The Best Nursing Schools in Western Visayas

Due to the big demand for nurses abroad, nursing schools and review centers have become such a huge and lucrative business not only in Western Visayas but also the entire Philippines. Nowadays, nursing is the no. 1 choice of high school graduates. We have also seen the phenomenon wherein doctors, lawyers and other professionals are taking up nursing as a second course, in a bid to migrate abroad and create better lives for themselves and their families.

There are currently 96 universities and HEIs (Higher Education Institutions) all throughout Western Visayas, with most of the schools located in Iloilo City and Bacolod City. Out of this total, 14 schools are accredited by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) to offer B.S. Nursing.

For school year 2004, a total of 2,289 nursing graduates from Western Visayas took the Nursing Licensure Board Exams supervised by the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC). Out of this total, 1,375 or 60% passed the exams. As expected, West Visayas State University and St. Paul College of Iloilo took top honors with a 99% and 98% passing rate respectively. The two schools have long been famous for being “Centers for Excellence” in nursing. Tied for third place are West Negros College and University of St. LaSalle both with a 75% passing rate.

Performance of Schools in the 2004 Nursing Licensure Exams – Region 6

1. West Visayas State Univ. (Iloilo) - 135 examinees; 134 passers (99%)
2. St. Paul College of Iloilo - 64 examinees; 63 passers (98%)
3. West Negros College (Bacolod) - 502 examinees; 379 passers (75%)
4. Univ. of St. LaSalle (Bacolod) - 137 examinees; 103 passers (75%)
5. Central Phil. University (Iloilo) - 161 examinees; 110 passers (68%)
6. Central Phil. Adventist College - 57 examinees; 36 passers (63%)
7. Riverside College (Bacolod) - 245 examinees; 150 passers (61%)
8. Univ. of San Agustin (Iloilo) - 171 examinees; 90 passers (53%)
9. Iloilo Doctor’s College - 171 examinees; 78 passers (46%)
10. St. Gabriel College (Kalibo) - 199 examinees; 86 passers (43%)
11. Colegio de San Agustin (Bacolod) - 138 examinees; 56 passers (41%)
12. Filamer Christian College (Roxas City) - 103 examinees; 32 passers (31%)
13. St. Anthony’s College (Roxas City) - 77 examinees; 22 passers (29%)
14. University of Iloilo - 129 examinees; 36 passers (28%)

G R A N D T O T A L - 2,289 examinees; 1,375 passers (60%)

It should be mentioned that in some colleges, school officials “screen” their nursing graduates thru a “pre-qualifying test” and students who fail this “pre-qualifying” exam are not allowed to take the PRC Licensure exam. This is done primarily to maintain the passing percentage rate of schools. Technically, this practice of “pre-screening” is not allowed by CHED but some school officials have found a loophole in the rules and CHED is quite powerless to stop this practice. Therefore, one should take the above Performance of Schools for 2004 with a grain of salt as some of the colleges in the list may have “pre-screened” their students to improve their ranking in the Nursing Licensure exams.

As more and more Filipinos take up Nursing, intense competition among the different colleges is to be expected. In choosing a nursing college, one must not only decide based on its tuition fee rates but also the school’s academic curriculum, reputation and track record in the licensure exam.