NLN Requirements for Nursing School Curriculums

The National League for Nursing (NLN) is an organization consisting of nurse educators and various health care and education facilities which seek to improve the overall quality of nursing education. Many nursing schools adhere to the policies of the NLN and seek to educate their students accordingly. The NLN requirements for the curriculum affect the education facilities as well as educators and students.

Curriculum

• According to the NLN, a nursing school must demonstrate multiple characteristics in order to be in compliance with their standards. The learning environment must be appropriate for the student. This means that the clinical facility where the student practices must demonstrate the current and best methods of nursing practice as it applies to patient health and safety. The curriculum must combine classroom education with research and collaboration with a health care facility.

Facility

• The facility is responsible for providing the resources necessary to provide a proper education. This includes providing adequate teaching environments for the students and educators. The administrator of the program must hold a degree in nursing and is responsible for providing the means for an adequate nursing education. The education offered by the facility must provide the students with a quality education that gives the student the best chance to pass state boards and find a job after graduation. The facility's curriculum will be critiqued based on the academic performance of the students.

Faculty

• Educators must meet one of two sets of criteria. The first states that the educator must be an active, registered nurse in the United States and hold a master's or doctoral degree in nursing with an emphasis in nursing education and at least nine credit hours in graduate-level education classes. A minimum of two years with full-time employment with an educational facility in the last five years is also required. The second option is similar to the first with the exception that the emphasis need not be in nursing education as long as the educator has at least four years of experience in the last five years as a faculty member. The faculty member must have a firm understanding of the area of nursing that they will be teaching.

Students

• Students must understand their obligations in regards to repayment of loans that they are using while in school. The student also has the right to be provided with the most up-to-date information, including advances in nursing technology and any changes that are made to the curriculum while the student is enrolled in the program.