Pamela Randolph RN, MS, CPNP

NCLEX-RN® Passing Standard Raised
The National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. (NCSBN) voted at its December 2-4, 2003 meeting to raise the passing standard for the RN licensure exam. The new pass­ing standard is -0.2800 logits on the NCLEX-RN logistic scale, 0.070 logits higher than the current standard of -.3500 logits. Logits are units of measurements to identify item difficulties and candidate abilities-on a single measurement scale. As with the current NCLEX standard, all candidates are scored on the difficulty level of items that they can correctly answer approximately 50% of the time. For each candidate the exam is complete when a reliable ability level is established and the test plan is covered. The candidate can achieve this standard in as few as 75 items or as many as 265 items.. The ability level of the candidate is compared to the passing standard. Candidates above the passing standard pass the exam while those below the passing standard fail the exam.
NCSBN uses all information available to establish a minimum standard for the entry level RN. While the nursing shortage is a concern, the first concern of NCSBN is public safety. NCSBN stated that the reasons for the increase in the passing standard include the increased acuity of clients seen by entry level RNs, the results of a national survey of nurs­ing professionals, and the recommendation of an expert panel of nine nurses that con­vened to perform a criterion-referenced standard setting procedure.
Casey Marks, Director of Testing for NCSBN, has estimated that pass rates nationally for first-time U.S. educated test takers will decrease from 86.7% to approximately 84% with this increase in the passing standard. This is consistent with the decreases seen when the standard had been raised in the past. NCSBN evaluates the passing standard for NCLEX every three years. The last time the standard was raised was 1998. The passing standard was not raised when it was reviewed in 2001.
The new passing standard will take effect on April 1, 2004, in conjunction with the new RN test plan. The 2004 RN test plan and additional information on the passing standard is available on the NCSBN Web site: http://www.ncsbn.org.

NCLEX May be Retaken More Often                                                                     
National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. (NCSBN) has announced that there are sufficient items in the NCLEX item pools to allow retakes of NCLEX-RN and PN exams every 45 days. The previous retake policy allowed candidates to retake NCLEX after a 90-day interval. Boards of Nursing have the choice now of allowing applicants from 90 to 45 days between NCLEX administrations. The Arizona State Board of Nursing, along with 52 other Boards of Nursing, informed NCSBN that failing candidates are allowed to retake NCLEX in 45 days. Nine Boards of Nursing will retain the 90-day interval. The new policy took effect on January 1, 2004.