Faculty Helps Nursing Students with the CPNE and Classes

Scheduled Calls Help Associate Degree Nursing Students Succeed

As a nursing student, going back to school can be difficult when you’re trying to juggle different roles and responsibilities like work, social life, and academics. It can be particularly hard because you need to practice expert knowledge and thoughtfulness in your current job while also working tirelessly in your academics to make it to the next level in your nursing career. Luckily, the Excelsior College School of Nursing offers resources like faculty phone calls to help you in your studies and the CPNE.

Faculty phone calls are nursing-centered talks that occur between nursing students and nursing faculty program directors (FPDs). They are “a student’s opportunity to talk about whatever they want to talk about,” says Karla Duffy, a faculty program director for the associate degree in nursing program. Students can call the School of Nursing to schedule a 30-minute phone call with an FPD. They can have a maximum of two phone calls scheduled at one time and are allowed one phone call per week.

The topics students want to discuss vary, says Duffy. Some students want to discuss a topic they are stuck on in their theory courses while others are looking for tips on how to be successful in discussions. Others call looking for best strategies in taking Excelsior College Examinations (ECEs) and the Focused Clinical Competency Assessments (FCCAs).

Faculty Calls Help Students Prepare for the CPNE

Duffy says the majority of students’ phone calls are about the Clinical Performance in Nursing Examination (CPNE). Students call looking for what resources are available to help them prepare for the exam, and faculty then direct them to the tutorial NUR 702 Navigating the CPNE, study guides, webinars, workshops, etc. Faculty try to inform students about what to expect at the exam, as well. Sometimes students seek to better understand a specific portion of the CPNE.

Many calls are about students’ fears concerning the CPNE, says Duffy. She explains that to ease students’ fears, she often tells students to come up with personal mantras, to hold special totems like stones or marbles in their pockets during the exam, or to practice writing “RN” after their name in preparation of passing the exam. “It’s all about the mindset,” she says.

Part of that is also making sure the student, who is typically an LPN or a paramedic, draws on their previous learning and continues to transform their thinking into that of an RN. Duffy says she speaks with students who are LPNs or paramedics, which are skill-oriented jobs, and they need support as they continue to acquire the knowledge and skills required of the RN. RN’s are responsible for managing and coordinating care and it’s important to help students mentally transition into the RN role, Duffy says.

Nursing faculty also use faculty phone calls to dispel the rumors and fallacies that exist on social media and third-party preparation provider websites. Students often share inconsistencies that they have heard on social media such as specific critical element requirements that are not a part of the examination.

Schedule Your Faculty Call Today

The School of Nursing tries to tell as many students as they can about the phone calls, but they still run into some who just don’t know about them. Hopefully, the word gets out about this important service. “Next to the resources in NUR 702, I feel the faculty phone calls are the most valuable resource to students,” says Duffy. The amount of information a student can receive from these talks can be very beneficial; the faculty phone calls are certainly a good tool to help you prepare for the CPNE. To schedule your call, contact the School of Nursing at 800-533-3792.