I just had to look up the stats for myself, after seeing several (differing) posts from various people stating what the pass rate is for first-time test takers! Can get quite confusing, and it's a topic that is much discussed (and obsessed over!). I found that I am also guilty of posting out of date numbers, as I just checked with the NCSBN website, and found the most recently published statistics. The most recent stats are for Year End 2014.
Of the 157,372 US-educated RN applicants who took the NCLEX for the first time, they passed at a rate of 81.78%. For the 55,489 US-educated PN applicants, it was 82.16%. Broken down by type of program/education, the numbers do vary a smidgen, but overall....."82%" is a reasonable working number for first-time US educated NCLEX candidates.
For US-educated RN applicants who repeated the attempt, it was a less-optimistic number at 46.36% passing. For US-educated PN repeaters, it was only 31.26%
First time applicants for the NCLEX-RN who were NOT US-educated passed at the unfortunate rate of just 28.88%. Interestingly, by contrast, a non-US educated applicant for the NCLEX-PN had a 49.91% chance of passing on the first attempt.
For those foreign-educated RN candidates who failed the first time, subsequent attempts had only a 17.7% chance of passing. A foreign-educated PN candidate who failed the first time had a 16.51% chance of passing.
You may be encouraged or discouraged by these statistics based on your own individual circumstance, but at least now you know what's what :)
I found this post to be very helpful, RNsRWe! I am a new RN who spent some time perusing the NCLEX area of AN before taking my test. Many people would post that there's an "89% chance of passing first time" & downplay the anxiety that comes along with taking NCLEX. These updated stats you shared exhibit that a little anxiety & a lot of preparation can go a long way for test takers. Passing rates are not as high as people think.
But, it should be known on AN that 0% of NCLEX takers should post about PVT. Now THAT is a waste!
Also, I have heard the NCLEX is changing in 2016? I will be interested to see the change in pass rates from 2015 to 2016.
Hi, Independa....the NCLEX undergoes a 'revamp' every three years (the last was 2013, so the next would be 2016). It is made to be more difficult only in minute ways; the logit system will create a very small increase in that difficulty. Nothing that should trip anyone up who is at the level of entry-to-practice.
If one has been prepared by a decent nursing program AND prepared appropriately to take the NCLEX, this minor incremental change won't matter. People do like to say "but MY test was harder!" when they do not pass, but.....minimum competency is going to realistically be the same in 2016 as it was in 2015
Well they can't really "require" that you take an external prep class now can they??? They can recommend it or offer partial compensation but they can't require it... If they want to keep their stats nice and high just educate their students well rather than try and force them to shell out $500 for a prep class...
I found the Qbank ($40) worked just fine...
Our program is now including the Kaplan 4 day as part of the course fees. While it's not "required" per se, you've already paid for it. Might as well do it :)
FWIW, I probably could have passed NCLEX without doing Kaplan. Our school prepared us well. But I did feel that Kaplan prepared us for answering NCLEX questions vs. real world questions.
Sure your institution can require a prep course! They simply make it a component of another required course and hold your final grade (and graduation) until you finish. It's really no different than any other exit competency you have to meet.
And of course, your institution will include the fees for the prep in the course fees.
Yeah, my education in the Philippines was geared towards the NLE exam which is more information memorizing. I am having to learn more about prioritizing and delegation for the NCLEX which I did not learn much about in school. It's okay I will just have to work harder and pray I am in the top 17.7%.
Thank you for this insight. This is actually both revealing and cautionary for US students. We see so many U.S. students who prep for NCLEX by cramming facts, facts, facts --they think they have to memorize and that's enough. We keep telling them here that's not enough- they need to know why, why, why so they can prioritize and delegate, because this is a huge expectation not just of NCLEX but of U.S. nursing practice.
The most common problem new grads mention is time management, which distills down to prioritizing so often. Next is working in groups that include multiple levels of practice, which distills down to knowing your own scope of practice(the nursing process), its responsibilities, and its opportunities. Neither of these essential nursing skills rely on memorization, but require a higher order of understanding.
I definitely agree on the topic of for-profit programs.
I also wonder if the NCLEX pass rate has decreased with the addition of select all that apply questions. I don't have any actual data to support this, but my nursing school instructors were all under the impression that the purpose of adding SATA questions to the NCLEX was to make the exam harder. Those stinking questions certainly made my nursing school exams more difficult.
These go directly to judgment, not memorization, once again, looking at a higher-order skill. Nursing is more complex than it used to be, with sicker people, more diagnostics, and more treatments and interventions. It makes sense that the basic licensure examination should be ramped up, too,
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NurseIndependa
113 Posts
I found this post to be very helpful, RNsRWe! I am a new RN who spent some time perusing the NCLEX area of AN before taking my test. Many people would post that there's an "89% chance of passing first time" & downplay the anxiety that comes along with taking NCLEX. These updated stats you shared exhibit that a little anxiety & a lot of preparation can go a long way for test takers. Passing rates are not as high as people think.
But, it should be known on AN that 0% of NCLEX takers should post about PVT. Now THAT is a waste!
Also, I have heard the NCLEX is changing in 2016? I will be interested to see the change in pass rates from 2015 to 2016.