Naplex experience 2013

[MLYI]

Hey guys! I am very grateful for this forum, I wouldn't have passed my boards without you guys Thank you!

My Naplex Experience:
I was B/C average student in school, if I can pass, you guys can too!
I used the RXPREP book, which all you need and all I used. I read it twice over the course of 4 months, then 1 week before the NAPLEX I was studying intense with the book and bought the RXPREP quizes for $70 during that last week of studying.

I also used the quizzes on Quizlet.com and the Prontopass online quizzes that range from $6-$15. The RXPREP quizzes are set up just like the real NAPLEX.

That's all i used!

NAPLEX EXAM ITSELF:
I got a good sleep (I tried) I was so nervous! But when I walked into the exam room I was calm. The exam isn't the hardest thing in the world, but I prepared myself as if it was....but it wasn't. I still walked out of there unsure of how I performed though. I was numb and neutral. I got about 20 math, that were very easy (i only used the rxprep math to study + I am strong in math). The rest were case based questions, I had a few (3) easy one sentence questions. I had A LOT of cases. I ran out of time at the end and didn't answer 2 questions, including a math question that I wrote a random number in. Oh, and a little more than half of my math questions were fill in, so I had to make sure I calculated properly. I had no HIV, INFECTIOUS questions. All my questions were CARDIO, DIABETES, CHOLESTEROL. They have questions where they ask where does this drug work and they have a picture of the organ system and you have to click exactly where in the organ in works (ex. kidney).

I took a break after 2 hours
They give you dry erase pad of many pages to use
Onscreen calculator, people say the can give you an actual one, if i knew i wouldve requested to save me time. the onscreen one is annoying to use.

TIPS:
Read questions carefully, but don't think too much
Know how to read patient charts and look for unusual values and patient complaints
Be strong in math, it carries more value in scoring, for obvious reasons in this profession

I am so happy i passed! I just found out today and have been doing a chicken dance all over my house! LOL GOODLUCK.

Ask me any questions!!

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[NaplexRx]

Congrats & thanks so much for sharing your experience!

 

[Violettim]

I did request a calculator, and the guy said "No, you'll get one on the screen"

 

[BBW123]

I also requested a calculator and they told me to just use the onscreen calculator. It was a scientific calculator and I think Rxprep said it would just be a basic one.

 

[PASSNIKI]

I took the Naplex three days ago, and here's my experience

Study materials used: RxPrep book, and the RxPrep Quizbank

The prep stage:
I studied the book over the course of one month. There were good days where I got through a lot of material, and then there were bad days where I could not focus at all. My friends who had already passed the Naplex told me to focus on the math and brand/generics. I went through the entire book once, and then the week before my exam date, I reviewed the chapters that I knew were my weak areas. About two weeks prior, I bought the online RxPrep Quizbank, and used the questions on there to gauge how much I had retained. I got through about 80% of the topics on there (yeah, I ran out of time toward the end), and scored about on average 75% for most topics. I did the math in the book twice, and also all of the four math sets in the quizbank. I started to panic a little in the last few days before the exam bc I felt like I still wasn't ready. I was terrified that I had forgotten everything I studied from the beginning of the month. I really had very little hope of passing, but by that time, it was too late to reschedule the exam and so I figured I would go for the experience.

Exam Day:
I was freaking out pretty bad at this point, but I did managed to get about 7 hours of solid sleep. I woke up at 8am, and started reviewing again some of my weaker areas. My exam was at 2pm and I made sure to eat something before leaving the house. Right before I walked into the testing building, I looked over the math equations one last time. In the 30 minutes of waiting to be admitted for the exam, I gave myself a prep talk to boost my confidence. I knew it was going to be the hardest exam of my life to date.

The exam: 85-90% of it was case based. The questions were a mixture of multiple choice (~70%), fill in the blank (~15%), and the rest varied from K-type, select all that applies, etc. Majority of the math questions (~90%) were fill in the blank. I gave myself about one hour to go through 45 questions in order to pace myself, and this worked well. It seems Naplex like to test on only a few main subjects from what I've seen and heard. My own exam comprised mostly of questions regarding RA, some HIV, SLE, arrhythmias, cancer, antipsychotics, and antiepileptics. I only have a few questions on diabetes (maybe 6?), ZERO questions on HTN (which I was so shocked b/c I expected at least a few), and maybe 3 questions on cholesterol. You MUST know your brand/generics because you would not be able to answer the questions. I also did not get any questions on calculating statistics such as number needed to treat, etc. A surprise I got was the amount of questions I got on drug formulations. I knew it would be on there, but I got at least 7-10 questions which I wasn't too happy about. They only let you use the onscreen calculator, which is kind of like a regular graphing calculator. I rather have a basic calculator in my hand than using the onscreen one, but such is life.

Post-exam: I knew I failed the exam after I had gone through about 150 questions because I felt like I was guessing on a majority of the questions. I did take the 10 minute break to eat a snack and rehydrate. When I walked out, I knew there was no possible way I had passed. I was confident in only the math questions and the few easy questions. Statistically, I could not have gotten enough questions right to pass. I guessed on way too many questions to have a chance. I got home, bawled my eyes out on why I didn't study harder, why did I just wasted $495 on a test I had no confidence of passing, blah blah blah. I was the most upset that it seems like Naplex knew exactly what I was weak in and picked the worst areas for me. I was completely numb for the rest of the night, filled with disappointment and angry at myself. I was too terrified to check my scores until 3 days later (today). I got the biggest surprise of my life to see "PASSED" on my results. Needless to say, I'm in shock but so thrilled at the same time!

Tips: Study the RxPrep thoroughly. This is really all you need to pass the Naplex. Get the Quizbank if you feel like you need it to test your retention of the material. The questions in the quizbank is formulated just like Naplex, although the content in the quizbank is definitely not as hard and not case based like it is on the Naplex. Make sure you know your brand/generics and math. Study ALL the topics. No one's Naplex will be like yours, so the only guaranteed way is to know every subject. GOOD LUCK!

 

[hi hello]

Congratulations!!!! wow its a good thread. I should share my experience here too. I hope, it will be helpful for future exam takers.