something in foundations you know you need to or should have looked at more closely, go back and look it up! Save yourself the brain pain.

·         Set aside at least 2-hour study sessions, at least 3 times per week. 

·         Make a list of things you don't "get," or know you will need to go over multiple times to memorize:

o   As you read, you will then find that there are things you inherently just "get," and things that will require memorization… Always have a piece of paper or a MS Word document, etc. available to consider this your "MEMORY" list. Consult it whenever possible. 

·         ANSWER PRACTICE QUESTIONS. This is one of the best ways to engrain things deep into your memory. I'll mention this again, but it forces RECALL. When you are forced to recall things, you will complete the circle of understanding, and reinforce your understanding