Certification: Certify By Exam | Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses (AMSN)

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Ready to get started? Pay the fees and submit today.

Before you apply, read the CMSRN Certification Handbook to be sure you can comply with all MSNCB and test administrator policies.

You have 90 days to take the exam from the date you receive your Authorization to Test.
You will receive your Authorization to Test (ATT) in an email when you are approved to schedule your exam.
If your test period expires and you have not taken the exam, you must contact us to request an extension. If you do not contact us with 10 days of expiration, you will need to reapply and pay the full exam fees again. The exam fee for your expired registration will not be refunded.

Fees, Discounts, and Grants

	AMSN Member Fee	Standard Fee
Initial Exam	$267	$394
First-time Retake Exam	$189	$315

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.

Testing Accommodations

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.

Audit of Exam Application

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.

Schedule

When and where to take the exam during your 90 day test period.

The CMSRN exam is available at testing centers or via live remote proctoring.

You can access the scheduling portal through your application after you receive your Authorization to Test.

Our test administrator will email you with a confirmation number and details of your exam date and location after you schedule your exam. You will need this confirmation number to take the exam.

Exam Day Requirements

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.

Reschedule or Cancel Exam

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

DAYS BEFORE EXAM	Reschedule or Cancel Fee
Over 15	No charge.
6 to 15	$25, paid to Prometric
5 or less	Not allowed. See extensions.

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

Missed Exams and Expired Test Periods

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.

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.

Withdraw CMSRN Application

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.

Study Resources

Prepare for success with the Prep Test and the Certification Review Course.

You've met the requirements, now it's time to prep for the CMSRN exam! We have compiled a diverse group of prep materials for every kind of learner. The Prep Test is a fun, interactive way to check your skill set, but we also offer information on Certification Review Courses near you.

We offer free learning aides such as the exam blueprint, sample test questions, and our resource list. See below for all the support we offer you, to help you be your best on test day!

CMSRN Prep Test

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!

Certification Review Course

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!

Review Books

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 Prep Bundles

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.

	AMSN Member Price	Standard Price
eLearning CRC	$149	$199
Prep Test	$65	$65
Individually Priced Total	$214	$264

Bundle Discount	20%	20%
Essential Bundle	$172	$211

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.

	AMSN Member Price	Standard Price
eLearning CRC	$149	$199
Prep Test	$65	$65
Review Questions	$34	$39
Core Curriculum	$89	$119
Individually Priced Total	$337	$422

Bundle Discount	20%	20%
Complete Bundle	$270	$338

Buy the Complete Bundle!

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

Free Resources

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

Exam References

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

NOTE: Use of study resources does not ensure success on the exam
These resources do not include actual examination questions and are not a requirement to sit for the actual CMSRN certification examination. These resources are not the only or preferred route to adequate preparation. Using these study resources does not imply advantage or successful performance on the examination.

Certify By Exam

Downloadable Resources

Good for you

Good for your employer

Domains of Medical-Surgical Nursing Practice

Med-surg nursing happens everywhere

Certification Grant

FailSafe Certification Program

150 Questions

3 Hours

95 Passing Score

Do the following before test day

Virtual check-in and security procedures

Start a remote proctored exam

Contact Prometric Support with technical problems

Request an extension for three reasons

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

Cost of extension is $79

One extension for one exam registration

FailSafe applicants are not eligible for extensions

Features

eLearning Certification Review Course for Individuals

eLearning Certification Review Course for Facilities

Live and Virtual Certification Review Course

Core Curriculum

Review Questions

The Essential Certification Prep Bundle

The Complete Certification Prep Bundle

Exam Blueprint

Sample Exam Questions

Exam Topics

Downloadable Resources