With a 100% NCLEX Pass Rate, BCCC Nursing Program Continues Track Record of Excellence | Eastern NC Now

Press Release:


Members of the ADN Class of 2023 recite their pledges at their pinning ceremony on May 11. The class has a 100 percent pass rate on the NCLEX test.
    WASHINGTON, N.C.     The Beaufort County Community College associate degree nursing program's Class of 2023 holds a 100 percent pass rate for the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX). The class graduated on May 11, and official results were published on July 12. This comes on top of the Class of 2022 achieving a 96 percent pass rate and the Class of 2021 achieving a 100 percent pass rate, resulting in a 99 percent three-year average, and continues a standard of excellence with a 97.4 percent five-year pass rate.

    While almost all nursing graduates at BCCC finish the program with a job offer in hand, they must pass the NCLEX. The North Carolina three-year average pass rate is 88 percent (2020-2022), and the three-year national average is 80 percent, putting BCCC well above peer nursing programs in the state.

    For the 2020-2022 three-year average, BCCC tied for third place among associate degree nursing programs in North Carolina, alongside Central Carolina Community College and Cabarrus College of Health Science. Only Alamance Community College and Montgomery Community College ranked higher. With its 100 percent pass rate for 2023, continues to graduate capable and compassionate nurses from its program.

    "As I explain to our nursing faculty and students, they have chosen a program at the college where they truly make a life or death decision, said Dr. Dave Loope, BCCC president. "We want to educate the best nurses possible."

    Every student in the graduating class has started a position with a hospital or healthcare provider across the state, with 15 students committed to working with ECU Health Medical Center in Greenville.

    In recent years, the college has strengthened its admission process for the program to increase the chances for student success. The nursing faculty have worked to better align first and second year activities to help students.

    This was the first year that NCLEX has rolled out its "NextGen" test, and while there was some questioned of how graduates would perform on the new exam, Dr. Kent Dickerson, dean of allied health & nursing, said he was confident that BCCC students were "very prepared."

    "Ultimately the individual commitment of the student makes them successful, but I am extremely thankful for the dedication and time commitment that each one of the faculty put into developing our students," said Dickerson. "This is an exceptional job on their part and the ability to replicate this high standard, year after year, is simply amazing."

    Dickerson also attributes the college's excellent ranking to the nursing program's perseverance through the COVID pandemic.

    "We maintained excellence all through COVID," said Dickerson. "We were still able to provide the clinical and classroom experience needed ensure student success."

    A new application window will open on September 1 for the next cohort starting in August 2024. Students can register to take prerequisites for the program now. Applicants must take a TEAS test or have a passing score from the last three years as part of the application process, and HESI scores are also accepted. New requirements will be on posted on the colleges allied health admissions page by August 1.

    The practical nursing Class of 2023 graduated on July 12 and is currently in the process of taking their NCLEX tests.

• Attila Nemecz
• Marketing and Public Relations Coordinator
• Beaufort County Community College
• 5337 U.S. Highway 264 East
• Washington, N.C. 27889
• Ph: 252-940-6387
• Cell: 252-940-8672
• attila.nemecz@beaufortccc.edu