NCLEX-how it works (continued)

Published Nov 1, 2006

5 Posts

Hello friends -

I took the LPN NCLEX September 11. Before taking I read the NCLEX Candidate Bulletin page 15 which explains the grading of the test.

These are the salient general points.

*Both passers and "failures" tend only to get 50% of the questions right.

(that is why we all think we have failed)

If you begin to get more than 1/2 right you will start getting more difficult questions until you have reached your highest level of ability and start missing the questions.

Conversely, if you start to drop below the 50% level you will start getting easier questions (often on the same subject it appears) until they can find your level of ability and you start answering correctly.

Passing or failing therefore depends on the acuity of the questions that you answer and not so much the number of questions you answer correctly.

*After 85 questions they decide (to a 95% degree of certainty) whether or not you would be likely to pass the text if you continued on to 205 questions . If they determine you would pass they cut you off and you have passed. If they are not yet sure they let you go on to more questions.

If you do so badly with your first 85 questions that you would likely not be able to recover they will also cut you off and you have failed. Apparently this is a rare occurence. If you are cut at 85 you probably have passed or so says the Bulletin.

*The deal about falling above or below the standard and failing or passing at that point has to do with those cases where the candidate runs out of time and does not complete the 205 questions. If you want to know more about that I would suggest reading page 15 of the Candidate Bulletin as I think I have taken up enough space.

Sorry to do that, by the way, but this information made a big difference in my freak level when I took the exam.

Yes, by the way, I passed.