RN NCLEX Exams

NCLEX stands for the National Council Licensure Exam. This exam allows those students who pass to receive their registered nurse licenses. Typically, those who take the NCLEX do so after completing more elementary nursing programs, such as licensed vocational or practical nursing. There has traditionally been much dread and mystique surrounding the NCLEX, which has the reputation of being quite difficult.

Today, however, the mystique has dissipated somewhat, in part due to the wide availability of NCLEX study aids. NCLEX help is available through traditional channels, such as libraries, booksellers, and nursing school programs. Help is also available, in abundance and at the touch of your fingertips, on the World Wide Web. In fact, it is easy to find entire web portals dedicated to listing NCLEX resources.

Taking the NCLEX

The NCLEX can be taken after completion of an accredited nursing program. Most often, these programs are either the Associate Degree in Nursing or the Bachelor of Science in Nursing. Once students have earned these degrees, they are technically allowed to take the NCLEX. Whether they are actually ready to take it, though, is another question. This leads back to NCLEX resources, which can provide students with the answer to that question.

For instance, one can find plenty of websites that offer NCLEX practice tests, books, discussion groups, and links to other sources of information about the NCLEX. Study guides are some of the most useful resources out there. Another source of information is the board that actually oversees the NCLEX exam, the National Council of State Boards of Nursing. The board's website provides helpful information to students, such as official requirements and details about the NCLEX itself, as well as specific testing times and locations.