Correlation Between High GPA & NCLEX Pass Rate/Nursing Care?

Valasca · Jul 25, 2009

I really don't know if there have been studies done on GPA and NCLEX pass rates....I would doubt it. I think competition is what is driving the higher admission GPA's. When nursing schools are getting in excess of 150 applications for 50 or so slots they can pick the best and the brightest applicants. I really think this is the plain and simple answer to your question. However, I would like to add that as a current nursing student I can honestly say that my pre-req's were much easier and much less stressful than nursing school (for many different reasons). So while there probably isn't any correlation between GPA and NCLEX pass rates I feel certain that there is a very strong correlation between GPA and success in nursing school. Chances are pretty good that if you struggled in your pre-reqs you will most assuredly struggle in nursing school. Hope that answers your question.

HeartsOpenWide, RN · Jul 25, 2009

The only thing I can think of is many seat retention. I got into a school that selects students by merit; GPA is only one factor. Everyone that I started my program with I graduated with; minus one girl that moved, one that got pregnant and another that changed majors I graduated with every single person that was with my on my first day of class.

My friend got into a program that used a lotto system. People with 2.5 (lowest allowed) had just as much chance of getting in as those with 4.0 GPAs. They had four people fail their first semester, seats that can not be replaced, so the school looses money; and in some ways, a seat is wasted.

So far there has only been one person in my class not to pass the NCLEX, and only 1 or 2 left to test; we are sure to be in the high 90's for our pass rate this year.

JulesRN10 · Jul 25, 2009

my local cc recently dropped the competition...that is, now, as long as you meet the requirements of the program, its first come, first serve. it was highly competitive and the wait list was 2-3 years long. they had groups of students with very high gpa's but they also had a very low nclex pass rate--down in the 70's and 80's for a few years and were in jeopardy of losing their accreditation. so, revamped program, added a program to the spring semester, and are now graduating something like 50 per semester instead of 35....seems to be working out better than it was before. last year's pass rate was higher than the year prior. they went to the new way because they said they were losing a lot of solid students in the program because of a lack of gpa and there were no studies proving that a 4.0 nurse was any better than a 3.0 or even a 2.5 nurse. now they feel that they have a much more rounded group of people and it's much easier to get into the program. when the slots for this semester fill up, they start filling the next one up. they only take applications for 1 semester out, so they aren't filling up programs that won't start for years either. works out great for everyone in the end.

mom35 · Jul 25, 2009

the ns i am about to begin does go by gpa. we were told by a professor that the state only allows a certain ratio of student to teacher and they would love to allow more students, but do not have enough professors to teach them. so they have to come up with some way to chose the students and therefore they go mostly by gpa and hesi too. if they could get more faculty, more resources i think so many more students would be admitted into the program. i think also that they figure that if you do well in the pre-requ's you are probably someone that is committed to putting in the amount of study time and hard work that is required by nursing school. that is not to say that there are probably students that maybe didnt do as well in pre-requ's and maybe would excel in nursing school. maybe the bottom line is they need to pay professors in nursing more money so that they could offer more seats to students and meet the demand for nursing school:heartbeat:nurse::heartbeat

3gheel · Jul 25, 2009

In general, those with good grades in my nursing school also tended to do well on NCLEX. I'm sure there were exceptions, but most with higher GPAs tended to pass. Most of those people also came into the program with high GPAs.

In the end, though, I'm not sure there is as strong a correlation with high GPA and actual bedside nursing success. So much goes into good nursing than can't necessarily be accounted for by grades.

student005 · Jul 26, 2009

Yes, there have been several studies done to determine the correlation between GPA and NCLEX pass rates. The quote below is from: http://www.nursingcenter.com/library/JournalArticle.asp?Article_ID=818345

Academic performance in prenursing courses and on standardized tests has been investigated to determine if NCLEX-RN failure can be predicted by these scores. Grade point average (GPA) has been identified as a predictor of NCLEX-RN failure wherein students who do not pass NCLEX-RN on the first attempt exhibit lower GPAs as compared to those who do pass NCLEX-RN.2,4,8,9 Moreover, students who passed NCLEX-RN had significantly higher science GPAs, Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), or American College Test Assessment (ACT) scores as compared to students who failed NCLEX, who had significantly lower scores.2,4,6,9 In contrast, another study reported no difference in SAT scores of those who passed as compared to those who failed the NCLEX-RN.3 7,10 Finally, prenursing standardized examinations, such as Nurse Entrance Test (NET) or Arnett Pre-RN Readiness Examination, have been found to predict NCLEX-RN failures.

The findings above make complete sense. Prerequisite classes are the foundation for gaining nursing knowledge. If you don't fully learn and understand the anatomy and physiology of the human body, how will you ever understand a disease process? If pharmacology didn't make a bit of sense to you, how can you possibly provide safe, competent patient care? Your pre-req GPA is based on your performance on knowledge-based assignments and exams. If you have a low GPA, the logical conclusion is that you did not have a solid knowledge-base in the given subject. I know there are some people may have a rock-solid knowledge base, but just aren't good test takers due to anxiety, etc. Well, you're still in trouble because you have to take tests in nursing school and you have to test to pass the boards.

:redbeathe

shoegalRN, RN · Jul 26, 2009

I don't know. It could be some truth to this study. I entered nursing school with a 3.3 in the pre-reqs. Graduated with a 3.1 (BSN) and passed NCLEX with 75 questions on the first try.

yesdog, BSN, RN · Jul 26, 2009

If you were in the hospital...

Would you want a nurse that learned 70% of the material or learned 90% of what is needed to give you proper and safe care.

Just a thought.

SierraMoon, ADN, BSN, RN · Jul 26, 2009

There has to be a cut-off somewhere, there's just not enough seats.

SnowRain7489 · Jul 28, 2009

I had a Nursing student tutor (he was a senior) who worked at the school. He helped me w/ math for meds 'n must have spent 15-20 minutes w/ me & I got it RIGHT AWAY that I ended up passing my math for meds exam w/ 100% the first time. He ended up not passing the boards on his first try. Oh and by the way, the school doesn't hire just ANY student they have high expectations for tutors to be able to apply.

peachiegirl · Dec 16, 2009

Newflash!!!! Did you see the news today. NCLEX pass rates have increased for RN's. starting this April 2010. The pass rates have been producing so/so nurses and education standards needed to be increased. There have been studies done that show that higher HS GPA's do better in school, and many times better on NCLEX. It doesn't have anything to do with higher GPA in nursing school because some people are just poor test takers. And doesnt mean they will be better nurses. Dont get that confused. You might blow the NCLEX out of the water, but couldn't find the patients ear for the life of you. Be proud you passed. Enjoy it.