Understanding the NCLEX Diagnostic Profile Report

A Diagnostic Profile Report (DP) is sent to every NCLEX examination candidate who fails, in an effort to help the candidate identify strengths and weaknesses. A candidate may require assistance to make the best use of the information in preparing to take the NCLEX examination again. A nurse educator who is knowledgeable about interpreting the DP is able to help the graduate maximize these preparation efforts. The DP highlights areas of relative strengths and weaknesses, identifies overall performance, and lists the number of questions the candidate took. Different DPs are generated for candidates who did not take the minimum number of questions or who ran out of time before a pass/fail decision could be made. The "last 60" rule, which is used to make pass/fail decisions for candidates who run out of time before answering the maximum number of questions, is also explained.