Exam facts · checked Nov 6, 2026
NPD-BC format, scoring and pass rate
Facts checked against nursingworld.org and codeofethics.ana.org · Last checked Nov 6, 2026 · Not affiliated with ANCC, ANA, AONL, NLN or AACN.
150 questions in 3 hours, one Prometric appointment, and a scaled score of at least 350 to pass. Each rule below comes from the NPD exam page, the certification handbook or the yearly data report, and the table names the source row by row.
Open the NPD-BC practice test60 questions, mixed content domainsNurse educator certification
Exam rules with their sources
| Fact | Detail | Source | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Questions | 150 questions125 scored and 25 unscored pretest questions, mixed in and not marked. | ANCC: NPD-BC Test Content Outline, effective Feb 26, 2025 (PDF) · ANCC: Nursing Professional Development Certification (NPD-BC)12 | |
| Scored questions | 125 scored questions | ANCC: NPD-BC Test Content Outline, effective Feb 26, 2025 (PDF)1 | |
| Question format | Multiple choice, one best answer | ANCC: Nursing Professional Development Certification (NPD-BC) · ANCC: NPD-BC Test Content Outline, effective Feb 26, 2025 (PDF)12 | |
| Exam time | 3 hours | ANCC: Nursing Professional Development Certification (NPD-BC)2 | |
| Where you test | Computer-based test at a Prometric test centerThe ANCC handbook (version 5) lists no remote-proctored option. | ANCC: Nursing Professional Development Certification (NPD-BC) · ANCC Certification Handbook, effective June 2025, version 5, Oct 12, 2026 (PDF)23 | |
| Testing window | Apply year-round; after approval you have a 120-day window to testOne move to a new 120-day window costs $100 and must start within 6 months after the first window ends. | ANCC: Nursing Professional Development Certification (NPD-BC) · ANCC Certification Handbook, effective June 2025, version 5, Oct 12, 2026 (PDF)23 | |
| Passing score | A scaled score of 350 on a scale that tops out at 500Criterion-referenced (modified Angoff). The raw score on the 125 scored questions is converted to the scale, so there is no fixed percentage or number of questions to pass. | ANCC Certification Handbook, effective June 2025, version 5, Oct 12, 2026 (PDF)3 | |
| Results | Pass/fail on the Prometric score portal after the exam; ANCC has the result within 24–48 hoursA failing report shows the scaled score and high, medium or low feedback for each content domain. | ANCC Certification Handbook, effective June 2025, version 5, Oct 12, 2026 (PDF)3 | |
| Retakes | After 60 calendar days, up to 3 attempts in any 12 months, with a new retest application and feeApply at least 5 days after the exam; eligibility is checked again. ANCC does not publish the retest fee on its exam pages, handbook or retest page. | ANCC Certification Handbook, effective June 2025, version 5, Oct 12, 2026 (PDF) · ANCC: Scores and retest application34 | |
| Pass rate | 72% of first-time candidates in 2025 (1,064 of 1,486) | ANCC: 2025 certification data (PDF), p. 25 | |
| Certified nurses | 7,474 certified nurses (December 31, 2025) | ANCC: 2025 certification data (PDF), p. 25 | |
| Accreditation | Accredited by ABSNC and NCCA | ANCC: Nursing Professional Development Certification (NPD-BC)2 | |
| Outline in force | Test Content Outline effective February 26, 2025 | ANCC: NPD-BC Test Content Outline, effective Feb 26, 2025 (PDF)1 |
Questions, clock and pretest items
Inside the 150, 25 are ANCC's tryouts for future forms, scattered and unlabeled; answer every item as though it counts. Each one asks for a single best answer.
Pacing: 3 hours across 150 questions works out to just over sixty seconds per item, time to reread a two-line scenario but not to agonize over every option. ANCC's sample questions show the item style, with brief stems built around a staff-education situation.
The NPD-BC outline
Short scenarios for short breaks
The same NPD-BC questions with every option explained, in a study app.
Six domains and their weights
ANCC publishes a count and a percentage for each of the six domains and nothing below that level, so subtopic weights quoted elsewhere are estimates. Domains IV and VI share one page here: EBP and process improvement.
I.
Educational Process Standards
Standards of NPD practice; teaching and learning theories (adult learning, constructivism, educational neuroscience); professional development models (Benner novice to expert, transition to practice, competencies, clinical ladder); education design (assessment, planning, implementation, evaluation incl. Kirkpatrick), orientation, in-service, competency management; continuing education and contact hours.
Education process questions (17)II.
Leadership
Leadership principles and organizational structures, change and resource management, healthy work environment and psychological safety, DEI advocacy, communication, negotiation, consultation and conflict resolution, group facilitation; professional standards, certification, credentialing and mentoring.
Leadership questions (17)III.
Ethical, Legal, and Regulatory Standards
ANA Scope and Standards and Code of Ethics, organizational recognition (The Joint Commission, Magnet), risk management as an educator (incident reporting, gap analysis), copyright, plagiarism, intellectual property, scope of practice and records.
Ethics and law questions (14)IV.
Evidence-based Practice and Research
Scholarly inquiry (study design, data collection and interpretation) and the translation and dissemination of research, EBP and quality improvement. Shares its page with domain VI.
EBP and research questions (15)V.
Technology
Business tools and virtual meetings, information systems (security, learning management systems, EHR), learning technology principles, simulation, gaming, virtual reality and virtual education, clinical technologies and device integration.
Technology questions (14)VI.
Program/Project Management and Process Improvement
Performance improvement and project management methods, organizational performance indicators, QI, PI and new-product or technology implementation projects, sustaining outcomes. Covered on the EBP and process improvement page.
Program management questionsHow the pass mark works
The raw count on the 125 scored items is turned into a scaled score by a conversion formula, and a pass is 350 on the resulting scale. The raw count behind that line isn't published; no percentage or count of right answers marks it.
In 2025, 72% of first-time NPD candidates passed (counts in the table). The same ANCC report gives NE-BC 63% (2025), NEA-BC 73% (2025) and NI-BC 65% (2025), also for first-time candidates.
At the end of 2025, 7,474 nurses held the credential.
Booking the Prometric seat
Applications are taken all year. Approval opens a 120-day window in which you book a Prometric seat and sit the exam; if it lapses, ANCC offers one move to a new window for a fee, and Prometric may charge to reschedule.
Seats are at Prometric centers only; the current handbook mentions no remote-proctored option.
Your pass or fail shows on Prometric's score portal when you finish, and the result reaches the certifying body within a day or two.
Retesting after a fail
The handbook and the retest page set a waiting period after a failed attempt and a yearly cap on attempts (60 days; 3 in 12 months). Each retest is a new application. Eligibility is reviewed again with each application, and no separate retest price appears on the exam page, handbook or retest page; see cost for how to budget it.
The high, medium or low rating per domain on a failing report points to what to restudy first. The study guide is organized by the same domains.
Renewal in one line
Each certification cycle lasts 5 years. ANCC certification renewal explains the renewal mix of contact hours and professional development categories, the rule that activities fall in the current cycle, and the coming handbook change.
Other NPD-BC pages
- NPD-BCThe hospital staff educator credential: format, fees, domains
- NPD-BC practice testQuestions across all six domains, every option explained
- NPD-BC costFee path: exam, ANA price, retest, renewal
- NPD-BC requirementsEligibility criteria, audits, practitioner vs specialist
- NPD-BC study guideWeekly plan by domain weight, ANCC reading list, traps
NPD-BC scoring and test day, quick answers
Do the unscored items count against me?
No. Your scaled score comes from the 125 scored items alone; since the trial items are unmarked, answer all 150.
Is there a home-testing option for NPD-BC?
Is there a percentage-correct target?
There isn't one. A pass is a scaled 350, set against a standard rather than a curve, and ANCC doesn't publish the raw count behind it.
Sources
- ANCC: NPD-BC Test Content Outline, effective Feb 26, 2025 (PDF) nursingworld.org · checked Nov 6, 2026
- ANCC: Nursing Professional Development Certification (NPD-BC) nursingworld.org · checked Nov 6, 2026
- ANCC Certification Handbook, effective June 2025, version 5, Oct 12, 2026 (PDF) nursingworld.org · checked Nov 6, 2026
- ANCC: Scores and retest application nursingworld.org · checked Nov 6, 2026
- ANCC: 2025 certification data (PDF), p. 2 nursingworld.org · checked Nov 6, 2026
Each figure is reread against its document on a fixed cycle, and the date beside a source is its latest pass. Where a number here and the document part ways, the document wins (how corrections happen).