What Is The HESI Exam?
In short, the Health Education Systems, Inc or HESI exam is the entrance exam nursing and other medical programs. You may have heard of it as the A2 or HESI. Consider this exam the first step in your nursing journey.
What Is The HESI exam and Why Is It Necessary?
Nursing programs need the HESI not only to assess your incoming knowledge but also to predict the likelihood of your passing the NCLEX (nursing licensure) exam when you graduate. If too many students fail the NCLEX upon graduation, nursing programs get an evaluation. Nursing schools use it to keep their percentages high.
What is the HESI Exam and the HESI Exit Exam?
There are two HESIs. One is the entrance exam, which this article focuses on. Another is the HESI Exit exam, which you’ll take before graduating from your nursing program and to help you prepare for the NCLEX licensing tests. The HESI entrance exam is the HESI A2.
Depending on whether your program requires these courses before you apply, you’ll find sections based on chemistry or biology among others.
The Sections
When administering the HESI exam, different programs choose to include which sections they want to evaluate. Almost all programs do want to evaluate your skills in reading, grammar, and math.
Depending on whether your program requires these courses before you apply, you’ll find sections based on chemistry or biology among others.
When you take the HESI for admission to your nursing program, you’ll find it divided into sections. Most of the sections contain around 50 questions and they should take about an hour each. You’re expected to spend about one minute on each question.
Math
In the math section, you’ll find 50 questions. They want to assess your math skills as they would relate to health care. It covers multiplication, division, addition, subtraction, fractions, decimals, ratios, and proportions. You may also find questions on measurements, roman numeral, and dosages.
Reading
The reading section contains about 47 questions. This section covers your ability to identify main ideas, determine meanings of words and phrases, and understand passages. You’ll need to read passages and answer questions about them. These scenarios will especially apply to medical situations.
Vocabulary
Containing 50 questions, this section will assess your general knowledge of medical terminology.
Grammar
In this section, you’ll be assessed on your understanding of parts of speech and identifying common grammatical errors. This section contains about 50 questions.
Chemistry
You may find a chemistry section if your program requires chemistry courses as a prerequisite. This section contains about 25 questions and assesses your abilities in topics such as atomic structures, matter, chemical equations, and the periodic table of the elements.
Anatomy and Physiology
This section is separate from the biology section which we’ll talk about next. Many nursing programs require you to take one or two semesters of anatomy and physiology before applying, so there’s a good chance you’ll find this section on your test. With about 25 questions, the test will cover terminology and questions about biological structures and systems.
Biology
Finally, you may come across a section on biology. It has about 25 questions and covers questions on cells, molecules, metabolism, and more.
You may also take tests on your personality and lifestyle, but nursing programs probably won’t count these scores in admissions criteria. They’ll probably just review them to get to know you if they require them at all.
The Length
The length of time it takes you to complete the HESI depends on where you’ll be taking the test. If you go to a testing center, you’ll probably have about four hours to complete the test. If you’ll take the test at your college or anywhere else, you may get more time, but expect it to take at least four hours.
The length of time you’ll get also depends on how many sections you’re taking. It’s important that you confirm with the school which sections you have to take. You don’t want to do more work than necessary! The HESI has a total of nine sections, but you probably won’t be completing them all to enter a nursing program.
How Much Is It?
The cost of the HESI varies. Fees usually range from about $40 to $70. You’ll need to check with your school to find out exactly how much it’ll cost.
How Do I Pass?
Don’t let the HESI intimidate you. Keep in mind some simple tips to help you pass this exam.
Take your prerequisite courses seriously. Pay close attention and get tutoring if you need it. Obtain study guide books and take practice tests online. Consider an online study course.
Your school may also offer special tutoring or study sessions for the HESI. If not, see if you can get your own study group together with other prospective nursing students.
