Nursing students excel in national licensure exams

Hard work paid off for USF Nursing students.

They received impressive scores in National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNA) Association licensure exams.

Undergraduate students received a 98 percent pass rate in NCLEX during the first and second quarters of 2016 – jumping more than 10 percent from 2014.

USF Nursing students attend NCLEX study sessions in March 2015

Changes in curriculum and rigorous students’ NCLEX preparation activities contributed to the big jump.

USF Nursing, under the leadership of Elizabeth T. Jordan, DNSC, senior assistant dean of undergraduate programs, and Cheryl Zambroski, PhD, director of undergraduate student success, offered engagement activities and exam study sessions to help students prep for NCLEX.

They also integrated NCLEX-style questions into all the courses, and monitored students’ test results to help improve on specific test areas.

“Our success on NCLEX mirrors the kind of graduates we’re preparing for healthcare delivery,” said Dr. Jordan. “The success also reflects our curriculum changes and unique teaching quality we are offering to students while they attend our USF Nursing programs.”

CRNA students also received a 97 percent point average in CRNA national exams – during an overall three-year national certification board pass rate. This past summer, the CRNA students’ first time pass rate was 93 percent, with an overall pass rate of 100 percent.

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