Perfect again: Second ABSN cohort achieves 100% first-time pass rate on NCLEX-RN exam

Fourteen students from the 2023 Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing cohort have achieved a 100% first-time pass rate on the NCLEX-RN exam, the national licensing exam for nurses.

The second cohort of the Elon University Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program has achieved a 100% first-time pass rate on the NCLEX-RN, the national licensing exam for nurses.

It’s the second consecutive year that the Elon program has seen its graduating cohort attain a perfect pass rate on the exam. The 16-month ABSN program received initial approval from the North Carolina Board of Nursing in January 2021 and that fall admitted its first students in the accelerated and traditional programs. The Elon nursing program received full board approval in May 2023.

“The performance of this impressive cohort of nursing graduates on their licensing exams is a testament to the rigorous and engaging curriculum of our accelerated nursing program,” said Maha Lund, dean of the School of Health Sciences. “Through our highly experiential approach to nursing education, we’re helping prepare future nurses with the valuable skills they will need to succeed and offer exceptional care to their patients.”

The 2023 graduating class of 14 students has a 100% job-placement rate with graduates finding positions in hospitals and medical practices across the state including Cone Health, Duke Health, Novant Health and UNC Health. They will be practicing in fields including orthopedics, labor and delivery, hematology/oncology and in venues including the emergency department and the intensive care unit.

Lund complimented the School of Health Sciences faculty and staff on a “job well done” for their work teaching, mentoring and guiding these students to success.

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The Accelerated Bachelor of Nursing program (ABSN) at Elon is designed for those who have already earned a bachelor’s degree in any field and will have completed 18-24 hours of prerequisite coursework before admission. The program is an intensive, 16-month post-baccalaureate program that includes 65 credit hours and 540 clinical hours. The program’s curriculum focuses on community-based population health, the reduction of health disparities and the use of health informatics to optimize outcomes.

Current ABSN students, who are members of the program’s third cohort, are on track to graduate in December. A new cohort of ABSN students will enter the program this fall and will be on track to graduate in December 2025. Elon will graduate its first cohort of students in its traditional four-year nursing program in May 2025.