New NCLEX format for 2007

CandyG18 · Apr 28, 2007

Hey Netty78 I am actually taking a Kaplan live review course and according to them the only difference between the "old" NCLEX exam and the current version is that they have basically made the requirements to pass the NCLEX go from a passing grade of a C+ to now a B. I graduated on April 12 and one of the girls in my class has already taken and passed the "new" version but it also helped that she has been an LPN for the last 20 years! Hope this info helps.

davishomestay · Apr 30, 2007

hi. i am graduating in 2 weeks (yay!) :monkeydance:and i've been using saunders, kaplan, and mosby's to prepare for nclex. i have consistently heard that saunders is a great source to use for nclex, but i have the 2006 edition and i don't think saunders has come out with anything newer. i plan to take the nclex in june. has anyone already taken the new 2007 nclex? if so, can you tell me how it was and what worked for you? thanks so much! looking forward to the light at the end of the tunnel!

hi netty,

i took the board last 25th and thankfully passed the board.

what i noticed about the test was the situation and the question asked was very clear the critical part for me was to pick the best answer out of 4 choices and thats where i have to use m y a-b-c' s-afety skills. most of my questions are about prioritization with lab values involved so remembering those numbers will come handy when you encounter those type of situation. i have a lot of community teaching, i realized that those little things that i didnt focus on when i was reviewing showed up on my test, i got so obsessed with med-surg that i forgot those general information that i needed to know. good luck.

carolinapooh, BSN, RN · Apr 30, 2007

Hey Netty78 I am actually taking a Kaplan live review course and according to them the only difference between the "old" NCLEX exam and the current version is that they have basically made the requirements to pass the NCLEX go from a passing grade of a C+ to now a B. I graduated on April 12 and one of the girls in my class has already taken and passed the "new" version but it also helped that she has been an LPN for the last 20 years! Hope this info helps.

I wasn't aware that NCLEX is graded, per se. Please explain. All I know is it's computer based, with a max of 265 questions and a minimum of 75 to be answered, and that it's like the GRE - you have to consistently answer a percentage of a certain difficulty level of question correctly in order to pass. The computer makes the determination as to whether or not you're doing this as you answer questions. This is from one of our instructors who actually writes questions for the thing.

So is what they're saying is that the required percentage of correct answers has increased? Because there are still people passing with only 75 questions answered.

I'm thinking something's amiss here.

davishomestay · Apr 30, 2007

i wasn't aware that nclex is graded, per se. please explain. all i know is it's computer based, with a max of 265 questions and a minimum of 75 to be answered, and that it's like the gre - you have to consistently answer a percentage of a certain difficulty level of question correctly in order to pass. the computer makes the determination as to whether or not you're doing this as you answer questions. this is from one of our instructors who actually writes questions for the thing.
so is what they're saying is that the required percentage of correct answers has increased? because there are still people passing with only 75 questions answered.
i'm thinking something's amiss here.

hi, i was just reading about the pass/fail rules of nclex at ncsbn website: www.ncsbn.org

[/url]the nclex examination will end when:

a candidate's measure of competence is determined to be above or below the passing standard with at least 95 percent confidence (is significantly above or below the standard) and at least the minimum number of questions has been answered; or
a candidate has taken the maximum number of questions; or
a candidate has been testing for the maximum time.

candidates will pass the nclex examination when:

retrieved from ncsbn website: www.ncsbn.org dated april 30, 2007

john83, BSN, RN · Apr 30, 2007

I wasn't aware that NCLEX is graded, per se. Please explain. All I know is it's computer based, with a max of 265 questions and a minimum of 75 to be answered, and that it's like the GRE - you have to consistently answer a percentage of a certain difficulty level of question correctly in order to pass. The computer makes the determination as to whether or not you're doing this as you answer questions. This is from one of our instructors who actually writes questions for the thing.
So is what they're saying is that the required percentage of correct answers has increased? Because there are still people passing with only 75 questions answered.
I'm thinking something's amiss here.

I think what the person said didn't have to be taken literally; CandyG18 presented a simple analogy using a layman's point of view(so that one wouldn't need technical information to basically understand what happened) to illustrate(in simple terms/in a way that can be easily understood by most) the revised passing standard as stated in the NCSBN site:

https://www.ncsbn.org/1090.htm

carolinapooh, BSN, RN · Apr 30, 2007

I think what the person said didn't have to be taken literally; CandyG18 presented a simple analogy using a layman's point of view(so that one wouldn't need technical information to basically understand what happened) to illustrate(in simple terms/in a way that can be easily understood by most) the revised passing standard as stated in the NCSBN site:
https://www.ncsbn.org/1090.htm

Not trying to sound like I'm being short, but I read all that already - before I posted - and I don't interpret that as a grade. Categorizing it that way can be misleading, and I don't think NCLEX candidates need anything but accurate information, presented in a way as to leave no room for interpretation.

BTW, no need to post twice with the same information.

john83, BSN, RN · May 1, 2007

Not trying to sound like I'm being short, but I read all that already - before I posted - and I don't interpret that as a grade. Categorizing it that way can be misleading, and I don't think NCLEX candidates need anything but accurate information, presented in a way as to leave no room for interpretation.
BTW, no need to post twice with the same information.

Okay.

EricJRN, MSN, RN · May 1, 2007

The percentage that people will be getting correct hasn't changed. Both passers and failers will still get 50% right. (To keep you at 50%, the computer makes the questions harder or easier.) This hasn't changed.

The ability estimate (the difficulty level where you're hitting that 50% mark) is what determines pass/fail. The ability estimate required to pass the NCLEX has increased a little bit.