Factors which predict performance

Predicting the performance of registered nurse anesthesia students (RNAS) on the national certification examination (NCE) is an area of interest to educators, students, and employers. Following graduation from an accredited nurse anesthesia educational program, RNAS must pass the NCE to practice. The purpose of this study was to investigate 13 academic, demographic, and preadmission factors which predict RNAS' performance on the NCE. This retrospective analysis included 1,690 RNAS who took the five NCEs administered from December 1987 through December 1989. Results of multiple regression analyses revealed that seven of the 13 academic, demographic, and preadmission variables were predictive of performance on the NCE. These variables included science and overall grade point average (GPA), highest degree attained before entry, gender, number of cases, age, and years of nursing experience. The GPA in science accounted for 24% of the variance in the overall certification examination score, and the remaining six variables contributed an additional 3% to the variance. Variables which were not predictive of performance on the NCE included type of nursing preparation, clinical background, type of nurse anesthesia program, case hours, number of science hours, and length of the nurse anesthesia program. Additional research findings from the one-way analysis of variance of the categorical variables indicate that level of education before entry into a nurse anesthesia educational program is predictive of performance on the NCE. RNAS with bachelor's or master's degrees achieve higher mean certification examination scores than RNAS with diplomas or associate degrees. Similar results were found for the type of nurse anesthesia program. The results of this study will be used to examine and further define admission criteria and curriculum requirements for the entry-level nurse anesthesia practitioner.