Apotheker2015,
I have read your post to Rxbud. Thank you for responding to my post. You have no idea how comforting it is to read genuine supporting advice (esp. in this occupation). I am definitely trying to set my feelings aside regarding the naplex for most parts of the day and have started to study MPJE since the test is coming up soon.
You're absolutely right about NABP. I will give them a call and hopefully it'll be good news. I have read through previous post. Some were able to get their ATT a few days before the 91th day and scheduled w/ no issues. (But I definitely want a concrete answer)
To answer your questions
1. I thought I was. Used Rx prep, masterexams, some Kaplan which wasn't as helpful. Purchased prontopass short tests, was helpful. I was practicing each chapter as I went through them.
2. I didn't finish. 15 questions were left unanswered which I know played a huge part in my score. I had 40 some questions with 20 minutes. Definitely didn't expect for math to pop up towards the end since I did a lot in the beginning. I started panicking and wasted too much time trying to be sure of my answers for 2-3 math. By the time I realized I should just put in anything, time was running almost out.
3. Every day I was practicing the chapters I was reviewing. (Not 8-12 hours, but at least 4-6)
4. Math was definitely not an issue until I freaked out at the end. I should've plugged any number & moved on.
5. I practice through most of SDN. Some questions seemed overkill.
Again, I really appreciate your advice. It was a jumpstart in motivating me to kill naplex the 2nd time around.
Hey Rphgrad15,
it sounds like you are handling this with maturity. Own up to it. You failed. That's it. Do not worry about what people may or may not say.
Who gives a damn? Are they paying for your loans or your rent? No, they are not. Keep your head up high and move forward.
When people judge you, they forget they have just granted you the right to tell them which holes to push their judgments through. Exercise that right. It feels GOOD.
In regards to preparing to the NAPLEX, I think you have work laid out already. My best recommendations are:
1.
Stick to 1 source and in all honesty,
Rxprep is all you need. The only other thing I would add are the
Pronto-Pass posters. They're complete and if you are someone who remembers information visually and in pictures, like me, you will find those useful.
2. You already read the Rxprep book. This time around you need to
go straight to the meat and potatoes of it; i.e., the drugs. You have 90 days or so to
create a table for each of the chapters. Focus on what is
bolded and underlined. That's it. I have uploaded a sample of what it should look like. It follows the format of the Rxprep book. Keep all tables on 1 document. It will be easier to search through them if you do that.
3.
Start thinking in terms of brand names. Stop using generic names altogether. Put generic names in parenthesis but always think in terms of brand names for everything. That will help them stick.
4.
Do that Rxprep Quiz bank until you drop dead. Rxprep recommends doing flashcards but that proved too time consuming for me. Whatever you miss on a quiz, I would either highlight that detail on the table summary you've made for the drugs on that chapter or I would add that detail if it's not already on there. The idea here is that you
keep a series of concise tables that should be easier to remember.
5.
Do the 120 SDN calculations until you get sick of them. As you go through them,
note what your mistakes are and why you made them; e.g., "wrote 150 mg/mL instead of 1500 mg/mL"; "mOsm vs mEq concept not clear" etc. You get the idea. I can tell you that when I did
#100 without looking at the ansswer and I had it all correct, I knew that math would not be a concern for the NAPLEX. I was excited and nerded out for a minute there.
6. If there is a
brand name that won't stick, well, then go on youtube and watch that drug's Tv commercial. That helped me a lot.
7.
If you are working as an intern somewhere, then go through the shelves. Grab that Emsam patch and look at it. Grab the Morunol box also. Ask the pharmacist questions. If people see that you are being proactive they will help you and support you.
8.
Try to tie chapters together. Say heart failure and asthma, and then throw in renal disease. That will help all concepts stick and you will be ready by the time you get to retake the NAPLEX.
9.
Study to be a competent and knowledgeable pharmacist. Study to really know those counseling points. Use this time to do a thorough review and
mindfully retain the most knowledge that you can. Nobody wants to see a pharmacist look everything up. I know people who got a 120 and have
very little knowledge readily available to them. They're just good test takers. I see them looking up everything.
Again, study to be a competent and knowledgeable pharmacist.
10.
Be diligent. The 90 days will still go by. You can either sit there and sulk and be unprepared at the end of the 90 days and likely fail again
OR you can make failure not an option.
This is how you turn a score of 67 on the Pre-NAPLEX to a humble score of 107 on the NAPLEX. You do that being diligent.
Finally, thank you for your kind words. I hope that showing compassion and support to others becomes contagious. I know it's pharmacy and this world is known to be
back-stabbing central. I don't live by that. I can also tell you I know for a fact someone in my class failed the NAPLEX. This is at a top/elite pharmacy school as they made sure they told us every day we were in pharmacy school. All this person did through pharmacy school was look down on others, myself included. There should be no room for that. We should all be kind and supportive to one another.
Now that person just got the wonderful gift of Karma and failed the NAPLEX. Karma is often confused with punishment.
Instead, Karma is really gift. It gives you the opportunity to reflect upon your actions and how those affected others. Ultimately, its purpose is to make you a better person. Hopefully, it does that to that arrogant person.
Anyway, I hope you find these tips useful. Studying this time around should also go faster. Try to enjoy yourself a little, as well. Once you are licensed, no one will ever ask you or care what score you got on the NAPLEX and for sure no one will ever ask "Did you take it once or multiple times?". No one cares. They care that you get licensed and that should be your goal.
Best,
Apotheker2015
). I will be sending prayers your way. Hopefully, you'll at least by Friday to avoid a long weekend (praying on that for you too!). I had to wait until Monday (and I took it last Wednesday) since they were short on help. 
