With the expansion of the university level Bachelor of Science in nursing program into standalone Ontario colleges, the nursing profession has never been more in demand than it is now. With more and more individuals having the resources to become nursing students, more and more people begun to scratch their heads wondering, what the heck is this new NCLEX exam?
What the heck is an NCLEX?
The national council licensure exam or NCLEX for short is a licensing exam that all registered nurses must take to practice in Ontario. (This is different from the licensing exams registered practical nurses, or RPN’s must take, which is the REx-PN exam). In the past, new grad nurses would take the NCLEX exam, a standardized cumulative exam of everything learned in the BScN/BSN/BN program. According to some friends of mine who are now registered nurses, the NCLEX ranged anywhere from 75 to 145 questions. To pass this exam, a myriad of calculations is used to assess how you answered the questions. For more information, please see references on the bottom.
How is this new “NCLEX” any different?
As described by the College of Nurses of Ontario, an enhanced NCLEX exam, to be called “Next Generation NCLEX” or NGN for short, will replace the current NCLEX exam. The new exam aims to better measure nursing candidate’s clinical judgment and decision-making abilities, since in more recent years nurses have been required to make more complex decisions while caring for patients. So, in short, there will be more adaptive “What would you do in this scenario” type questions on the exam.
How can I prepare for the NGN exam?
Resources such as practice exams, further explanations on what the nature of the NGN is, and q&a’s can be found on the CNO website.
In Conclusion….
The new NCLEX exam, or the new generation NCLEX (NGN) exam is geared to ask more questions which focus on clinical judgment than the previous NCLEX exam. Taking the NCLEX is the ultimate academic challenge of the BScN program and changes are always on the horizon, but to all the nursing students and new grads, good luck and I hope you do amazing on the new NCLEX exam!
- Marcus Tamir
References/Resources for the new NCLEX exam, including practice
https://www.cno.org/en/become-a-nurse/entry-to-practice-examinations/nclex-rn/next-generation-nclex/
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