You should have a firm understanding of everything before taking any form of exam. It gives you a better grasp of the exam and how to prepare for it. What is the HESI exit exam, then? To determine whether a student is prepared to sit for and pass the NCLEX-RN or NCLEX-PN exam, various nursing programs use the HESI Exit Exam.
As a result, ensuring student exam performance is as vital for nursing programs as it is for individuals. Various accrediting and regulatory bodies demand nursing programs to achieve specific passing rates. Students who pass the HESI Exit Exam are eligible to sit for the NCLEX. This page will cover what the HESI exit exam is like as well as information about the HESI exit exam.
With our free HESI A2 practice test on this website, you can review all the fundamental knowledge for your nursing career.
What Is The HESI Exit Exam?
The HESI Exit Exam is usually given in the final quarter or semester of a nursing program at a school. The exams are thorough in character and are designed to reflect the NCLEX exam’s content.
The Exit HESI is used to estimate a student’s chances of passing the NCLEX. The results of approximately 35,000 students who took the HESI Exit test and the NCLEX have been evaluated in recent research.
Over 98 percent of students that the HESI Exit Exam predicted would pass their NCLEX on their first try passed it on their first try over a seven-year period.
What does the HESI exit exam include?
The HESI exit exam and NCLEX pass rate have a strong relationship. It is designed to align with the most recent NCLEX test plans. They assess the complete nursing curriculum and aim to predict whether a test taker will pass the NCLEX exam, which every nurse must pass in order to get professional certification.
The HESI exit exam covers the following topics:
- Nursing Process (Assessment, Analysis, Planning, Implementation, Evaluation)
- Client Needs (Safe/Effective Environment, Safety and Infection Control, Health Promotion and Maintenance, Management of Care, Basic Care and Comfort, Physiological Integrity, Psychosocial Integrity, Pharmaceutical and Parenteral Tx, Reduce Risk Potential, Physio Adaption)
- Nursing Process: Assessment, planning, implementation, and evaluation
- Client Needs Infection control, basic care and comfort, care management, and safety, health promotion and maintenance,
- Specialty Area (Community Health, Psychiatric/Mental Health, Critical Care, Fundamentals, Maternity, Geriatrics, Medical-Surgical, Pathophysiology, Pediatrics, Professional Issues)
- Specialty Areas: Critical care, geriatrics, pediatrics, and mental and psychiatric care
What is the HESI format?
The HESI exam questions are designed to mimic the sorts of questions that students would encounter on their NCLEX board examinations.
The HESI questions are more critical thinking driven, as opposed to the normal information/fact level seen in nursing classes. The exam questions will be in one of the six forms listed below:
- Multiple choice: The set of questions is multiple-choice. Students will choose one of four options for an answer
- Multiple answers: Students can pick one or more responses from a list of five to seven options in multiple response questions
- Fill in the blanks: Students must calculate and provide a solution. A calculator is available on the screen
- Hot spots: Students are asked to identify a specific spot on an image or graph
- Charts/exhibits – Students are given information from a chart or exhibit to answer an issue
- Drop and drag: Students will rank or sequence things using the drop and drag method.
The HESI exit exam also includes the latest up-to-date question types. The HESI Exit is administered on a computer, much like the NCLEX examinations, with one important distinction: the HESI is not a Computer Adaptive Test (CAT), as the NCLEX is.
The questions on the NCLEX exam will become progressively difficult until a question is missed. If a student gets a question wrong, they will be offered a question that is significantly easier. The questions will get easier until the student gets the right response.
This procedure will be repeated until the student receives a clear pass or fail result. A minimum of 75 questions will be offered to the student (of which 15 are pilot questions that will not count towards their score).
The HESI RN Exit Exam, on the other hand, has 150 questions, with 10 of them being pilot items. The HESI LPN Exit test is available in two formats: 150 questions and 75 questions.
Requirements for HESI exit exam
There are two types of HESI Exit Exams available. The type of nursing program a person is enrolled in determines which one they pick. The HESI RN Exit Exam is for students enrolled in a registered nursing program. Students studying to become licensed practical nurses take the HESI LPN Exit Exam. From one to the next, the amount of questions varies. The HESI Exit Exam for RNs always contains 150 questions; however, there are two versions of the LPN Exit Exam. There are 75 questions in the first and 150 in the second.
Requirements for HESI exit exam scoring
Individuals who are obliged to take the HESI Exit Exams as part of a college or university program must meet the requirements set out by their school. For example, Galveston College in Texas requires prospective graduates to score a 900 on the exit exam.
Individuals who opt to take the HESI Exit Exam to check whether they are ready to take the NCLEX do not need to attain a specific score because it is not a formal requirement; nonetheless, a minimum score of 900 is regarded as a strong indicator that the person is ready to take and pass the NCLEX.
The below shows how the HESI Exit Exam results correlate to the probability of passing the NCLEX.
- >950 – OUTSTANDING probability of passing NCLEX
- 900-940 – EXCELLENT probability of passing NCLEX
- 850-899 – AVERAGE probability of passing NCLEX
- 800-849 – BELOW AVERAGE probability of passing NCLEX
- 750-799 – Additional preparation needed
- 700-749 – Serious preparation needed
- 650-699 – Grave danger of failing NCLEX
- <649 – Poor performance expected.
Before graduating, most nursing schools require students to take and pass the HESI exit test.
So, what is the passing score for the HESI exit exam?
The minimum passing score to graduate varies with each degree, but in general, a score of 850 or more is considered an excellent score.
What are the differences between HESI A2 vs. HESI Exit Exam?
HESI A2
The HESI A2 is a four-hour test given to prospective nursing students by various schools. This exam may be used by schools to decide whether or not an applicant qualifies for admission to their program.
Schools can also tailor the assessments to their program’s needs and choose what constitutes a passing score. If you’re taking the HESI test, check with your nursing program for further information about the exam.
The HESI A2 consists of 326 questions. Keep in mind that schools have the ability to alter the test by removing certain elements. The HESI A2 test also seeks to determine applicants’ learning styles, which provides institutions with additional information about the student.
HESI Exit Exam
The HESI Exit Exam is a test administered by nursing schools to assess whether or not a student is prepared to pass the NCLEX exam as they near graduation. Some colleges utilize the test to decide whether or not students are eligible to graduate.
The HESI RN EXIT test consists of 150 questions. There are 150 or 75 questions on the HESI LPN Exit Exam. Both examinations are designed to measure critical thinking and are modeled after the NCLEX Exams.
To get certified and work as a nurse, nursing school graduates must take and pass the NCLEX. As a result, schools seek to ensure that students will be able to pass their license exams after graduation. The subjects on the HESI Exit Exam are all disciplines that nursing schools cover in-depth.
For more details about these 2 HESI exams, please read the article “What is the HESI exam?“.
FAQs
What is the HESI PN exit exam’s purpose?
Various nursing programs utilize the HESI Exit Exam to determine if a student is ready to take and pass the NCLEX-RN or NCLEX-PN exam.
Is the HESI exit test difficult?
Much more difficult than the NCLEX! The HESI test is a very good predictor of success on the NCLEX. According to research, if you pass the HESI Exit, you have a very good chance of passing the NCLEX. Only students who pass the HESI Exit are eligible to take the NCLEX at those schools.
What standards are used to grade the HESI exit exam?
Your HESI score can vary from 0 to over 1,000, with a maximum of 1,500. (depending on the difficulty level of the exam). A score of 850 is considered satisfactory. For all scores supplied, however, a level of performance of 900 or higher is suggested. All exam items are weighted based on how tough they are.
What happens if you fail your exit exam?
The test was originally given to students at the start of their second year. They may retake the part or sections of the test that they have not yet passed if they do not pass one or both of the two sections. Students get up to two (or 8) exam opportunities before the end of their senior year.
How many times can you take the HESI exit exam?
You can only take the HESI test once every 60 days, and you can only take it three times in a 12-month period.
Read more>>> Differences Between HESI Vs NCLEX
Conclusion
Before you start studying for your examination, we have answered the “What is the HESI exit exam?” question for you. One of the greatest methods to pass the exam is to practice, especially since your exam may have question styles that are unfamiliar to you from your nursing degree. We wish you luck!