Changes in Nursing Student Pre-Exam Preparation Strategies During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The purpose of this project was to gather data on college students’ pre-exam psychological preparation practices pre and post the initial COVID-19 pandemic period. The pandemic caused an unexpected shift toward fully online learning, leaving students and faculty unprepared for the changes in online testing and related environmental factors affecting students’ anxiety and stress levels. Data collected through an anonymous survey at the end of the Spring 2020 semester showed differences in preexam self-care practices employed by 62 baccalaureate nursing students at a multicampus university in the U.S. Results showed immediate pre-exam practices during the pandemic differed from strategies pre-pandemic. Students reported effective strategies to overcome barriers, such as exam environment and increased time availability. This presentation will describe how this honors capstone research led to the development of new student success resources on one campus which are now expanding across all of the university’s campuses.