PharmacyGrad614

Hi everyone! I'm back from a couple of weeks since taking the NAPLEX. I just found out this morning in less than 48 hours my NJ MPJE score online to be a 92!!! Words cannot express my relief. When I was looking at the score I felt seeing pass/fail would be too overwhelming so I covered everything then slowly uncovered the first number and knew I had passed! I know a few of you have been asking for advice regarding MPJE, I posted my own share of questions myself. I was so worried/ freaking out about this exam because I felt the NJ MPJE would be much more difficult to pass than the NAPLEX for sure, and I heard a few very narrowly passed. Part of my anxiety was feeling like I didn't know how to study for it, but I read around this site and asked others for advice. Law is at times really dry and really difficult to get through, at one point it took me 3 hours to get through 20 pages w/ many breaks in between. Here are the materials I used to study: Cifaldi's 132 page review packet for federal and NJ state law: I would have used Cifaldi's book but my friend in another state has it. This packet I believe will suffice. Reiss & Hall : only the Controlled Substances chapter, had to borrow from a younger coworker. Pharmacyexam.com downloadable CD for NJ MPJE (150 questions): Formatting law into question and full detailed answer straight from the statutes and regulations helped me learn the law, I thought the questions were relevant and fair and although I spent money on this CD ($60), I do strongly feel that reading and being exposed to questions helps you prepare for an exam, and I felt it was money well spent. DEA Pharmacist's Manual: online for free, about controlled substances. It's long, about 84 pages, but easy reading, not sure how much it helped but I just jotted down points I read that I felt were useful or that I didn't learn from the other sources. Time: 1.5 weeks. I got a little bit of everything on my exam both federal and state but I would focus on the NJ Pharmacy Practice Act and Controlled Substances Act and for federal: know definitions, labels, OTC dispensing. Like others say, the exam tests you mostly on what would be important for pharmacists to know in practice dispensing prescriptions. My exam was mostly scenario-based so I guess it was trying to test my reasoning and application of the law, but I've heard it can be either way. I do feel that working in a retail pharmacy helped me, though some questions I felt were a toss-up and I went with my gut from what I read from law. Do not forget, with all tests there is a test-taking component to doing well. I took about 85 of the 120 minutes (2h) they give you, though I did feel like some questions took up a bulk of my time and I was afraid I was being too slow, but I did get a ton of scenarios so my questions were a lot of reading and I was quite worried somewhere in the middle I wouldn't finish on time so I adjusted my speed. The key is not to get thrown off by odd questions you may not know and just stay calm, I conditioned myself to expect these and knew I would just have to work it out and pick the very best answer. In order to do this you need to read the question carefully (reread if you have to) AND also read each answer (reread if you have to), pay attention to the wording and terms! You might pick one right away, but then see another answer that is better. I am a careful test-taker and I do believe it helps greatly! Good luck to you all! Feel free to ask any questions =)

My MPJE exam is tomorrow morning and I would appreciate any test-taking tips. Thank you!

[YOUTUBE][/YOUTUBE] Which is thorough?

Hi everyone, To those who've already passed NJ MPJE, which would you recommend for the Federal portion, would appreciate any tips/advice. Thank you.

Hi everyone, I just received my results today and I passed NAPLEX with a 126!! http://edge.studentdoctor.net/newsmilies/excited.gif I am overjoyed! I am grateful to all the advice given here, so I wanted to give back, and hopefully readers can gain from my experience. CumGPA/ProGPA: 3.80/3.93, graduated Summa Cum Laude. Waited on taking the NAPLEX until now (August) due to many work hours, family vacation, etc. How I studied: RxPrep Book and online lectures, RxPrep Quiz Bank - These materials were provided to me by my employer. I feel these are the gold standard, Very conducive to learning, hone in on key points to do well on the exam and to become a good pharmacist. I listened to the lectures, although they do take up quite some time, because it's personally always been more effective to hear and read simultaneously. Though, I still perused the book on my own. RxPrep was a blessing. 120 SDN calculations - The RxPrep calculations are a great for a solid foundation on the basics, and the SDN set of calculations was great for practice. I struggled through this packet since I am slower at math but I did it enough times to understand and be efficient on these types of problems. Thanks to this forum, I knew that I had to strengthen my math. Time: 2 weeks, any time before that was casual studying/reading, and mostly looking through the RxPrep Quiz Bank and reading the explanations. Now my feelings regarding the preparation and the actual exam...what worked, and what I would have done differently. DO's and DONT's DO know key safety information, such as contraindications, warnings, monitoring parameters. (NAPLEX focuses on patient safety). DO focus on the particular drugs that have many safety issues (the more toxic drugs, and their management) DO focus on pharmacist-managed drugs and disease states DO pay attention to drug formulations (What route of administration drugs are available in) DO know counseling points DO know major drug interactions DO the RxPrep end-of-chapter questions and quiz bank as much as you can DO know that you will get questions from left field that you will have no idea how to answer, DON'T give up on the question, eliminate answers and take an educated guess. DO check your work, both therapeutics and math questions. DON'T Rush through the exam, there is more than enough time, I left with 45 minutes - 1 hour to spare but afterwards, I felt strange and had mixed feelings. I am usually very thorough in test-taking but felt I missed easy questions because I wasn't thorough enough (Remember, you cannot go back so give the question everything you've got). Be thorough, look carefully at the cases. I was trying to go fast because I was afraid of the penalty of failing to finish within the time frame, but I would have gotten answers correct had I not moved on too quickly. PACE yourselves accordingly per question, you are given a timer, see whether you need to speed up or slow down. DON'T panic, perhaps the reason I finished quickly was because I did so many practice questions and was very accustomed to answering questions. Still, approach each question with great care, you are a pharmacist. Take care everyone, and the best of luck and wishes to all of you. Please feel free to ask any questions.

Hi everyone, I just received my results today and I passed NAPLEX with a 126!! http://edge.studentdoctor.net/newsmilies/excited.gif I am overjoyed! I am grateful to all the advice given here, so I wanted to give back, and hopefully readers can gain from my experience. CumGPA/ProGPA: 3.80/3.93, graduated Summa Cum Laude. Waited on taking the NAPLEX until now (August) due to many work hours, family vacation, etc. How I studied: RxPrep Book and online lectures, RxPrep Quiz Bank - These materials were provided to me by my employer. I feel these are the gold standard, Very conducive to learning, hone in on key points to do well on the exam and to become a good pharmacist. I listened to the lectures, although they do take up quite some time, because it's personally always been more effective to hear and read simultaneously, and the lectures definitely kept me moving, though I read to supplement what wasn't discussed in the lectures. 120 SDN calculations - The RxPrep calculations are a great for a solid foundation on the basics, and the SDN set of calculations was great for practice. I struggled through this packet since I am slower at math but I did it enough times to understand and be efficient on these types of problems. Thanks to this forum, I knew that I had to strengthen my math. Time: 2-3 weeks of intensive study. Now my feelings regarding the preparation and the actual exam...what worked, and what I would have done differently. DO's and DONT's DO know key safety information, such as must-know/stand-out ADRs, contraindications, warnings, monitoring parameters. (NAPLEX focuses on patient safety). DO focus on the particular drugs that have many safety issues (the more toxic drugs, and their management) DO focus on pharmacist-managed drugs and disease states (ones commonly seen in community practice, think of the pharmacist roles and duties seen on clinical rotations) DO pay attention to drug formulations (what route of administration drugs are available in) DO know counseling points (reinforce some important points about the drug) DO know major drug interactions (recognize major inducers, inhibitors, and substrates) DO the RxPrep calculations for a solid foundation/refresher, then do 120 SDN calculations until you are comfortable with the different types of problems in this packet. DO the RxPrep end-of-chapter questions and quiz bank as much as you can (this provides a good review and helps you become accustomed to answering questions) DO check allergies, health conditions, other drugs, labs, and notes when on patient profiles/cases (I wish I was more thorough here, it's critical Not to overlook these) DO know that you will get questions from left field that you will have no idea how to answer, DON'T give up on the question, eliminate answers and take an educated guess. DO check your work, both therapeutics and math questions. I only have 2 Don'ts: DON'T Rush through the exam, there is more than enough time, I left with 45 minutes - 1 hour to spare but afterwards, I had mixed feelings and wondered if i should have used more time. I am usually very thorough in test-taking but felt I missed easy questions because I wasn't thorough enough (Remember, you cannot go back so give the question everything you've got). Be thorough, consider the question you are being asked first, then look carefully at the relevant information presented to you, especially cases. You do not want to miss the easy ones. -I was trying to go fast because I was afraid of the penalty for running out of time, but I would have gotten answers correct had I not moved on too quickly. PACE yourselves accordingly per question, you are given a timer, see whether you need to speed up or can afford to slow down. Maybe check your progress every 60 questions to see where you are with time. DON'T panic, just work through it. You will get some you know, some you don't know, some you thought you knew but get incorrect, and some you thought you didn't know but answer correctly from experience/gut -so No need to panic, but do your best and approach each question with great care, as you are a pharmacist. Take care everyone, and the best of luck and wishes to all of you. Please feel free to ask any questions.