Nursing students achieve 100% pass rate

February 4, 2010 by Leslie Ventura 

Solidifying the UNLV Nursing School’s reputation in the Las Vegas community, 100 percent of UNLV’s nursing students passed the National Certification Licensure Examination during the fourth quarter of 2009.

Though graduates are entering a competitive hiring process, nursing program faculty are confident that students will be successful in their search for a career with a degree from the UNLV nursing school.

“The licensure exam is an important way to evaluate how effectively we’re preparing our students to enter the nursing workforce,” said Carolyn Yucha, dean of UNLV’s School of Nursing.

“We’re pleased that a record number of our students are graduating at a high level and are ready to meet the evolving healthcare needs of Nevadans.”

The pass rate also marks an increase in student success since the rate of 84.7 in 2008 and is seven percent higher than the national average.

The student success rate is a testament to the program’s efficiency and rigor, said BSN undergraduate coordinator Nancy York, which prepares graduates for entry-level practice when starting out in the nursing industry.

“I think our reputation [is] that when our students graduate, they’re well prepared,” York said, “We have an excellent reputation in the community… but this can only help.”

While the faculty plays an important role in the program by guiding students through their studies, a lot is expected of the nursing students.

The UNLV School of Nursing Web site describes students as being “grounded in professional values, ethical behaviors and concepts of patient-centered care.”

For students who are interested in comparing school statistics, the Nevada State Board of Nursing Web site posts licensure exam results from all universities in Nevada.

Applicants can see how schools are ranked on the Web site, York said, and use these statistics to decide which school is best for them.

“If you’re a smart consumer and looking at the best programs, you would definitely want to know [these figures],” he said.

York hopes the nursing program will see an even greater spike in applicants due to the success of last year’s students.

During the entire 2009 year, the school of nursing averaged a 90.6 percent pass rate on the licensure exam, with only 7 failures from first-time test-takers all year.

Though the school is doing well, York said the program is in the midst of changing the curriculum for next year, which will have an even greater focus on their number one concern: patient care and safety.

The current curriculum also stresses the importance of preparing students to become leaders in the health care industry.

The BSN overview explains, “In order to prepare competent nurse leaders, faculty embrace behaviors such as role modeling and mentoring to develop an environment of learning that respects diversity, life experience, and individual attributes and abilities.”

As the final step in the BSN program, the exam tests what students have learned and assesses necessary knowledge for entry-level nurses.

“Nurses are considered the most sacred profession [in hospitals],” York said, “I think patients will certainly know when they have a UNLV graduate. We’re obviously very proud of all of our graduates.”