- Nursing school dropout rates are significant, but driven by factors you can largely control once you know how to prepare.
- The common reasons include poor time management, overwhelming stress, weak study habits, and trouble with NCLEX-style exam questions.
- Experienced nurses say to address these head-on and build strategies that improve your odds of graduating and passing the NCLEX.
Common Reasons Students Drop Out
Knowing why students quit helps you sidestep the same mistakes and pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX).
Poor Time Management
Nursing school is hard. Nancy Mitchell, RN, has more than 37 years in geriatric nursing, including as a director of nursing. She notes that many students pick nursing as a cheaper alternative to medical school, then find the program just as demanding on their time.
You need a strong foundation in physiology and medicine to recognize when a physician's order looks wrong, and that takes hours of study and clinical work. On top of coursework, exams, and clinicals, you still have personal responsibilities. Without sharp time management, it falls apart.
Bad Study Habits
The habits that carried you through high school often won't cut it. Cramming the night before, skipping a study plan, getting pulled into social media, and not asking for help all sink students. In high school you memorized for the test. In nursing school you have to understand the material well enough to answer NCLEX-style questions.
Ignoring Self-Care
Elizabeth Lubin, RN, has worked in many settings, including correctional centers. She stresses self-care, because neglecting it raises your risk of burnout. Burnout makes you feel helpless, hurts your immune system, and pushes students toward dropping out.
"The irony of healthcare is that your mental and physical health tend to suffer through your passion to help others," Mitchell says.
Feeling Overwhelmed
Feeling overwhelmed is one of the biggest reasons students quit. Lubin entered nursing school as a mother of five. "Every week I'd attend class twice, complete a 12-hour clinical, do group discussions, demonstrate skills, and prepare for exams every 2-3 weeks," she says. "It became overwhelming, and sometimes dropping out seemed like the best option."
Trouble With New-Style Questions
The National Council of State Boards of Nursing rolled out the Next Generation NCLEX on April 1, 2023, and many programs reworked their exams to match. The new questions ask students to apply and reason through clinical information rather than just repeat it, which trips up students used to the old format.
Family Responsibilities
Nursing's stability and the ongoing shortage have drawn more adult and second-degree students, many of whom are raising kids or caring for aging parents. The demands of school don't pause for family, and some students can't juggle both.
How to Avoid Dropping Out
Dropping out leaves you with a partial education you can't fully use, after spending real money and time. Lubin and Mitchell recommend the following.
Remember your why. Lubin and her husband lived on one income so she could finish. "Whenever the thought crossed my mind, I'd remember my reason for going back and push through." A clear reason fuels you to seek help, fix your habits, and manage your time.
Treat it as temporary. Under stress it's easy to believe the pressure lasts forever. It doesn't. Focus on the tasks in front of you that day instead of the whole mountain.
Schedule breaks. Lubin built self-care days around her exams. "That was my most challenging day, so afterward I'd just relax." Spend the time on whatever recharges you: family, a long walk, a movie.
Get help with study skills. Most new students don't start with strong study skills. If you fall behind in the first few weeks, use the academic support programs your school offers. Don't wait.
Build time management systems. Map out each semester with deadlines for coursework and exam prep. At the end of each week, block out the next one: clinicals, classes, study, family. Set up an accountability buddy, and use an app to cap your social media time.
Get help at home. Address your stressors at home as seriously as the ones at school. Ask someone to watch the kids when you need to study, and spread responsibilities across friends and family. It's temporary, and most people are glad to lend a hand.
Source
Accreditation, attrition, and on-time completion rates. (2022). https://www.rn.ca.gov/education/attrition.shtml
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the nursing school dropout rate?
It varies widely by program. For the 2020-2021 school year, the California Board of Registered Nursing reported a statewide attrition rate near 10%, with some schools as high as 39% and others at 0%. Most of what drives those numbers, time management, study habits, and self-care, is within a student's control.
What is the most common reason students drop out of nursing school?
There is no single cause, but the recurring ones are poor time management, overwhelming stress, weak study habits, trouble with NCLEX-style questions, and competing family responsibilities. Feeling overwhelmed is one of the biggest reasons students quit.
When did the Next Generation NCLEX start?
The National Council of State Boards of Nursing launched the Next Generation NCLEX on April 1, 2023. The new questions ask students to apply and reason through clinical information rather than just repeat it, which trips up students used to the old format.
Can you avoid dropping out of nursing school?
Often, yes. Working nurses recommend remembering your reason for enrolling, treating the pressure as temporary, scheduling breaks around exams, using your school's academic support early, and building a weekly time-management system.
Is nursing school harder than students expect?
Frequently. Many students choose nursing as a cheaper alternative to medical school, then find the program just as demanding on their time. You need a strong foundation in physiology and medicine on top of clinicals, exams, and personal responsibilities.