To be eligible to take the ACNP selection test must be a licensed RN and a graduate of an accredited nurse practitioner program with acute care nurse practitioner track. One more thing, people must have a Master's Degree in Nursing.
Once the registration documents have been completed, there was a period of 90 days open to the ACNP exam must be completed. The cost ranges from $ 230 - $ 370 depending on the ANA membership and other discounts that may be applied.
ACNP certification exam containing 175 questions in multiple choice format. 25 questions are used for fact finding to help with future ACNP exam preparation. Examinees are allowed 3-1/2 hours to complete the test, which allows just over 1 minute per question.
Approximately 50% of the ACNP exam focuses on clinical decision-making and is divided amongst the various body systems. The remainder of the ACNP exam focuses on principles of patient care from a nurse practitioner standpoint along with issues of diversity and collaboration for patient care.
Re-certification must be performed every 5 years in order to maintain current Acute Care Nurse Practitioner certification. There are certain requirements that must be met in order to renew the ACNP certification. The ACNP must have worked in their specialty for at least 2,000 hours over the past 5 years with at least 400 of those hours being in the previous 1 year before certification renewal. An alternative to taking the ACNP exam over again would be to acquire at least 150 continuing education (CE) credit hours through education materials. These are available through literature, lectures and conferences, or teaching in the classroom, or through professional journal writings or editing.
