Oct. 2, 2004 – More than 85 percent of graduates of the University of the Virgin Islands Associate of Science Degree Nursing Program on the St. Croix campus are passing their nursing board exams on the first try. Thirteen of 15 St. Croix nursing graduates who have taken the National Council Licensure Examination since nursing curriculum reforms were adopted at UVI in 1999 have passed it on the first try, according to Joan Marsh, St. Croix campus Nursing Division Chair.
The nursing faculty maintains that the curricular reform that was set in place in 1999 is responsible for the high pass rate, she said.
"It is a really strong curriculum that allows them to pass their boards on the first try," Marsh said. "Prior to 1999, our pass rate on the boards was not nearly as good."
A nursing graduate cannot practice as a registered nurse without passing the licensure examination. Once aspiring nurses pass the national exam, they become licensed as registered nurses and never have to take it again, Marsh said.
According to Marsh, the national overall pass rate for first-time takers of the exam in 2003 was 82 percent, including diploma, associate's and bachelor's degree candidates. The national first-time pass rate for associate's degree nursing graduates was 87.2 percent. "I would say we are very close to the national average," she said.
For information on the two-year nursing program, please call 692-4010.
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