NCLEX
Encyclopedia
NCLEX is an examination for the licensing of nurses in the United States. There are two types, the NCLEX-RN and the NCLEX-PN.
NCLEX examinations are developed and owned by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. (NCSBN). NCSBN administers these examinations on behalf of its member boards which consist of the boards of nursing in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and four U.S. territories American Samoa
, Guam
, Northern Mariana Islands
and the Virgin Islands
.
To ensure public protection, each board of nursing requires a candidate for licensure to pass the appropriate NCLEX examination, NCLEX-RN for registered nurses and the NCLEX-PN for vocational/practical nurses. NCLEX examinations are designed to test the knowledge, skills and abilities essential to the safe and effective practice of nursing at the entry-level. PLEASE NOTE: The NCLEX is not about memorization but rather one must understand the concept behind critical thinking. As of 2010, the NCLEX is focusing a lot on how to delegate and prioritize as well as infection control.
NCLEX examinations are provided in a computerized adaptive testing (CAT) format and are presently administered by Pearson VUE in their network of Pearson Professional Centers (PPC).
as a Registered Nurse
(RN).
but the exam may include items at all of the cognitive levels; mainly, memorization or recalling, knowledge, analysis and application.
The exam's content is based on client needs:
questions. In recent years, however, the Boards of Nursing have added broader questions that don't involve multiple choice. For example, some questions:
Candidates will also encounter fill in the blank questions. Besides multiple choice, these are what are known as "New Format Questions".
as a Licensed Practical Nurse
(LPN) or Licensed Vocational Nurse
(LVN) by all US state and territorial Boards of Nursing.
but the exam may include items at all of the cognitive levels.
The exam's content is based on client needs:
Question types;
Most of the questions of the NCLEX-PN exam are worded multiple choice questions. In recent years, however, the Boards of Nursing have added broader questions that don't involve multiples choices. For example, some questions:
Require identifying and selecting a particular area of a drawn body part pertaining to the question
Involve selecting multiple correct answers (via check box)
Calculating an answer for a mathematical question (usually for medication dosages) and inputting the answer
Arranging according to order a certain medical or nursing procedure (e.g. how to don sterile gloves or how to do a guaiac test)
You will now also experience fill in the blank questions.
Besides multiple choice, these are what are known as "New Format Questions".
NCLEX examinations are developed and owned by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. (NCSBN). NCSBN administers these examinations on behalf of its member boards which consist of the boards of nursing in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and four U.S. territories American Samoa
American Samoa
American Samoa is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the sovereign state of Samoa...
, Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
, Northern Mariana Islands
Northern Mariana Islands
The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , is a commonwealth in political union with the United States, occupying a strategic region of the western Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines...
and the Virgin Islands
Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands are the western island group of the Leeward Islands, which are the northern part of the Lesser Antilles, which form the border between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean...
.
To ensure public protection, each board of nursing requires a candidate for licensure to pass the appropriate NCLEX examination, NCLEX-RN for registered nurses and the NCLEX-PN for vocational/practical nurses. NCLEX examinations are designed to test the knowledge, skills and abilities essential to the safe and effective practice of nursing at the entry-level. PLEASE NOTE: The NCLEX is not about memorization but rather one must understand the concept behind critical thinking. As of 2010, the NCLEX is focusing a lot on how to delegate and prioritize as well as infection control.
NCLEX examinations are provided in a computerized adaptive testing (CAT) format and are presently administered by Pearson VUE in their network of Pearson Professional Centers (PPC).
NCLEX-RN
NCLEX-RN (National Council Licensure EXamination-Registered Nurse). All Boards of Nursing in states and territories of the United States require candidates to pass this exam for licensureLicensure
Licensure refers to the granting of a license, which gives a "permission to practice." Such licenses are usually issued in order to regulate some activity that is deemed to be dangerous or a threat to the person or the public or which involves a high level of specialized skill...
as a Registered Nurse
Registered nurse
A registered nurse is a nurse who has graduated from a nursing program at a university or college and has passed a national licensing exam. A registered nurse helps individuals, families, and groups to achieve health and prevent disease...
(RN).
Exam content
The majority of test items are written at the application or higher levels of cognitionCognition
In science, cognition refers to mental processes. These processes include attention, remembering, producing and understanding language, solving problems, and making decisions. Cognition is studied in various disciplines such as psychology, philosophy, linguistics, and computer science...
but the exam may include items at all of the cognitive levels; mainly, memorization or recalling, knowledge, analysis and application.
The exam's content is based on client needs:
- Safe Effective Care Environment
- Management of Care
- Safety and Infection ControlInfection controlInfection control is the discipline concerned with preventing nosocomial or healthcare-associated infection, a practical sub-discipline of epidemiology. It is an essential, though often under-recognized and under-supported, part of the infrastructure of health care...
- Health Promotion and Maintenance
- Psychosocial Integrity
- Physiological Integrity
- Basic Care and Comfort
- Pharmacological and Parenteral Therapies
- Reduction of Risk Potential
- Physiological Adaptation
Question types
Most of the questions of the NCLEX-RN exam are worded multiple choiceMultiple choice
Multiple choice is a form of assessment in which respondents are asked to select the best possible answer out of the choices from a list. The multiple choice format is most frequently used in educational testing, in market research, and in elections-- when a person chooses between multiple...
questions. In recent years, however, the Boards of Nursing have added broader questions that don't involve multiple choice. For example, some questions:
- Require identifying and selecting a particular area of a drawn body-part pertaining to the question
- Involve selecting multiple correct answers (via check boxes)
- Calculating an answer for a mathematical question (usually for medication dosages) and inputting the answer
- Arranging according to order a certain medical or nursing procedure (e.g. how to don sterile gloves, or how to do a guaiac test)
Candidates will also encounter fill in the blank questions. Besides multiple choice, these are what are known as "New Format Questions".
NCLEX-PN
NCLEX-PN (National Council Licensure EXamination-Practical Nurse). Passing the exam is required of candidates for licensureLicensure
Licensure refers to the granting of a license, which gives a "permission to practice." Such licenses are usually issued in order to regulate some activity that is deemed to be dangerous or a threat to the person or the public or which involves a high level of specialized skill...
as a Licensed Practical Nurse
Licensed Practical Nurse
Licensed practical nurse is the term used in much of the United States and most Canadian provinces to refer to a nurse who cares for "people who are sick, injured, convalescent, or disabled under the direction of registered nurses and physicians. The term licensed vocational nurses is used in...
(LPN) or Licensed Vocational Nurse
Licensed Practical Nurse
Licensed practical nurse is the term used in much of the United States and most Canadian provinces to refer to a nurse who cares for "people who are sick, injured, convalescent, or disabled under the direction of registered nurses and physicians. The term licensed vocational nurses is used in...
(LVN) by all US state and territorial Boards of Nursing.
Exam content
The majority of test items are written at the application or higher levels of cognitionCognition
In science, cognition refers to mental processes. These processes include attention, remembering, producing and understanding language, solving problems, and making decisions. Cognition is studied in various disciplines such as psychology, philosophy, linguistics, and computer science...
but the exam may include items at all of the cognitive levels.
The exam's content is based on client needs:
- Safe Effective Care Environment
- Coordinated Care
- Safety and Infection ControlInfection controlInfection control is the discipline concerned with preventing nosocomial or healthcare-associated infection, a practical sub-discipline of epidemiology. It is an essential, though often under-recognized and under-supported, part of the infrastructure of health care...
- Health Promotion and Maintenance
- Psychosocial Integrity
- Physiological Integrity
- Basic Care and Comfort
- Pharmacological Therapies
- Reduction of Risk Potential
- Physiological Adaptation
- Psychiatric
Question types;
Most of the questions of the NCLEX-PN exam are worded multiple choice questions. In recent years, however, the Boards of Nursing have added broader questions that don't involve multiples choices. For example, some questions:
Require identifying and selecting a particular area of a drawn body part pertaining to the question
Involve selecting multiple correct answers (via check box)
Calculating an answer for a mathematical question (usually for medication dosages) and inputting the answer
Arranging according to order a certain medical or nursing procedure (e.g. how to don sterile gloves or how to do a guaiac test)
You will now also experience fill in the blank questions.
Besides multiple choice, these are what are known as "New Format Questions".