Overview of the NCLEX

The National Council of School Boards Nursing (NCSBN) administers the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) to new, entry-level nurses wishing to practice in the U.S. It administers both the NCLEX-RN and NCLEX-PN by computer and designs them to test the knowledge, skills, and abilities required of nurses. As they are variable adaptive tests, no two tests are the same, and questions will vary according to your previous responses. Also, the score of the test itself does not determine your success or failure as the computer aims to find questions that you answer correctly 50% of the time. So, instead of a fixed number of questions for each person, the computer stops giving questions when it can determine the level of difficulty of questions that you answer correctly half the time.

The two versions of the test are for the different areas of nursing, since a registered nurse (RN) performs assessments on clients and initiates care-plans and a practical nurse (PN) collects data and helps form a plan of care. The first test, NCLEX-RN, can take up to six hours and contains from 75-265 questions (15 are not scored). The second test, the NCLEX-PN, has 85-205 questions (25 are not scored) and may take a maximum of five hours. Both tests use situational questions to test your knowledge and cognitive ability. Once you have chosen an answer you cannot return to it, so choose carefully.

To take the test, you must first apply for licensure to your state's board of nursing. Once they send you an Eligibility Letter, you can register with Pearson VUE, the testing company, and pay the $200 fee (some nursing schools and employers may cover it). Then Pearson VUE will send the Authority to Test (ATT) document, and you can find a test center which is located in the U.S. as well as certain countries abroad. You will want to schedule your test as soon as possible, as your ATT will have an expiration date and some test centers fill up quickly.

On the day of the exam, the only materials required are a state-issued identification, such as a driver’s license, passport, or military ID, and your ATT letter. Since the computer provides a on-screen calculator, you do not need any testing materials such as a pen, pencil, or paper. The testing time also includes a short tutorial before the test. During the test, you may take two breaks to stretch or use the restroom.

Once you have taken the test, some state boards of nursing allow you to obtain your ‘unofficial’ test results 48 hours later by telephone or computer. There is a fee, and the results have been graded once by the computer but have not been validated with the Pearson VUE center. After they have been validated, your state's board of nursing will mail the official results about one month later. If you do not pass and wish to take the test again, you must wait a period of time (the length depends on your state board of nursing) and reapply to the board for permission.