LEWISTON – All of the 42 recent graduates of the Central Maine Medical Center School of Nursing have passed the national licensing examination.

The 35 women and seven men who comprised the school’s class of 2007 have passed the National Council of State Boards of Nursing’s National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses.

The school offers a 24-month training experience that includes classroom work and practical experience in clinical environments. Students who complete the program earn an associate degree in the applied science of nursing.

The most recent statistics available from the NCSB indicate that nationally 88.8 percent of U.S.-educated associate degree program graduates who take the exam achieve a passing grade.

“The faculty and I are extremely proud of the graduates and their achievement on the NCLEX-RN, they worked very hard. The faculty and staff have also worked hard to facilitate the success of the graduates,” said Sharon Kuhrt, school director.

Student demographics at the school have changed significantly over the past several years. The average class of 2007 student was age 36, with the oldest student being 55 and the youngest 22.

“We have come a long way from the early days of the 1900s where the typical student was a young, unmarried woman to today where the typical student is about 36 years old, married with children and is not always female,” Kuhrt said.

Nineteen of the recent graduates hailed from Androscoggin County, eight were from Oxford County and four from Cumberland County. One graduate came from another state. Three had previously attained an associate degree in another field; two students had bachelor’s degrees; and two had master’s degrees.

“Nursing is one of the most needed occupations now and will be so in the future as current nurses begin to retire. Many students are turning to nursing program as a second career for the job security and compensation it offers. Many of our students are first-time college attendees in their families, which is an interesting phenomenon,” Kuhrt said.

The CMMC School of Nursing was founded in 1891 and graduated its first students in 1893. In 2001 the school was relocated to a new facility at 70 Middle St. In 2002 the school began offering degree programs in Rumford and in 2003 expanded to a Farmington site.