Benner’s Stages of Competence:

Benner’s Stages of Competence Level

Experience Level 1 – Novice Less than 6 months
Level 2 – Advanced Beginner 7 to 12 months
Level 3 - Competent 1 to 3 years
Level 4 - Proficient 4 to 5 years
Level 5 – The Expert > 5 years
Brittany Connell

Novice:
Novice Nursing student in clinical education Behavior is very limited and inflexible ("Nursing theory: From," 2013)
Limited ability to predict patient situations ("Nursing theory: From," 2013) Difficulty in identifying changes in patient
condition ("Nursing theory: From," 2013) Recognized changes once exposed to similar patient situations ("Nursing
theory: From," 2013) Brittany Connell

Advanced Beginner:
Advanced Beginner Graduate Nurses – 1 st job! Experience gained through clinical rotations ("Nursing theory: From,"
2013) Knowledge learned with knowing how to perform tasks ("Nursing theory: From," 2013) Limited to in-depth
experience of tasks Brittany Connell

Competent:
Competent Have developed organizational skills ("Nursing theory: From," 2013) Recognize patterns quicker and
accurately ("Nursing theory: From," 2013) Rely on advanced planning ("Nursing theory: From," 2013) Lack speed and
flexibility ("Nursing theory: From," 2013) Brittany Connell

Proficient:
Proficient See the “whole” of situations instead of pieces Experience guides them with events that typically occur
("Nursing theory: From," 2013) Flexible to change routine to respond to different situations ("Nursing theory: From,"
2013) Brittany Connell

Expert:
Expert Recognize demands and needs that need completed ("Nursing theory: From," 2013) Intuition to respond to
situations based on knowledge and experience ("Nursing theory: From," 2013) Focused on relevant problems Tools
used when event is uncommon or no experience has been developed ("Nursing theory: From," 2013) Brittany Connell