What Is the NCLEX-RN®?

00:01 Hi, I'm Professor Lawes and I just want to say welcome to you.

00:05 I know this is a really stressful time when you're getting ready for your NCLEX.

00:09 And that's why we're here for you.

00:11 We're going to explain some things to you about how the exam works, where it comes from, and give you some success strategies because we want you to take that test one time and get on with the rest of your life.

00:24 So let's start with who creates this whole atmosphere for you.

00:28 It's the National Council of the State Boards of Nursing NCSBN.

00:34 Now, who are these people? Well, they kind of hold your future in their hands.

00:39 And then even after you get your license, they're responsible for keeping an eye on us.

00:44 So the National Council of State Boards of Nursing is a group of people who represent each state in the US.

00:51 Each individual state in the United States has their own state board of nursing.

00:56 Now, this council is the one that oversees all of those state boards of nursing.

01:01 They're the ones who monitor your entry into practice.

01:05 Their job is to ensure public protection.

01:08 That's right. They are there to make sure we are safe practitioners and nurses so they kind of protect the public from us.

01:17 They keep holding us accountable and it's great that we have them now.

01:21 The test that they have, the NCLEX, this is the entrance exam that measures competency.

01:27 It's really going after.

01:29 Do you recognize when a patient is in danger and do you know what to do to keep them safe? So what is the NCLEX? Rn? Well, this is the test that the NCSBN has developed as your licensure exam.

01:44 Now it actually stands for and is national see is council is licensure for examination and at the end it's for registered nurse.

01:53 There's also an NCLEX exam for LPN colleagues.

01:57 Now this is the test, the final hurdle that you have to jump through to become a licensed nurse. So how would you go about this? I mean, if you got to decide how a test is going to be created to make sure that entry level practice people are safe and can take care of patients, how would you do it? Well, here's what the NCSBN did.

02:20 First, they do a practice analysis.

02:22 They collect data on the current practice of nurses.

02:25 They talk about entry level nurses and they interview them.

02:29 In fact, they pick 12,000 newly licensed RNs and they ask them about the types of things they're doing when they entered care.

02:36 Now, then they take all this information and they analyze it, and that's what helps them decide what should be on the test, what's important for keeping a client safe.

02:45 That's where the content of the exam comes from.

02:48 This is how they guide the development.

02:50 Remember 12,000 entry level nurses.

02:54 So they take this information along with specific client needs, and that sets up the framework for the NCLEX exam because then they develop the test plan from all this information that they have gathered.