Put simply, the NCLEX stands for National Council Licensure Examination. The NCLEX is a nationwide exam taken by nursing students for receiving a license to practice nursing. The NCLEX can be taken in the US as well as in Canada and is created and owned by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc.
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What else does the NCLEX stand for?
When a nurse graduates nursing school, the graduate must apply for a nursing license from his or her state board of nursing. The board will then decide if you meet the criteria to take the NCLEX and allows for registration. Once the prospective nurse takes and passes the NCLEX administered by the NCSBN, he or she is officially granted permission to practice nursing in the state where he or she has met the credentials. Once passing the NCLEX, the student will officially be an RN or a PN, depending on whether the NCLEX-RN or the NCLEX-PN was taken.
By taking and passing this examination, the NCLEX stands for ensured public safety, as each nurse practicing as a Registered Nurse or as a Practical Nurse must pass this exam and show that they have the capacity and skills to provide safe and effective entry-level nursing.
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The NCLEX stands for a quality assurance that the nurses who are granted RN or PN status have met all the requirements by the state board of nursing as well as have the understanding of proper safety, maintenance, as well as fundamentals of psychosocial and physiological integrity necessary to perform nursing duties.
How the NCLEX Works
This exam is administered using an interactive computer system called Computerized Adaptive Testing (CAT) that asks a minimum or 75 to 85 questions to grade the level of competence the test-taker has for the future role as a nurse. This test is pass-fail, which means that the NCLEX stands for a black-and-white picture of whether a test-taker has the competence necessary to become an entry-level nurse. Read on to see how many times you can take the NCLEX.
There is no ambiguity involved in taking or passing the NCLEX, as the computer grades the first test and there is a clear decision as to whether you are competent or not. The NCLEX stands for a fair and just way to measure a future nurse’s ability by taking out any bias or human error and replacing it with a process-driven and effective means to measure performance and ability.
The Next Steps
Hopefully after reading this, you have a better understanding of what the NCLEX stands for and how it effectively ensures that the nurses on the floor are deemed competent and capable to perform the duties called upon them. If you are planning on taking the NCLEX soon, feel free to check out more of our NCLEX-related resources and guides!
