St. Paul’s Academy for NursesNCLEX Candidate Performance Report: How to Read It and What to Study Next
Didn't pass the NCLEX-RN or REx-PN? Your Candidate Performance Report shows exactly where to start. Here is how to read it, and how to get a free personal study plan from Fr. Josis.
Fr. Josis Vazhakala, RN, MSNNCLEX with Fr. Josis · Ontario, Canada
Not passing the NCLEX-RN or REx-PN hurts. But please don’t throw away the report you receive. It is the most useful study tool you have for your next attempt, because it shows where the exam found you strong and where it found you weak.
What is the Candidate Performance Report?
Candidates who do not pass the NCLEX-RN, NCLEX-PN or REx-PN receive a Candidate Performance Report (CPR). It is an individual report that shows how you performed in each content area of the exam’s test plan. The NCLEX report also shows how you did on the clinical judgment items.
For the NCLEX-RN, the content areas are the client needs categories you know from the test plan:
- Management of Care
- Safety and Infection Prevention and Control
- Health Promotion and Maintenance
- Psychosocial Integrity
- Basic Care and Comfort
- Pharmacological and Parenteral Therapies
- Reduction of Risk Potential
- Physiological Adaptation
The REx-PN report uses the content areas of its own test plan.
Above, near or below: what the marks mean
| Mark | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Below the passing standard | Your weakest areas | Study these first |
| Near the passing standard | Close to the line. It does not mean you were at or above the standard | Study these next. They are not safe yet |
| Above the passing standard | Your strengths | Keep them fresh with regular practice |
What the report does not show
- It does not give you a score or a percentage.
- It does not show which questions you got wrong.
- It does not mean you failed “a section”. The exam is not passed or failed by sections. Only your overall performance decides the result.
How to use it to plan your next attempt
1. Start with your “below” areas
List them and give them most of your study time in the first weeks. Review the concepts first, then practise questions only from those areas until your reasoning is steady.
2. Move up to your “near” areas
These are the areas that can tip your next result either way. Treat them as weak areas, not as nearly done.
3. Don’t drop your strengths
Mix in questions from your “above” areas every week so they stay strong.
4. Fix the method, not only the content
Many repeat candidates know enough but lose marks to the way they read questions: missing a negative question, choosing a correct but lower-priority action, or rushing case studies. Practise a fixed routine for every question. Our free guide, 10 NCLEX Priority Rules, is a good place to start.
Writing the CPNRE? Use the result feedback you received in the same way: weakest areas first, then the ones close to the line.
Get a free personal study plan from Fr. Josis
Send your report to Fr. Josis Vazhakala, RN, MSN, on WhatsApp. He will read it and send you a free personal study plan built on your weak areas. A photo or screenshot is fine, and you can cover your name and candidate ID.
The study plan is free guidance and does not guarantee a result. Information about the report is based on NCSBN’s public description of the Candidate Performance Report.
Study with NCLEX with Fr. Josis
Live online classes for NCLEX-RN, REx-PN and CPNRE with Fr. Josis Vazhakala, RN, MSN. Clinical reasoning, Next Generation NCLEX items and question-solving strategies, taught in English and Malayalam.
- NCLEX priority questions: 5 rules to pick the right answer
- REx-PN, CPNRE or NCLEX-RN: which exam do you write in Canada?
- NCLEX-RN classes in Ontario: how to prepare as an internationally educated nurse
Practise on your phone with the NCLEX with Fr. Josis app (also on the App Store), and read every strategy in Fr. Josis’s book NCLEX Strategies & Tricks on Kindle.