How to Kick Butt on Select All That Apply Questions

Ah, yes. Everyone's favorite type of question. "Select All That Apply" Questions, also known as SATAs, are a great clue that you're getting close to passing your NCLEX. They are what's referred to as a higher level question. In other words, you won't even see them unless you've answered quite a few questions in a row correctly.

SATAs may have anywhere from five to seven answers. Any answer from one selection to all of them could be correct. (Don't ever leave a SATA blank. After all, that's guaranteed to be the wrong answer.) So where do you begin? The double-thinking and second-guessing is enough to drive someone insane.

Here are some basic principles to help you keep your cool:

1. Read the question and get to the crux of it. Sometimes, they can be long and filled with information you don't need anyway. Sometimes they are! Either way, figure out what the question is really asking.

2. Once you read the question, come up with your own answers. If you've seen this type of question before, you have an idea of what the answers will be. Make a note of the ones that pop into your head before you even read their answers.

3. Beware the opposite game. Sometimes, just to trip you up, they will list answers that are the opposite of the ones you're looking for. If you're not careful, you might not spot the trap.

4. Speaking of opposites, re-read the question again. Are they looking for the positive or the negative answers? Did they ask you to select things that are not true or that are true? This is an important difference.

5. Select your answers and move on. Staring at this thing isn't going to reveal its truths. Pick your answers, and move on. This is one of the most important SATA strategies, because going back and picking something else is much more likely to be wrong than it is right.

Bonus tip: if you're studying and run across a SATA you were totally clueless on, study the information surrounding it. Is it asking for you to list cholecystitis risk factors? Learn them backward and forwards. Does it want to know the proper diet for gout? Get your info straight. There is no better strategy for SATA questions than knowing your information and knowing it well.

Good luck!

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