NUR 673 Module 7 Case Study: Program Evaluation Example

Reviewed by Ingrid Vasterling, MSN, RN Arizona State University Updated October 2026

This NUR 673 Module 7 sample is the Case Study: Program Evaluation from Producing and Evaluating Programs for Academic and Practice Settings, part of the nurse educator coursework in ASU's online MS in Nursing. In Week 7, ASU NUR 673 asks students to apply accreditation criteria, professional standards and regulatory requirements to the evaluation of an educational program case study. The course case is in Canvas, so this sample evaluates a composite BSN program whose first-time licensure pass rate has fallen to 76%. The writer organizes the review with the CIPP model, applies CCNE expectations for pass, completion and employment rates, the state board's approval rules and the AACN Essentials, identifies the likely causes and proposes a corrective plan with timelines and owners.

CourseNUR 673 Producing and Evaluating Programs for Academic and Practice Settings
ModuleModule 7
Paper typeProgram evaluation case study analysis
LengthAbout 570 words, 5 pages
FormatAPA 7 student paper
SchoolArizona State University
ProgramMS in Nursing
UpdatedOctober 2026

Free sample paper for NUR 673 Module 7

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Seventy-Six Percent: Applying Accreditation, Regulatory and Professional Standards to a BSN Program With Falling Licensure Results

Student Name

Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation, Arizona State University

NUR 673: Producing and Evaluating Programs for Academic and Practice Settings

Instructor Name

Month Day, Year

What this page is doingThe title leads with the pass rate that triggers the evaluation, then names the three kinds of standards the assignment asks students to apply.
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Seventy-Six Percent: Applying Accreditation, Regulatory and Professional Standards to a BSN Program With Falling Licensure Results

The Program and Its Data

The composite program is a CCNE-accredited, state-approved prelicensure BSN program admitting 120 students a year. Its data for the last three years:

Program measureFirst yearSecond yearThird year
First-time NCLEX-RN pass rate89%82%76%
On-time completion rate81%78%74%
Employment in nursing within 12 months92%90%91%
Full-time faculty turnover256

Evaluation Framework

I organized the evaluation with the CIPP model, which examines context, input, process and product. The model fits program evaluation in nursing because it connects outcomes to the resources and processes that produce them rather than looking at outcomes alone (Lewallen, 2015).

Applying Accreditation Criteria

CCNE asks programs to show they achieve their outcomes, with benchmarks of 80% for first-time licensure success, 70% for completion and a measure of graduate employment (Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, 2018). The program meets the completion and employment expectations, though completion is declining. Its Year 3 first-time pass rate of 76% falls below the 80% expectation, and CCNE's standards allow programs to demonstrate compliance through alternative calculations, such as a multi-year rate or the rate for all takers, which the program should calculate before reporting. Regardless, the trend requires an explanation and a plan in the program's continuous improvement report.

What this page is doingThe section applies the specific accreditation thresholds to the program's numbers, which is the core skill the assignment tests, and notes the reporting options rather than assuming automatic noncompliance.
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Applying Regulatory Requirements

State boards of nursing approve prelicensure programs and monitor licensure outcomes. Most state rules require a program whose first-time pass rate falls below the board's threshold to submit a self-study and an improvement plan, with continued approval depending on progress. The program should review its own state's rule, confirm the board's threshold and reporting period and prepare the self-study proactively rather than waiting for notification.

Applying Professional Standards

The AACN Essentials define competency-based expectations for entry-level professional nursing education across ten domains (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2021). A curriculum review against the Essentials would show whether clinical judgment, a theme in the newer licensure examination, is taught and assessed progressively across the program.

CIPP Analysis

Context: A regional shortage of nursing faculty and a new clinical partner affiliation agreement. Input: Faculty turnover tripled over three years, and new faculty received no orientation to item writing or the program's testing policies. Process: Course exams vary in quality across courses, and the standardized testing plan is used for remediation only at the end of the program. Product: Falling pass and completion rates, with steady employment.

The analysis suggests that the decline in outcomes follows the rise in faculty turnover and the loss of shared practices in assessment and curriculum delivery, rather than a change in the students admitted.

Corrective Plan

1. Within one month: calculate all CCNE-permitted pass rate measures and notify the accreditor as required; confirm the state board's threshold and timeline. Owner: program director.

2. Within one term: orient all new faculty to item writing, blueprinting and testing policy; review course exams with item statistics. Owner: assessment committee.

3. Within one year: map the curriculum to the AACN Essentials and the clinical judgment model, adding progressive case-based assessment in every clinical course. Owner: curriculum committee.

4. Ongoing: use standardized testing across the program for early identification and remediation, not only at the end. Owner: student success coordinator.

5. Evaluate: track first-time pass rates by cohort and completion rates each year and report progress in the systematic evaluation plan.

What this page is doingThe plan assigns each action a time frame and an owner and ends by tying it back to the program's systematic evaluation plan, which is how accreditation reviewers expect improvement to be documented.
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References

American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2021). The Essentials: Core competencies for professional nursing education. https://www.aacnnursing.org/essentials

Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. (2018). Standards for accreditation of baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs (Amended 2018). https://www.aacnnursing.org/ccne-accreditation

Lewallen, L. P. (2015). Practical strategies for nursing education program evaluation. Journal of Professional Nursing, 31(2), 133-140. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.profnurs.2014.09.002

NUR 673 Module 7 instructions, in plain terms

Week 7 of NUR 673, Program Evaluation, closes Module 3 with the Case Study: Program Evaluation, worth 10 points. The syllabus asks students to apply relevant accreditation criteria, professional standards and regulatory requirements to the evaluation of an educational program case study. The week's readings cover accreditation standards, professional guidelines, legal and regulatory requirements and program evaluation models. The case and its data are posted in Canvas. A strong analysis names the specific standards that apply, checks the program's data against them, uses a recognized evaluation model to organize the review and ends with a plan that an accrediting body or state board would recognize as credible, with responsibilities and timelines.

How this NUR 673 Module 7 example is built

Opening with the program's profile and a three-year data table, the sample introduces the CIPP model as its framework. Three sections then apply each category of standard: accreditation criteria with specific thresholds for licensure, completion and employment and a note on permitted alternative calculations; regulatory requirements for state approval and pass rate monitoring; and the AACN Essentials as the professional standard for the curriculum. A CIPP analysis sorts the evidence into context, input, process and product and identifies faculty turnover and lost assessment practices as the likely driver. A five-step corrective plan with time frames and owners closes the paper, tied to the program's systematic evaluation plan.

Where the marks sit in the NUR 673 Module 7 rubric

The program evaluation case study is worth 10 points on its Canvas rubric. Analyses are typically credited for identifying the correct accreditation, regulatory and professional standards, applying their specific requirements accurately to the program's data, using an evaluation model to structure the review, identifying plausible causes from the evidence and proposing a corrective plan with clear actions, owners and timelines. They lose points when standards are named but not applied, when thresholds are stated incorrectly, when causes are asserted without evidence and when the plan lacks accountability. Citing the standards documents themselves, rather than secondary summaries, strengthens the analysis. Programs that calculate every permitted pass rate measure before reporting show the precision reviewers expect.

NUR 673 Module 7 help with common mistakes

The most common weakness is naming accreditation and the state board without applying their actual requirements to the numbers. Check each indicator against the specific threshold. Another is assuming the cause of falling pass rates is the students; examine inputs and processes too. Use a named evaluation model and show how it structures your analysis. Give each action an owner and a time frame. Cite the accreditor's standards and the AACN Essentials directly. Check your own state's board rules if the case names a state. If you share the Canvas case data with the desk, it can help you map each indicator to its standard. Distinguish clearly between what the accreditor requires and what the state board requires, since the two set different thresholds and timelines.

Write yours, or have the desk draft it

This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Arizona State University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.

More NUR 673 and MS in Nursing sample papers

NUR 673 Module 7 questions, answered

Where can I find a free NUR 673 Module 7 sample paper?

This page carries a full NUR 673 Module 7 sample: a program evaluation case study of a BSN program with a 76% pass rate, applying CCNE, state board and AACN standards with a CIPP analysis.

What NCLEX pass rate does CCNE expect?

An 80% first-time rate is CCNE's benchmark, and its standards also let programs show compliance through multi-year or all-taker calculations.

What is the CIPP model of program evaluation?

Stufflebeam's framework looks at context, input, process and product, tracing results back to the resources and activities behind them.

What standards apply to evaluating a nursing program?

Accreditation standards such as CCNE's or ACEN's, state board of nursing approval rules and professional standards such as the AACN Essentials.

When is the NUR 673 program evaluation case study due?

At the close of Week 7, the program evaluation week, for 10 points.