HOW TO PASS THE DENTAL HYGIENE BOARD EXAM in 2023
Dental hygiene school is hard. And the last thing that you even have time to think about is taking a board exam. It’s your final semester and you’re just about ready to graduate already.
I’ve been there. I was terrified to schedule my board exam because I didn’t know the ‘right time’ to take nor did I feel confident about passing the exam. Juggling clinic, patients, requirements and other exams can feel very overwhelming.
In this blog post I am sharing with you 5 secrets that will help you feel confident about taking the exam and ultimately pass the exam the very first time. I’ll be covering:
How to create a study plan that works
The tools that helped me pass with ease
How to schedule a date that feels good
How to cope with anxiety as your approach your final semester
So if you’re struggling with dental hygiene school overwhelm and jittery feelz about the written board exam, you’ve come to the right place. Now sit back and relax because you’ve totally got this.
I remember feeling such overwhelm when we approached our final semester in dental hygiene school. I didn’t know how to handle it. I felt so much pressure to make sure I was seeing all my patients, finding patients and meet necessary requirements to pass, as well as try to find an ideal candidate for clinical boards on top of trying to study for this huge (and important) test.
All of us dental hygiene students struggle, but these tips will bring you a sense of calm and clarity. And that is what you’re going to learn today.
Tip #1: Create a study plan that works for you. No one else. I personally felt when I would study with classmates, I couldn’t stay focused for very long. I needed a plan and this is what I did and what worked for me.
Every Sunday, write down everything you need to do for the week. Then organize them from a high to low priority list and tackle the first one that takes the least amount of time and focus. The key is to focus on what is in front of you one at a time. As you move forward on your list, cross them off, take a break and pick the next thing to tackle on your list. If there’s things left over that you weren’t able to get done - it’s okay - but put those on the high priority list for tomorrow.
Next, organize all the things you’ve got coming up this week for each class, for clinic and for any other extra curriculars. Then find open windows of time you have available and devote that to studying for boards, only. Pick one section for each window of time. Decide which material needs more of your attention and create a priority list for that, too! Give yourself at least an hour per study session and make sure you allow time for breaks and then get back to it.
You don’t need to study every single day nor all night long or you won’t be mentally present for your classes and you might fall behind (which is worse than failing your board exam). You can always retake it if you need to, but you don’t want to repeat a whole extra year of courses, I promise you.
Plan for fun days or hours on the weekends - this will help relax your mind from all the stress you’ve got going on, so when you do get back to it, you feel refreshed and ready.
Learn to say ‘no’ and stick to it. Your classmates or friends are a great distraction and if your gut is telling you to stay home and work on things alone, do that. If they’re true friends, they’ll understand and respect your wishes.
Invest in an organized yet efficient planner like this one here! This planner allowed me to focus on my studies one week at a time and helped me feel much more organized than the rest of my class. Things come up and our brains tell us we will remember, but realistically we won’t remember. So having something to jot important things down is a great investment!
Tip #2: Here are some tools that helped me pass with ease.
I highly recommend attending a dental hygiene board review. This was a serious game-changer. You receive a book that has all information you need to study for the exam. It puts everything you learned throughout hygiene school in one confine space. You can also plug in most of the material into Quizlet. If you’re a visual learning, I highly recommend re-writing your notes (especially the classes that are most challenging to you).
A lot of the information you’ve learned throughout your previous semesters sticks with you because you apply it every day in clinic. But the boring info like Pharmacology, Biology and Community might be something that needs more of your undivided attention.
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Here’s the two board review’s I’d recommend as well: Andy RDH and Dental Hygiene Seminars
Not only that, but AndyRDH also has an app for your phone that literally breaks down every topic you’ve ever learned in hygiene school along with actual board exam questions. I would often scroll through the app and take the quizzes/exams while I was at home watching tv when I didn’t feel motivated to whip out the board review book.
Tip #3: Choose a date to take your exam that feels good for you.
Scheduling a date can feel very nerve-racking and you may feel compelled to do what you’re friends are doing, but you might not be nor feel ready OR you feel ready and you’d rather get it over and done with. Both of which are totally normal.
I chose to take mine after school was over, but before our graduation date. It took a little over 2 weeks to hear anything. Which gave me enough room to work and ‘breathe’ without jumping right into dental hygiene.
Tip #4: How to cope with the anxiety of it all
Find a healthy escape and commit to it. For me, this was working out. In all seriousness, it will only serve you well. Our brains have a tendency to feel compelled to do it all without stopping for rest. But eventually, our bodies will give us a rest day at the wrong time. So do yourself a favor and find a healthy outlet to release any built up negative energy or thoughts, any consuming stress and just let it go.
Seek out a therapist. I saw a therapist once a week my last semester of dental hygiene school. It made me feel not so alone and it was a comfort I needed at the time. Our last semester we also had local anesthesia and I was terrified.
Journal your thoughts if you’d rather keep them in a more sacred space. This is one of my favorite journals!
Read some inspiring and uplifting books! I have a ton of favorites listed here
There are a lot of moving parts and expectations for you while you’re in dental hygiene school and the best way to cope with that is to take action. Crying is acceptable, but don’t waste too much of your time doing things that aren’t productive. I actually failed my first clinical board exam, I took one day to ball my eyes on, but the very next day I did whatever I could to make sure I stuck with my plan.
You’re in control of what your future can look like - no one else.
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