The success rate exceeds state and national averages at a time of unprecedented nursing workforce need.
Graduating students in the nursing program at The University of New Mexico-Taos achieved a 100% pass rate on the National Council Licensure Exam (NCLEX) for the fifth year in a row, surpassing both the national 82% average pass rate and 83% New Mexico state average pass rate.
The NCLEX is a nationwide standardized examination that nursing school graduates must pass to become either an RN or licensed practical nurse (LPN) and enter the workforce.
This marks a major achievement as nursing programs around the country have been seeing declining pass rates over the past two years during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Data from the National Council of State Boards of Nursing show the national average first-time NCLEX pass rate was 82.48% for RN candidates and 79.6% for PN candidates in 2021, down from 83.51% and 85.3% in 2019, respectively.
“Every day, our outstanding nurse educators, exellent instruction, and high-quality, diverse clinical experiences help empower our hardworking students to perform at the highest level," says Dawn Kittner, MSN, RN, CNE, director of nursing. “With America facing a historic nursing shortage on top of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is more important than ever for UNM-Taos to invest in the next generation of nursing talent.”
UNM-Taos serves a rural and largely Hispanic community, and many of its nursing students go on to serve the local community following graduation as practice-ready nurses.
After implementing a concept-based curriculum in 2016 and offering a low nursing student-to-faculty ratio, UNM-Taos increased its program retention rate to 70%—higher than the state average.
Outside of the classroom, students gain clinical experience in local hospitals and healthcare systems, school districts, family clinics, the Department of Health, and behavioral health centers.
Such success at UNM-Taos is notable particularly because the United States’ nursing shortage is partly attributed to a nurse education crisis.
With declining enrollment rates, a serious shortage that has left 7% of nurse faculty positions vacant, limited program capacity that forced nursing schools to turn away nearly 92,000 qualified applicants from baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs last year, and high attrition among nursing students and new graduates, numerous challenges are preventing students from staying and graduating nursing school.
UNM-Taos was able to overcome these challenges with innovative technological education support tools, a dedicated and skilled faculty, and a concept-based curriculum, according to the university.
Carol Davis is the Nursing Editor at HealthLeaders, an HCPro brand.