Become a CMSRN

The CMSRN exam program has achieved the gold stamp of approval. After meeting rigorous standards, the CMSRN exam was granted accreditation by the Accreditation Board for Specialty Nursing Certification (ABSNC).

Accreditation demonstrates that the CMSRN credential is based on a valid and reliable testing process. The CMSRN exam received its initial accreditation from ABSNC in January 2009 and has maintained accreditation to date.
 

The ABSNC promotes the highest quality of specialty nursing practice through the establishment of standards of professional specialty nursing certification. ABSNC accreditation is valid for 5 years.

For more information about ABSNC accreditation, visit absnc.org

• Create a free account or log in to an existing account at amsn.org.
• If you would like to become an AMSN member, apply at Join AMSN.
• You do not have to join AMSN to become certified.

• License. You must hold an unencumbered and current license as a Registered Nurse (RN) in the United States, its territories, or Canada.
  • International nurses can also apply, see Eligibility.
• Years of practice. You must have practiced at least two (2) full years in a medical-surgical setting with your RN license.
• Hours of practice. You must have worked 2,000 practice hours within the past three (3) years in a medical-surgical setting. Practice may be as a clinical nurse, as a manager, or as an educator.
• Verification of employment. You will need to provide the contact information of your employer in order for them to verify your work experience.

• Start a CMSRN application.

Apply for the CMSRN

• Enter your RN license information.
• Submit payment or the name of your FailSafe facility.
• Submit your application.
• Wait for approval.

• You'll receive your Authorization to Test in an email. You have 90 days to take the exam from the time you receive your Authorization to Test. You cannot use the scheduling portal in the last 6 days of your test period.
• If you do not receive your Authorization to Test and do not have any contact from MSNCB about your application within five days, please contact us.

• Decide if you'll be taking your exam at a testing center or via live remote proctoring from a secure location of your choice.
• Return to the application and select Step 3: Exam Appointment Scheduling to access the Prometric scheduling portal.

• We recommend you start studying early and often!
• AMSN and MSNCB have many resources to help you prepare for the exam.
  • 2023 Exam Blueprint (in use starting May 15, 2023)
  • CMSRN Certification Handbook

• Arrive thirty minutes early for your exam, whether you are taking it at a test center or via live remote proctoring.
• Bring a valid form of identification with you.

• You will find out if you passed or failed the exam immediately after completing the exam. The test administrator will send you a Score Report within 24 hours of completing the exam. We will receive your exam score within five (5) days.

• Must be a member of AMSN at time of application to receive AMSN Member Fee
• First-time retake discount only active for one year following first exam.
• All exam fees include a non-refundable processing fee of $79.
• Fees subject to change without notice.

Certification Grant

The CMSRN Certification Grant covers the full fee of the exam application. You must have been a member of AMSN for at least one year to be eligible. Grant applications are open year round.

Apply for the Grant!

FailSafe Certification Program

The FailSafe Certification Program allows CMSRN-eligible nurses at participating facilities the opportunity to apply for the CMSRN exam twice within a twelve (12) month period. The facility never pays for an unsuccessful exam attempt. See FailSafe Certification Program to learn how your employer can partner with MSNCB to pay for your exam.

• MSNCB provides reasonable testing accommodations for individuals with documented disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
• Select the checkbox for accommodations during the application and we will contact you to request further information.
• Devices that have external communication capability such as cellular, wireless, or Bluetooth must be pre-authorized by MSNCB and the test administrator before you schedule your exam, or you may not be allowed to test on your test day.

• MSNCB performs a 5% random audit of all CMSRN applications to verify eligibility requirements of our candidates.
• Candidates who do not respond or whose supervisors do not respond to the audit request will not be allowed to take the exam and your application will be denied. 

150 Questions

The CMSRN exam has 150 multiple choice questions. 125 of the questions are scored, and 25 questions are unscored to gather statistical data on item performance for future test forms.

3 Hours

You have three (3) hours to complete the exam. We recommend you arrive at the testing center or launch the remote proctored exam application thirty (30) minutes before the start of your exam.

95 Passing Score

A standard score of 95, equal to approximately 71% correct, is required to pass the CMSRN exam. Your raw score is the number of questions you answered correctly out of the 125 scored questions. Your raw score is converted to a standard score to allow for comparison across different exam versions.

These scores reflect the 2023 CMSRN Exam Blueprint, which through a job task analysis, was adjusted based on current trends in healthcare delivery. This job task analysis and modifications take place every five years, and there has been no substantial change in the pass rate for the past twenty years.

You can take your exam anytime, anywhere with our test administrator’s remote-testing platform, ProProctor™. Proctors are there for you in real-time to assist with any problems you may encounter and to maintain the security and integrity of the exam.

Do the following before test day

• Complete the System Readiness Check (Step 1).
• Download and install the ProProctor Application (Step 2) after you schedule.

Virtual check-in and security procedures

Read the ProProctor User Guide to understand all check-in and security procedures. Failure to follow Prometric check-in and security procedures may result in the early termination of your exam and you will not be refunded your exam fees. Check-in and security procedures include but are not limited to:

• No other person or animal is allowed to be in your testing room at any point during the exam
• Your web camera or computer must be able to show your Readiness Agent a 360-degree view of your testing room, including underneath your desk or table

Start a remote proctored exam

Go to ProProctor Launch Exam and enter your confirmation number and the first four (4) letters of your surname thirty (30) minutes before the start of your exam appointment. Select "Find" and you will be connected to a Readiness Agent within a few minutes.

Contact Prometric Support with technical problems

If you encounter any technical problems during your remote proctored exam, please reach out to your Readiness Agent or Prometric Proctor. If you are disconnected from the agent or proctor, then please first contact Prometric Support for help. If they are unable to help you, then contact us within ten (10) days of your exam appointment or your exam application fees will be forfeit.

The Medical-Surgical Nursing Certification Board (MSNCB®) collaborates with our test development partner, Prometric, to develop the CMSRN® exam.

The CMSRN exam is based on a job task analysis (JTA), conducted at least every five years. A JTA is necessary to validate the tasks medical-surgical registered nurses perform, and the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to perform these tasks competently to provide safe patient care.

For full details about how the CMSRN exam is developed, see Appendix B in the CMSRN Certification Handbook.

Bring the following with you to your exam appointment:

• Confirmation number for your exam appointment
• Government-issued photo ID with a signature and expiration date. Your ID must be either unexpired or no more than 90 days expired.
  • If you are not a citizen of the country you are testing in, you must bring an unexpired passport with you.
  • Your ID name must match your exam application name. You must contact us 2 weeks before your exam appointment to have MSNCB change your name in your application.

You may need to pay a fee to Prometric to reschedule or cancel your exam.

Return to the scheduling portal through your application to reschedule or cancel an exam.

We understand life happens, and sometimes you can’t make a scheduled exam appointment or you forget to schedule an exam. In those cases, you can request an extension of your 90-day test period.

Request an extension for three reasons

• You cannot attend an exam happening in 5 days or less.
• You miss a scheduled exam.
• Your 90-day test period expired and you didn’t schedule an exam.

Contact us within 10 days of a missed exam or expired test period

You must request an extension within ten (10) days of a missed exam or the expiration of your test period. Your exam application fee will not be refunded and you will have to reapply for the exam and pay full fees again if you miss this 10 day deadline.

Contact us at certification@msncb.org to request an extension form.

Cost of extension is $79

The cost for an extension is $79 and is non-refundable. You will only be charged if your extension is approved. Fees are subject to change without notice.

If you miss an exam or are unable to schedule through no fault of your own, you may request a no-fee extension. Supporting documentation may be required.

One extension for one exam registration

You may only have one extension for each exam registration.

FailSafe applicants are not eligible for extensions

FailSafe applicants cannot receive an extension. If you are a FailSafe applicant and you miss an exam or your test period is expired, you should still contact us within 10 days to request your facility not be billed.

You must cancel any scheduled exam before you request to withdraw your CMSRN application. Then, contact us to request a refund. All exam fees include a non-refundable $79 processing fee, no exceptions.

We review refund requests on a case-by-case basis. Supporting documentation must be provided.

FailSafe candidates are not eligible to withdraw their application.

MSNCB has partnered with Test Run to offer you a real test question platform that offers detailed and personalized reports to help you analyze your strengths and weaknesses.

Features

• One set of 150 multiple-choice questions designed by a group of CMSRN credentialed professionals
• Three-month subscription with purchase
• Realistic exam questions from each of the relevant exam categories based on the CMSRN Exam Blueprint
• Customize your experience. You can take the full 150-question practice exam, or you can split it up into short 10-question quizzes in any of the knowledge domains.

Buy the Prep Test Now!

The Certification Review Course (CRC) is a thorough, interactive review of the most common diseases, symptoms, and issues seen in patients by med-surg nurses, along with the respective required nursing assessments and interventions. There are several options for how and where you can take the CRC, including at a self-directed pace online or in-person at a facility near you.

eLearning Certification Review Course for Individuals

If you are looking to set your own pace for studying, AMSN offers the eLearning CRC. These lessons include practice questions at the end of each section like those found on the CMSRN certification exam.  Upon completion of the course, you also earn 20.5 NCPDs. See Appendix E in the CMSRN Certification Handbook to learn about your contact hour accrual period.

Buy the eLearning CRC!

eLearning Certification Review Course for Facilities

Facilities may purchase licenses to the eLearning CRC. The site license offers multiple nurses at your facility access to the eLearning CRC at a quantity discount. Cost savings increase as the number of users increase!

Buy the eLearning CRC Site License!

Live and Virtual Certification Review Course

AMSN offers a live CRC and a virtual CRC, which bring a certification expert to you! This two-day course is a great way for facilities to prepare their med-surg nurses for the exam. This course covers a variety of medical issues med-surg nurses handle as well as test preparation strategies. It is a great opportunity to encourage unity and excitement for certification and provides test-takers the chance to ask all their questions to an expert.

Upon completion of the course, attendees complete an evaluation to earn 14 NCPDs. See Appendix E in the CMSRN Certification Handbook to learn about your contact hour accrual period.

AMSN provides coordinator support for the event so that your administration time is limited and budgeting is easy. If you are interested in hosting a live or virtual CRC for your med-surg nurses, contact us at crc@amsn.org. We’d love to hear from you!

Core Curriculum

The Core Curriculum for Medical-Surgical Nursing is your go-to guide for medical-surgical nursing best practices and exam preparation. The Core Curriculum is a great in-depth resource for residency programs and new nurses that will help them prepare for bedside nursing and their boards.

For bulk orders, please contact amsn@amsn.org.

Buy the Core Curriculum!

Review Questions

The Review Questions is a book of 345 multiple choice items. It includes rationales for correct answers and is designed to assist medical-surgical nurses in assessing their knowledge of medical-surgical nursing practice.

The book includes an answer sheet so that you can take a practice exam and then grade yourself. It’s an invaluable resource to help you prepare for the CMSRN exam!

Buy the Review Questions!

AMSN certification preparation materials offer candidates with resources to assist them in preparing for the CMSRN exam. By purchasing them in a bundle, test-takers can have all the prep materials they need at one low price.

The Essential Certification Prep Bundle

This prep bundle includes the Certification Review Course eLearning program and a 3-month subscription to Prep Test. This perfect pair lets you learn, assess for knowledge gaps, revisit the material, and test again.

Buy the Essential Bundle!

The Complete Certification Prep Bundle

This prep bundle includes the Certification Review Course eLearning program, a 3-month subscription to Prep Test, the Review Questions, and the Core Curriculum. With these four different ways to practice and learn, you can feel confident in having the resources you need to get ready for the CMSRN exam.

Buy the Complete Bundle!

Institutional pricing for both bundles can be found on AMSN’s Workforce Solutions page.

Exam Blueprint

Learn about the practice domains in the CMSRN exam by reviewing the exam blueprint.

CMSRN Exam Blueprint

Sample Exam Questions

If you’re curious about the kinds of questions that will appear on the CMSRN exam, this free resource is for you!

Sample Questions

Exam Topics

Visit our extensive topics page to explore educational content related to body systems and practice and patient management.

Exam Topics

See the CMSRN Certification Handbook for a list of all references used in the development of the CMSRN exam.