Nursing Schools NCLEX Pass Rate

[helpingRNstudents]

I just have to say that it really upsets me to see how many potentially great nurses are thrown out of various programs because they were unable to pass an exit exam that was given within 1 to 2 days of their final. I know that nursing school has to be brutal because we need to weed out the weak and incompetent from the strong and competent. However, I truly believe that some of these schools are not giving students a fair and reasonable amount of instruction and time to study and learn. In my opinion, many of the nursing programs out there have become lazy. What I mean by that is that they merely create (or borrow) a series of powerpoints that students are directed to go to for them to study and learn the material on their own. Obviously, if it were that easy to learn on your own, students wouldn't be having trouble passing the NCLEX, ATI, HESI, etc... Nursing schools need to focus more on teaching the material so that students can pass rather than making sure that their precious pass rate stays high.

[Nurse SMS, MSN, RN]

The better schools do their vetting process at the beginning with a competitive program and stringent admission requirements.

[HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD]

Schools must maintain their NCLEX pass rates in order to keep their accreditation.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

I attended a nursing program with very laid-back admissions requirements and somewhat relaxed exit exam requirements. This school is now in trouble with the state board of nursing for low first-time NCLEX pass rates because they had been sending lower caliber and unprepared students to the testing center where, almost inevitably, they were failing state boards.

The exit exam is there for a purpose. Nursing programs will lose their accreditation if too many of their graduates fail NCLEX for too many years in a row. In addition, entrance standards are put in place for a purpose because schools need to avoid admitting too many lower caliber students.