If there's a nursing shortage in the U.S., why are there thousands of applicants rejected by nursing schools?

Schools do not have enough clinical RN instructors to pass on the knowledge to the next generation of nurses. Also, Nursing schools don’t have enough funding to pay the instructors along with limited seats in the class room and clinical setting.

Not really sure if that is the problem. I recently attended my daughter’s graduation at a university with one of the best RN schools in Georgia. They had all the graduates organized by disciplines. The RN school only had 40 graduates and several years ago when I graduated there were 80. So I am not sure if schools are rejecting or no one is applying. Trust me when I say this, if the schools are rejecting, this is a good thing because lowering enrollment standards is NOT good for anyone.

It is an accreditation issue. If they believe you won't pass the NCLEX you are out.

Too many fails puts their accreditation at risk.