Failed NCLEX 5 Times! Am I The Only One Who . . .

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Am I the only one who is concerned about someone who has failed multiple times, finally passes and then wants to share their experience with everyone else? Am I the only one who is concerned about working with nurses who finally pass on their eighth try? Granted, I'm so experienced that I took my licensing exam on paper eons ago when it was offered only twice a year, everyone answered all the questions over a two day period and it took six weeks to get the results. In those days, you only got two tries. That was it. So I could be someone biased and/or out of touch. I just wonder, though, about the knowledge base and learning capacity of a nurse that took the exam eight times to pass. Although perserverence is a virtue, and those folks obviously have plenty of that. Is nursing so different now that it's OK to take eight tries to get your license? Or is this a development of the "everyone gets a trophy" mentality? Keep trying and everyone gets a license?

Specializes in OB (with a history of cardiac).

I wouldn't have been able to handle the suspense of taking NCLEX on paper. I have a friend that took it 3 times and finally passed and she's a fine nurse. I think what bothers me is that the school in my state that is supposedly known for it's superior nursing program (BSN, none the less!) has the lowest NCLEX pass rate in the whole state, and has for the last 7 years. This school is also one of the priciest in the state too. I find it disturbing that you graduate with $70,000 debt, and then you fork over $500.00 (?) for the NCLEX, only to fail, and then have to spend more money to take it again...and then hear your Alma Mater tooting their horn about how great they are.

In hindsight though I think there needs to be a line- 5 times? Really? There's got to be something going on... some sort of major detour between point A and point Q. I agree with the post that said that being caring and kind isn't enough- it is important, yes, but I guess to put it bluntly, anyone can hold someone's hand. A kind mother can hold her child's hand and kiss a boo boo, a child can come and provide hygiene for their elderly parent- is this the common picture, no of course not but I've read so much about how healthcare systems put a lot of stock in how educated their nurses are (for example, systems that will not hire ADN's anymore and will only go for BSN or MSN, or the dreaded 1 year of experience required). It's sad but true. I can't believe how jaded I've become since I graduated from school, downright cynical. I do my best to take care of patients, I'm not cold or anything like that (unless they're like the guy I had last night who must have just been the type of person who liked to be mean and violent for kicks) but I know that "nursing is my passion, my dream, my calling" means nothing, nada, zip, to the person evaluating my performance.

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So....some may be good test takers...others good reality learners.......maybe the 8 time test taker has dyslexia or is misenterpeting the confusing nature of the questions......

This is not a shot across your bow but, I cannot let that one go. If someone is dyslexic or gets confused by the NCLEX questions I'm not at all sure I trust them to be figuring the drip rate on an IV med.

Also, I agree with others who have posted that the entry standards for the profession are just too dang lax. This, I believe, is the primary reason for the sorry state of nursing we find ourselves in.

Hospitals, et al., can take advantage of the situation. Too many patients per nurse? No problem. Too much computer time? No problem. Can't make time for your break? No problem. Too many "customer service" rules? No problem. Just quit. There're thousands more like you willing to step into your job at a moment's notice.

We have turned out so many nurses lately(and I'm one of them) that the whole "profession" has been watered down and the suits who run things know this and, I believe, are content to take advantage. There are tens of thousands of darn fine nurses out there. But, with the overwhelming numbers in the field today, any power or stature they have is lost in the confusion of those numbers. And, until we can get a handle on those numbers and the entry level competency of members, we shall continue to be a second tier medical (yes, I said it, the dreaded "medical" word) profession. We have become interchangeable and disposable.

They say that there is strength in numbers. I think the nursing profession may be the exception that proves the rule.

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Specializes in Telemetry, OB, NICU.

I don't understand that "I know many who are great test takers but bad nurses, and who failed NCLEX x many times and great nurses" thing. I have also read a lot of posts by failing people who claim "but I am great with patient care!" Great nurse as what, for who?

Just because someone gets along perfectly with the patient and are liked by them doesn't make the nurse a "great nurse" as long as this nurse is lacking knowledge. It's too shallow to think like that, I think. It's really not hard to get along and get liked by the patients. It's not hard to satisfy most people.

Whatever, It just bothers me when people talk like failing or passing boards has nothing to do with one's nursing ability. It does.

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Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.

I think of it as a measure of things you'll be doing after you get a job. If it takes you 8 tries to succeed at the NCLEX - well you don't get 8 bites at the apple (essentially an unlimited amount of time as it's set up now) to learn new things when you're taking care of real patients and nursing is one profession where you cannot hang your framed degree on the wall and say "phew I'm sure glad that's over with!"

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Academics.
Whatever, It just bothers me when people talk like failing or passing boards has nothing to do with one's nursing ability. It does.

I think failing boards repeatedly speaks to a lack of nursing ability; however, I don't believe that passing boards indicates having nursing ability, kwim? There is a wide variance of competence, even among experienced nurses.

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Specializes in Gerontology.

To those that think its OK for someone to have multiple attempts at passing the NCLEX, CRNE or anyother licensing exam.

Would let a surgeon operate on you that took multiple attempts to pass his boards?

Would you let a dentist work on your teeth if you knew he had to try 5 times to pass his exams?

Would you let a bus driver take your kids to school if he failed his exam 5 times?

To me its all the same. If you can't pass after 2 attempts, you need re-education before you try again.

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Would let a surgeon operate on you that took multiple attempts to pass his boards?

Would you let a dentist work on your teeth if you knew he had to try 5 times to pass his exams?

Would you let a bus driver take your kids to school if he failed his exam 5 times?

that's just it - unless someone complains about flunking their exam 19 times, we have no way of knowing.

has any of you ever bothered to ask your dr, dentist, lawyer, accountant...how many times they took their boards?

has anyone asked their nurse, if a pt in a hospital?

probably not.

so let's face it, it is not easily attained info...so we'll really never know.

leslie

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Specializes in Ortho Med\Surg.
that's just it - unless someone complains about flunking their exam 19 times, we have no way of knowing.

has any of you ever bothered to ask your dr, dentist, lawyer, accountant...how many times they took their boards?

has anyone asked their nurse, if a pt in a hospital?

probably not.

so let's face it, it is not easily attained info...so we'll really never know.

leslie

And even if you DID ask, what is to prevent them from lying and saying they passed the first time to avoid embarrassment/humiliation? There is no way to confirm it, the BON simply lists your license # and any actions taken against that license, not grades from nursing school or how many times you took boards or what your score was....

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The regulators know how many times a national exam was attempted before passing. The regulators also know based on complaints, if a nurse is competent to practice. Therefore, the regulators are the ones who would know whether or not there is a correlation between number of exam attempts and a nurse's competence to practice, anything else is speculation.

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I do know that you can look up pass rates for your college.

I don't think there is anybody regulating to the point of doing anything about much. It would cost money to do a study of pass attempts/success as a practicing nurse and that would be pretty hard to do. Seriously who would you give that job to? Usually the ones who are right now in positions that judge others in nursing are often fools.

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Therefore, the regulators are the ones who would know whether or not there is a correlation between number of exam attempts and a nurse's competence to practice, anything else is speculation.

and still, do they/regulators involve themselves with those nurses who had to take the nclex sev'l times?

do these regulators contact the applicable bon to give them a heads up?

i vote no.:)

i have had the *cough* 'pleasure' of working with nurses who have left me shaking my head.

can't say i ever wondered if they passed nclex first time...since i've known nurses who have and still suck...imo.

considering there is an art and science to nursing (each equally as vital), this would create a larger pool of nurses who may excel in one part, but not the other...and vice versa.

still, i have always maintained...and always will, that i want no one but the cream of the crop when it comes to nursing.

we as a whole, struggle with crediblity, respect, and image.

not only do we disagree with minimum entry standards, we also seem to disagree with the quality of nurses we set free from school.

people/nurses make it about themselves, their egos...

and we need to see beyond that.

i do think we'd all agree, that we would want no one but the best, in caring for our loved ones.

conversely, we would be the first to complain if our loved ones received mediocre care.

i took a pre-entrance test to nursing, when i was 17.

i flunked one test out of 7 tests.

i never went back, figuring i wasn't good enough...

until 18 yrs later, when hubby kicked my in my hiney to get going.

point being, even at 17, i didn't compete, figuring i'd leave nursing to only the best.

because that's what pts deserve.

nothing more, nothing less.

leslie

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Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.

I am in the group that thinks there should be a limit to the number of times you can take the NCLEX. I can understand that a "good nurse" might fail it the first time. But there should be a limit. That nurse who fails should address his/her problems and solve them so that he/she can pass. The person who can't do that in a reasonable amount of time should not be given the responsibilities that come with an RN license.

Perhaps each license should also state how many times the person had to take the test to pass it -- so that employers would have that information as they make hiring decisions.

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