You must complete a CNA training program and complete the CNA certification exam before you can work as a certified nursing assistant(in most states). If you are about to enroll in a course or are currently attending a CNA exam, you might be worrying about taking the CNA exam. It will help you to understand a little more about the exam.
The first thing to keep in mind if you are training to become a CNA is that you need to pay close attention during your CNA training. Your course will be designed to prepare you for the CNA examination. You must carefully follow all classroom lectures, lab work and hands on studies. You will learn through studying and through practice. Check out our online CNA study guide to get a comprehensive review of the exam and ensure you are well prepared.
Written Portion of the CNA exam
A CNA certification exam is divided into two different parts, both of which will be completed in the same day. You will begin by taking a written examination. The written portion of the test will cover a lot of the material that you learned during your lectures and labs. Questions will pertain to patient care, patient charting and other important lessons and skills you learned during your training course.
The written part of the test will be comprised of multiple choice questions that you must answer. You will usually have up to two hours to complete this part of the test. In some settings, every student must finish this part of the test, before anyone can begin the clinical portion of the test.
Skills Portionof the CNA exam
Your second part of the test will be where you demonstrate your ability to complete tasks that you will be performing as a certified nursing assistant. Of course, you cannot demonstrate all skills during the test. Most tests will have you complete somewhere between 3 and 6 different tasks. You will be modeling these tasks on a person who is acting as a patient. Many test programs will require you to bring a friend or family member with you to act as your patient.
It is important to realize that when you are asked to complete a particular task, you must perform all steps that you would perform in a clinical setting to complete that task. For example, if you are asked to take a patient’s blood pressure, you do not merely walk over to the patient and start taking their blood pressure. You must first demonstrate your ability to properly wash your hands before working with the patient.
You must remember to knock on the patient’s door to let them know you are entering the room. Introduce yourself to your practice patient and tell them what you are going to be doing before performing the task. For example, you might say, “Good Morning Mrs. Jones. I am Jane and I will be working as your nursing assistant today. I need a moment to take your blood pressure reading.”
It is important to follow all steps that you learned during your CNA classes in order to pass your certification exam. Students often forget some basic steps when they are taking the examination. This is not hard to do since you are not yet working in the clinical setting and as a result of being nervous for the exam.
CNA Certification Exam Tips
Here are some things you must remember when taking the exam. Show the instructor that you know that you must wash your hands before interacting with a patient. Demonstrate the fact that you know you must knock on a patient’s door before entering the room. If there is not a door to a room where you are testing, mention to the examiner that this is when you would knock on the door before entering the room. Remember to introduce yourself to your model patient. Close the privacy curtain in their room (or mention that you would be closing this curtain now if you were in a clinical setting).
Even when you are testing, it is important to tell your model patient what you are going to be doing before demonstrating your skill. For example, let him or her know that you are going to be repositioning them in bed or helping them to get dressed and groomed for the day. You never want to just barge into a patient’s room without telling them what you will be doing.
When you are taking the skills portion of your certification exam, there are a couple other things to remember. It is important to put up a patient’s side rails if you are going to be moving them in their bed or performing another task where you need to make certain they do not fall. Side rails should be put back down after you are finished with your task unless there is an order to always have their side rail up for safety.
If one of your tasks that you must demonstrate is to brush a patient’s hair or help them to dress, remember to ask your model patient what they would like. For example, you can ask if they have a particular outfit they would like to wear today or how they would like their hair to be styled. You must always help a patient to preserve their dignity. This must be demonstrated even during your certification exam.
Taking the CNA exam will not be as difficult as you might think if you have followed along during your course. You should look over all handouts and tests you took during your training course. In addition, you can find practice exams and study guides online that you can purchase for use when studying for the exam. Enlist the help of family and friends to allow you to practice some of your CNA skills before the test. Remember, it will be possible to retake the test if you fail on the first try.
Hi, Thank you for information, my Question is What do I need to have before taking CNA class.
Another question is Do I need to have recent physical exam, for how long.
thanks .
Hi, You don’t need any physical exam before starting CNA classes. You just need a high school diploma in most cases.
How many questions can you miss on the CNA exam? How many total questions are there?
In the skills part of the exam, five different skills are tested. You have to do all of them to pass the exam. For the theoretical part, it depends on the passing percentage set by your state.
you cant miss more than 20 questions on the test
On the stna test how many can you miss on the written?
i became a cna in 1986 and remained until 1996.and then became a hemodialysis tech in 1999 and remained.my question is can’t i just challenge the cna boards to re-instate my certifcate.
Hi Shirley,
You’ll have to retake the training as well.
My question is, I have already completed my CNA class but, didn’t know how long you could wait to take your state boards?
the maximum amount of time you can wait is two year. If two years lapses you’ll have to redo the training.
If I have been working in the Medical Field for 17 years, I started out as a CNA and because I moved so often I never received my CNA Renewal, since then I have been working as a Medical Assistant, Can I just take the CNA Test or do I have to take a class?
If you haven’t renewed your license and it has expired, you’ll need to retake the training as well as the test.
no you do not need to take the training again just contact the nurse regerstry and provide them with your employment that you have been working as a cna , as long as you worked at least 12 in that whole 2 year period you will recive a grant letter from nurse regerstry then they will give you a list of places that will be testing you pay $106 and the school or nursing home that excepts you has 10 days to mail in your money order you award letter and your application and the date of your test , im doing mine now i test dec 9 ,,,
hey I have taken a cna class but it have been 3 years I passed the written part and fail the skills do I have to take the class again I live florida
Yes, You’ll have to take the training and do the certification test again.
I am considering taking the course, my only concern is that my husband is military and we may be getting stationed somewhere else (we are now in NC). My question is, if we do move, will I have to retake the course or exam for that state?
Nope. You’ll simply have to apply for a transfer of license which is a swift and easy process.
Can’t I challenge the state without going to a class to earn my cna license
Training is a must. Unless you’ve been a CNA before, you can’t opt to just do the exam instead of the training. Getting your training from an accredited training provider is one of the requirements for the CNA certification exam.
This must not be for state of florida because you can challenge the test without any traning…atleast in florida you can…i mean of course it would be smart to do training if u have no experience at all
Hi Tia,
Thank you for clearing that up. It is indeed true that you can challenge the CNA exam without training in the state of Florida. The training is however a mandatory prerequisite in most states.
I have been working as a PCT in Georgia. Here we aren’t required to have a certification. Can I challenge the board and take the CNA exam? I do exactly the same thing as a CNA I was just trained at the hospital I work at.
Unfortunately, all states require that you take a training program to be eligible for the CNA certification exam.
Hi, As you’ll see above we just discovered that Florida does not require you to take the training to be eligible for the CNA exam. You should clarify this with your state nursing board.
last year 2010 i took the refresher course for cna but i missed the testing time can i ask for a testing time now since i never registered for a previous date of time for testing
Hi Donna. After taking the training, you have a maximum of two years within which you have to register for the certification exam.
my question is, I am done with the cna classes and got all my hours now i need to know how to go about taking the state test?!… at the facility that i took my classes at our teacher said that if we did not want to work for that facilitly then we are responsible for setting up and taking the test ourselves how do i go about doing that? who do i contact and so forth?? i live in Texas
you can call nurse regerstry they will mail you a list of places in your area testing you can get one of them to let you test with them and pay $106 then you can test yes you can test
If i failed 1 of the 5 skills parts on the cna exam; how long can i wait to be able to take it again? And if i have waited 4 months will they make me retake the whole test again?? I really need to know before my certificate of training expires in a few months, if anyone knows please help me as soon as you can please….
To Whom it May Concern,
I have about 4 yrs experience as a CNA but did not need the certificate in the state that I worked in. Since I moved here to Indiana I found out that I need my certification, is there a way for me to take the test without having to go to the classes?
You can transfer your certification to Indiana if it is still active in your old state. If not, you’ll need to take the training and do the exam again.
I took the CNA exam, written and clinical. Is there any room for error in the clinical?
If you forget to do something in the procedure, do you automatically fail?
Thank you
I passed my cna written exam but failed the clinical skills part in 2009 can i retake the clinical skills test or do i have to take the whole class all over again please can someone get back to me asap bc the prometric website has been absolutely no help
I have completed my CNA classes and some of my clinicals, how long do I have to complet the clinicla before I have to start over again. I am in the state of MO.
If I completed two semesters of nursing school, including Foundations, physical assessment, Mental health, plus 70 hours in a hospital doing clinicals, and all my pre-reguisites like chemistry Anatomy and Phy, English Comp, Pysch, Critical thinking, can I sit to take the CNA exam in Indiana? I am taking some time off nursing schhol, and I need a job and I would like the experience too. Thanks