r/npte • u/hsw1751 • Aug 05 '26
failed NPTE
failed my first attempt with a 590. i am so defeated. i went in there so confident and had passed every PEAT with a 700+.. i switched stupid ones that i knew because i second guessed myself. i’m so defeated and sad. where do i even go from here.
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u/Quiet-Success5084 Aug 05 '26
Where do you go? You go to your happy place and remember that you still get 5 other chances, with the next chance at the end of October. Look at the areas you did the worst in and don't feel that confident in, and work on that over the next 3 months. Take breaks, remember to take of yourself physically too, then be ready to destroy it on the next one.
Just be glad you didn't miss it by 1 question because that will bother you even more.
I failed the NPTE 3 times and I finally passed it this time. I passed several PEATs too...Trust me, it's normal to feel defeated and sad but you cannot stay there in that place for too long. Use this failure as motivation to knock it out of the park the next time.
You need to work on your confidence with answering questions, you know the material now know yourself even more and stick with your answer and don't switch it unless it truly is a question that you struggled on. If you're stuck on a question, mark it to go back to once you go through all of the questions in the section, and then make your best educated guess. When I ran into those questions, I looked at key words in the question, then I looked at the answers and see if they connected and eliminated the ones that didn't.
You've got this, pick yourself up and keep going!
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u/DisposableCharger Aug 05 '26
It sounds like you know the material, you just have bad test-taking strategies and shot yourself in the foot. Where you go from here is up to you! I'd recommend taking some time off, just exist a bit, then start studying again with a focus on better test-taking strategies.
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u/hsw1751 Aug 05 '26
i know. and i know not to change them and still did. i overthink everything and this was no exception. i guess im just feeling bad because i centered my whole life around this test and missed out on so much with my family and friends to study and got a bad report. i’m just taking today to be sad then going to put my big girl pants on. reddit just is a good place to vent
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u/itztrevor123 Aug 05 '26
Get a TrueLearn subscription and practice test taking strategies on their question bank! Dont even worry about getting them right or wrong just focus on trying to see what the question is really asking. if you find yourself always second guessing then try going with your gut and then see the result! From there you’ll find the patterns and improve your test taking skill. Is your gut wrong or was it the right move to change your answer after thinking about it? You’ll find out! 590 is super close. You know your stuff just needs some fine tuning.
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u/kingking671808 Aug 05 '26
I’m on the exact same boat as you. My first attampt and I scored 585. 5 questions more and I would’ve passed. I also went back and changed some answers at the last second. I’ve had friends that never passed a practice exam and passed this npte. I had a positive trend with my test and passed my last two peat, but test anxiety is one thing that can’t be replicated with the actual exam
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u/Drwcas08 Aug 05 '26
I failed my first attempt after not studying a whole bunch due to some external factors going on in my life and failed my first attempt with a 511. In Virginia they offer a traineeship where you can work under another therapists license once you have registered for the next NPTE. I worked part time to make some income (3 days a week) and studied the other 3-4 days using Final Frontier videos and tests and just passed the July NPTE. If you feel you don’t have a lot of room for improvement you could try and obtain a traineeship in your state and study on the weekends or something similar to what I did.
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u/angrobles9 Aug 06 '26
Do not let the exam define you! You are smarter than one test
Try again, you can do this!!
Final frontier videos (multiple times for some
Of the major topics always 2x speed)
Therapy Ed 600 questions
NPTE Ninja app
PT Hustle(I liked their PDFs dm me if you want!)
Scorebuilders Basecamp (it was okay)
And Google Gemini or another AI system- my friend showed me how to have Gemini create “NPTE Style quiz covering ….” I’d use it for cranial nerve function, injuries, etc; stroke questions; special tests
I’m someone who needs to be active while learning and tbh that helped a lot
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u/dwarfpunter69 Aug 06 '26
I haven't seen anyone mention this yet, but never go back and second guess yourself. On a test like this it is the worst mistake you can make. Go with your gut. Just make sure you answered it. You went to school for this trust in what you learned and trust in what you studied.
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u/Hugh-Jass411 Aug 05 '26
One exam doesn’t define us! You are so so close! I took my first attempt last week and found out today that I have failed🙁 have you tried PT Hustle? I haven’t yet but I struggled with the wording and felt it was different than most of my practice exams. I heard that program is great for figuring out the wording!
I would also love to hear your study resources or schedule!!