It's possible to become a registered nurse in as little as two years, but there are several routes into this fast-paced, rapidly evolving career. They all start with nursing school, and they all require passing the National Council Licensure Examination, or NCLEX.
The study of nursing takes a comprehensive approach to patient-centered care that differs from education for medical doctors, surgeons and physician assistants, who have more specialized roles and typically spend less time with patients.
The key is to choose a program that's the right fit for you, and offers a nursing education rigorous enough to give you the knowledge, skills and clinical judgment to pass the NCLEX.
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Some nursing programs require an exit exam to graduate. Others mandate standardized testing throughout nursing school. In both cases, the goal is to get you ready for the NCLEX.
Experts recommend taking the NCLEX within two months of graduating. Retaking the exam requires a 45-day waiting period, so rigorous preparation is essential.
While the NCLEX determines who is qualified to be licensed, it's the education you receive during nursing school that ultimately makes the biggest difference in your career, says Latina Brooks, assistant dean of academic affairs and head of nursing advanced programs at the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø in Ohio.
Brooks says she hopes nurses “understand the scope and impact they have on health care. Once they know that, they use that to empower themselves and the profession and use that to impact the health of our country and the world.â€