MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Across six West Virginia University School of Nursing campuses, the first-time pass rate on the National Council Licensure Examination—Registered Nurse (NCLEX-RN) is 99 percent for 2024.

On WAJR’s “Talk of the Town,” Dean Tara McComb Hulsey said the graduates of the Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) and the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) programs are quickly filling positions across the state. She expects the 197 graduates of the class to make a staffing impact at hospitals and clinics across the state.

“Our nurses hit the ground running; they really do,” McComb-Hulsey said. “They’ve got the hands-on experience, and our graduates are really sought after across the state.”

Steps are being taken to increase the capacity at their six campuses in Bridgeport, Morgantown, Beckley, and Keyser. The process of increasing enrollment requires close consultation regarding curriculum and student support incentive programs.

“We are in the middle of increasing our enrollment, but we are doing it very carefully to maintain the quality of our program,” McComb Hulsey said. “That’s most important.”

Due to the quality of the incoming students and seamless effort from the faculty across all six campuses, she believes this is a trend and not a mere moment in time. She said the tireless efforts of faculty not only help the students test well, but they prepare them to take on the tough tasks involved when working at a clinic or hospital.

“I think we’re on track to maintain the pass rates that we have,” McComb Hulsey said. “We have a number of initiatives in place that I think really are contributing to it in addition to our faculty.”

She said last year J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital had a need for 200 nurses, and while that number has decreased, shortages persist. A study by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) recently revealed the national nurse faculty vacancy rate was nearly 8 percent in October 2023. And one-third of the current nursing faculty workforce teaching baccalaureate or graduate courses are expected to retire by 2025.

“It’s a national issue—everybody knows the nursing shortage is a national shortage,” McComb Hulsey said. “The nursing faculty shortage contributes to it too because you have to have faculty to train nurses, but I think we are getting there in the state as a whole.”

She said it’s the work of the faculty that keeps the students engaged and prepared over the life of the program. When test time arrives, the students have developed knowledge as well as a support network of faculty and fellow students to help in the preparation process.

“The faculty really do get the kudos for this because they are so dedicated,” McComb Hulsey said. “They meet regularly across all campuses to make sure our curriculum is the same and our student initiatives are the same across all of the spots we have in the footprint.”

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