Bruin Brief 2021-10-29: NCLEX pass rates
- Paul Macey
NCLEX pass rates
This week the Bruin Brief is written by a guest editor, Brenda Yeung, Policy Analyst in Academic Affairs
Every pre-licensure nursing student that comes through our doors with one foremost goal: to become a licensed registered nurse. As their teachers, we share that goal. We prepare students with mastery of nursing knowledge, skills, critical thinking, and clinical judgement to ensure safe and effective practice in a technologically sophisticated, multi-cultural world. Then students must pass the NCLEX licensing exam to become professional registered nurses.
Let’s look at the NCLEX pass rates of BS and MECN students over the last 5 years.
The BS and MECN students’ NCLEX pass rates exceed the BRN Expected Outcome of 75% pass rate for first-time test takers. We believe students graduating from the #1 Public University in the U.S. can meet and exceed this standard.
How the BRN calculates pass rates.
The BRN captures cohort data. One assumption used in BRN-reported data is that graduating students, as first-time takers, will sit for the exam sometime between July 1 of their graduating year and June 30 of the following year. For example, the latest 2021 data reports on students who took the NCLEX between July 1, 2020 and June 30, 2021. These students graduated in June 2020.
What caused the dip in pass rates for the 2020 graduates as reported in the 2021 data?
That’s a great question. We welcome the opportunity to listen as you share thoughts about the NCLEX pass/fail pattern during the Pre-licensure Program Meeting on November 1, 2021 from 12-1:30 pm.
Why is the SON Expected Pass Rate set at 85%?
According to the Board of Registered Nursing (BRN), “the program must achieve at least a 75% annual pass rate of first-time takers on NCLEX-RN for the last two years.” Via a faculty ballot, SON faculty decided that Bruin nurses should excel and perform above and beyond the BRN threshold of 75%. Furthermore, we intend to be proactive! The 85% pass rate serves as an early alert so we can analyze contributing factors and develop a proactive plan for improvement.
Where are NCLEX data reports found?
All NCLEX pass rates are publicly available for anyone to view @ https://www.rn.ca.gov/education/passrates.shtml I actually direct family and friends to this site when they ask me which nursing schools are the best. I equate NCLEX pass rates to yelp/google/amazon reviews in terms of students thinking “Am I going to get what I pay for?” or “What are the odds of passing the NCLEX and launching a professional nursing career as a graduate of that program?” That’s the standard the public is considering when they review our NCLEX pass rates.
Why does this matter?
Our NCLEX pass rates are a key outcome measure of how well we as a school are performing in educating future nurses. It may not matter how great other aspects of our program are if we are failing to educate safe, competent, and compassionate registered nurses licensed to practice in the profession. On a more practical level, until students pass the NCLEX, they are unable to begin working to recoup their educational investment.
In customary Bruin fashion I shall end with…GOOOOOOOOO BRUINS, FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT!!!!!!
Brenda Yeung MSN, OCN, CMSRN, CBCN
Project Policy Analyst
Office of Academic Affairs
UCLA School of Nursing