Taking NAPLEX While Pregnant

[pharm313]

Hi,

Curious if anyone has taken the NAPLEX or any other lengthy examination while pregnant? I'll be well into my third trimester when I take it so I'm looking for any helpful tips or insight for how to have a smooth experience. I'm thinking of calling Pearson ahead of time to figure out if I'll need to request any special accommodations.

Also, if you did take the exam, please include whether it was the newer version as it is longer.

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[Bimmaboy88]

A guy here. Being pregnant does not intervene with your mental abilities to take the exam, hence Pearson will give you any special treatment. I suppose your biggest concern is more frequent bathroom breaks and snack breaks, of which you can take unlimited number regardless of your pregnancy status, but your time will not be stopped. Having that said, if you think about it, you are given a 10 minute break every 2 hours, so even if you take a 5 minute break in between, that's only 3 x 5 = 15 minutes. Most student finish with about 45 minutes left , so time shouldn't be an issue, So i wouldn't stress about it.

 

[Anarxst]

Being a father of 3 at this point I can assure you that you most likely will be hungry and that can definitely impair your mental abilities (but everyone is different). I brought my own food for the two 10 min breaks (every 2 hrs) which are provided during the exam. I felt these breaks were more than adequate to get up, have a snack, water, and maybe a bathroom break if needed. Although I know being married women tend to take a bit longer in the bathroom.


I made my own snacks which I put in a clear ziploc bag. Before taking the exam make sure to ask the front desk if everything you brought is ok to access during your breaks. Also, DO NOT ACCESS YOUR CELL PHONE DURING THE EXAM!!! That is an automatic disqualification!

I would make sure the food is not too taxing to digest and gives you enough easily usable glucose for your brain to function well as well as for the baby. I think I made 6 small King’s Hawaiian sweet roll ham & cheese sandwiches. I ate 2 before my exam and 2 each for the other 2 breaks. This obviously going to be very different for everyone and most people don’t even need to eat for the 6 hours. I just knew during my studying that I got real hungry and I’m glad I bought something to eat.

If you feel you need anything more than this then definitely ask for special accommodations but I honestly don’t think you’ll need it. I finished with almost an hour left. Once you start the exam it goes by really quick.. I didn’t feel rushed at all (again, everyone is different) but I’m the type of test taker that doesn’t dwell on questions that I know I don’t know.

Anyway, don’t get too worried about how you will make it through the 6 hours regardless of being pregnant. You can do it and try to prepare your body to sit for 6hrs at a time doing practice exams/quizzes through RxPrep (if that’s what your using) and see how you feel. Anyway I hope that helps. Be confident and you’ll do great!

 

[CardioLu]

A guy here. Being pregnant does not intervene with your mental abilities to take the exam

I agree that Pearson probably won’t give you any special treatment but I would call them and ask anyway.

I definitely don’t agree that being pregnant doesn’t intervene with your mental abilities.
I took few important exams while pregnant and it’s definitely not the same - it’s much harder to learn anything. There are studies describing changes in female brain Pregnancy leads to long-lasting changes in human brain structure. - PubMed - NCBI
Personally I always had a feeling that my IQ dropped at least by 10 (no studies about that

You are saying you will be taking it well into 3rd trimester. I wouldn’t schedule it after 35 weeks. From that time you can deliver anytime without any notice ... you should have a bag packed and be ready to go. I saw my OBGYN on Wednesday (35w5d) - no signs of upcoming labor, my water broke on Thursday night and I delivered Friday morning... It happened to few others friends too... First pregnancy.

I don’t have experience with Pearson but I would suggest taking it in second trimester if possible. Not only bathroom breaks are problematic. You may have problems with sitting for prolonged time periods. I don’t think they will allow you to walk around every 30 minutes... If you are short, you can also have breathing problems while sitting in that position. It is enough that you will be uncomfortable all the time - that will affect your performance.

Everyone is different and hopefully you won’t have any of these problems but it’s good to think about.
Talk to your school/ board - maybe they can let you take it earlier.

Good luck with your pregnancy and studying!

 

[pharm313]

Thanks for all the feedback everyone! I really hope I can take the exam before the baby comes because I plan to bf and having a bfing baby will make it extremely difficult to take the exam soon after delivery... unless my husband is willing to bring the baby to the testing center so that I can feed during breaks. Anyways, I'm giving it my all and making a super comprehensive study guide (that's how the I study and survived pharm school) so even if I'm not able to take it, having my notes will make it so that it wasn't time wasted for when I do eventually take it.

I'll give Pearson a call, hopefully they'll be somewhat understanding if I give them a heads up. Will probably have to take breaks outside the two allowed breaks to walk and use the restroom and snack. I hope I don't run out of time