LPN Test – The Examination Explained
Once you have completed an accredited program for licensed practical nursing, you can obtain your license. In order to do this, you need to sit for an exam first. This will be different from the LPN entrace exam you may have taken to enter nursing school. After program completion LPN testing is carried out through the National Counsel Licensure Exam for practical nursing (NCLEX-PN).
The exam is computer based. You have to answer multiple choice questions only. These will cover only the material taught in your LPN course. You should not expect any questions on biology or chemistry material studies in high school. The exam covers safe and effective care, psychosocial integrity, physiological adaptation, infection control and pharmacological therapies.
LPN testing and assessment is carried out electronically. There is no human involvement whatsoever, so you can be certain that your knowledge and skills will be evaluated objectively. The computer gives you questions of medium difficulty in the beginning of the exam. If you answer them correctly, you will be given harder ones. If you come up with wrong answers, the computer presents you with easier questions. The examination continues until the system determines whether you pass or fail.
Given the specifics of this computer based LPN testing, you may answer anywhere between 85 and 205 questions until you are fully assessed and you pass or fail. The duration of the NCLEX-PN varies for the different candidates given the number of questions they will get. Still, you will have a maximum of 5 hours to complete the exam.
Once you complete your LPN test, the computer score will be determined. Your exam will also be scored by the National Council’s testing service. You can expect to receive your results within a month after completing the NCLEX-PN. They will be mailed to you by your state’s board of nursing.
If you fail your LPN testing exam, you will be able to retake it after a certain period of time. The time frame is determined by the states boards of nursing, so it can vary considerably from one state to another.
