OpenExamsFREE PRACTICE — ANY EXAM

Pennsylvania Certified Nursing Assistant — Requirements & Free Practice

US-PA · License preparation

250 free questions · Answer explanations · No signup required

Choose what to practice

Start with an exam below. Your examination requirements depend on your application pathway. View licensing requirements

Loading selected examination banks…

Licenses, application pathways and examination requirements

Each license and applicant pathway has its own requirements and exemptions. Choosing practice questions does not determine your eligibility.

Pennsylvania Nurse Aide Registry Enrollment

State nurse aide registry enrollment for qualifying paid nurse aides. Training approval is administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Education; examination and registry services are administered through the Commonwealth Credentia contract. Temporary emergency employment is an applicant history and transition condition, not a separately issued nurse aide license.

Licensing authority: Pennsylvania Department of Health, Division of Nursing Care Facilities · Application information

Reinstatement consideration following court reversal of the Department decision
No examination is required for this applicant pathway.
Court decision
A court must overturn the Department decision; the state must verify that the adverse finding qualifies for removal.
Scope
This pathway addresses the annotation, not an independent lapse from 24 months without qualifying paid services.

Official no-examination sources

Effective from 2026-09-22.

Registry enrollment through the statutory COVID 19 temporary nurse aide transition pathway

All of the following:

Agency examination statement
The Department of Health Examination Overview states: "All nurse aide applicants must pass both examinations before being listed on the Nurse Aide Registry." Section 9.1(a)(3) supplies the controlling statutory competency alternatives.
Attestation
The Department of Health testing page still requires a Nurse Aide Attestation Form for this category. The current online handbook lists E-0, E-3 and E-4, whereas the pinned January 2024 handbook also lists E-6A.
Background check
Submit the required criminal background check. The online Eligibility Criteria page states that exclusionary convictions and substantiated registry or licensing-board findings are disqualifying; FAQ 16 separately states that nursing-home employment with a conviction is determined by the facility and its policy.
Competency alternatives
Act 14 Section 9.1(a)(3) permits successful completion of the State nurse aide examination, site-administrator certification under an approved apprenticeship program, or hiring-entity assessment of all required training areas. The latter two are applicant conditions, not invented examinations; they may establish competency instead of sitting the registered NNAAP examinations.
Historical eligibility
The individual must have been hired under the federal and state COVID-19 emergency waivers, completed authorized training and competency assessment including the historical online examination, and completed at least 80 supervised hours during the declared emergency. Those historical training and examination records are applicant conditions.
Historical timing
The May 23, 2022 DHS/PDE/DOH letter states that no new temporary nurse aides may be hired after June 6, 2022, and describes an attestation cutoff and a testing window of 24 months from October 6 with three attempts. These historical conditions do not authorize a new temporary nurse aide hiring cohort in 2026. The route is retained because current consolidated Section 9.1 expressly provides it and the DOH page still lists it; an applicant must establish qualifying historical eligibility and comply with applicable agency timing requirements.
Minimum age
At least 16 years of age for Pennsylvania nurse aide employment.
Testing method
The Written (or Oral) Examination is one frozen examination identity; written and oral delivery are alternatives within that identity. When the examination pathway is used, both that examination and the Skills Evaluation must be passed.
Initial registry enrollment by examination after approved training (E 0)

All of the following:

Attempts
Three attempts to pass both parts within two years after completing training; failure requires a new approved training program before testing again.
Background check
Submit the required criminal background check. The online Eligibility Criteria page states that exclusionary convictions and substantiated registry or licensing-board findings are disqualifying; FAQ 16 separately states that nursing-home employment with a conviction is determined by the facility and its policy.
Minimum age
At least 16 years of age for Pennsylvania nurse aide employment.
Testing method
The Written (or Oral) Examination is one frozen examination identity; written and oral delivery are alternatives within that identity. When the examination pathway is used, both that examination and the Skills Evaluation must be passed.
Training
Complete a Pennsylvania Department of Education-approved nurse aide training program within the preceding 24 months. Pennsylvania training is 80 hours, including 37.5 supervised clinical hours.
Correction of a lapsed listing through proof of qualifying paid work
No examination is required for this applicant pathway.
Other registry
An out-of-state lapsed registration must be updated on the original registry before reciprocity can be used.
Work proof
Provide proof of at least one documented day of eight consecutive paid hours during each 24-month registry period. This corrects a lapse where qualifying work occurred; it is distinct from the E-3 route for actual inactivity.

Official no-examination sources

Effective from 2026-09-22.

Reinstatement consideration following a neglect annotation
No examination is required for this applicant pathway.
Determination
Petition for state consideration; the employment and personal history must not show a pattern of abuse or neglect and the original neglect must have been a singular occurrence.
Scope
Removal of a neglect annotation does not itself cure a separate failure to maintain paid work or inactive enrollment; such an applicant must satisfy the applicable renewal or E-3 reactivation conditions.
Waiting period
At least one full year after the neglect annotation before reinstatement determination.

Official no-examination sources

Effective from 2026-09-22.

Pennsylvania enrollment by examination for an inactive out of state nurse aide (E 4)

All of the following:

Attempts
One opportunity to pass the NNAAP Examination; failure requires retraining and reapplication under E-0.
Background check
Submit the required criminal background check. The online Eligibility Criteria page states that exclusionary convictions and substantiated registry or licensing-board findings are disqualifying; FAQ 16 separately states that nursing-home employment with a conviction is determined by the facility and its policy.
Minimum age
At least 16 years of age for Pennsylvania nurse aide employment.
Prior registry
Listed on an out-of-state nurse aide registry that has lapsed because no paid nursing-related services were performed for at least 24 consecutive months. The out-of-state registration is an applicant condition, not an examination leaf.
Testing method
The Written (or Oral) Examination is one frozen examination identity; written and oral delivery are alternatives within that identity. When the examination pathway is used, both that examination and the Skills Evaluation must be passed.
Reactivation of an inactive Pennsylvania registry enrollment by examination (E 3)

All of the following:

Attempts
One opportunity to pass the NNAAP Examination; failure requires retraining and reapplication under E-0.
Background check
Submit the required criminal background check. The online Eligibility Criteria page states that exclusionary convictions and substantiated registry or licensing-board findings are disqualifying; FAQ 16 separately states that nursing-home employment with a conviction is determined by the facility and its policy.
Employment
Do not work as a nurse aide until official enrollment or renewed active status is confirmed.
Minimum age
At least 16 years of age for Pennsylvania nurse aide employment.
Prior registry
Previously enrolled in Pennsylvania, but inactive because no paid nursing-related services were performed for at least 24 consecutive months.
Testing method
The Written (or Oral) Examination is one frozen examination identity; written and oral delivery are alternatives within that identity. When the examination pathway is used, both that examination and the Skills Evaluation must be passed.
Initial Pennsylvania enrollment by reciprocity from an active out of state registry
No examination is required for this applicant pathway.
Application
Submit a Pennsylvania reciprocity application through the Credentia Platform for verification and enrollment.
Prior registry
Currently listed on another state nurse aide or equivalent registry as active and in good standing under the federal nursing-home nurse aide requirements. Any unidentifiable prior examination underlying that registration is a condition, not a NNAAP leaf inferred from registry status.
Scope
The DOH Reciprocity section and the Pennsylvania handbook Registry chapter define this recognition pathway by active good-standing registration and application; it is distinct from their Eligibility by Examination pathways.

Official no-examination sources

Effective from 2026-09-22.

Continued registry enrollment by renewal
No examination is required for this applicant pathway.
Acceptable employers
Use a DOH-approved employer, including approved home care agencies or registries. Self-employment, private duty and doctors offices do not qualify.
Application
Submit the continued-enrollment renewal application through the Credentia Platform.
In service
Facility in-service education duties are distinct from the Registry renewal conditions; the handbook states that they have no impact on registry renewal.
Work
At least one documented day of eight consecutive hours of paid nurse aide work in an approved facility during the previous 24 months.

Official no-examination sources

Effective from 2026-09-22.

National Nurse Aide Assessment Program (NNAAP) Skills Evaluation

This assessment does not have a question bank.

Provider
Credentia Nurse Aide LLC (develops and manages the NNAAP exam); administered by Credentia at test centers
Format
Performance evaluation at a test center, scored and retaken separately from the Written (or Oral) Examination: the candidate performs five skills on a candidate volunteer acting as the client and is rated by a Nurse Aide Evaluator; each skill is scored Satisfactory or Unsatisfactory and all five must be Satisfactory to pass
Time limit
30 minutes
Examination sources

NNAAP Written (or Oral) Examination

Provider
Credentia Nurse Aide LLC (develops and manages the NNAAP exam); administered by Credentia online or at test centers
Format
Multiple-choice examination taken online or at a test center, in English or Spanish, scored and retaken separately from the Skills Evaluation; candidates may choose the Oral Examination form, in which the multiple-choice questions are read aloud by recorded voice (MP3 player at test centers) and ten reading comprehension (word recognition) questions are added, and both Oral sections must be passed
Exam questions
70 multiple-choice items: 60 scored and 10 pretest (non-scored); the Oral form has 60 multiple-choice items and 10 reading comprehension (word recognition) items
Time limit
2 hours
Examination outline
  • I. Physical Care Skills — A. Activities of Daily Living (22% of the exam; 13 questions) (22%)
    • Activities of Daily Living — 1. Hygiene
    • Activities of Daily Living — 2. Dressing and Grooming
    • Activities of Daily Living — 3. Nutrition and Hydration
    • Activities of Daily Living — 4. Elimination
    • Activities of Daily Living — 5. Rest/Sleep/Comfort
  • I. Physical Care Skills — B. Basic Nursing Skills (35% of the exam; 21 questions) (35%)
    • Basic Nursing Skills — 1. Infection Control
    • Basic Nursing Skills — 2. Safety/Emergency
    • Basic Nursing Skills — 3. Therapeutic/Technical Procedures
    • Basic Nursing Skills — 4. Data Collection and Reporting
  • I. Physical Care Skills — C. Self-Care and Independence (7% of the exam; 4 questions) (7%)
    • Self-Care and Independence
  • II. Psychosocial Care Skills — A. Emotional and Mental Health Needs (8% of the exam; 5 questions) (8%)
    • Emotional and Mental Health Needs
  • II. Psychosocial Care Skills — B. Spiritual and Cultural Needs (2% of the exam; 1 question) (2%)
    • Spiritual and Cultural Needs
  • III. Role of the Nurse Aide — A. Communication (7% of the exam; 4 questions) (7%)
    • Communication
  • III. Role of the Nurse Aide — B. Client Rights (8% of the exam; 5 questions) (8%)
    • Client Rights
  • III. Role of the Nurse Aide — C. Legal and Ethical Behavior (5% of the exam; 3 questions) (5%)
    • Legal and Ethical Behavior
  • III. Role of the Nurse Aide — D. Member of the Health Care Team (6% of the exam; 4 questions) (6%)
    • Member of the Health Care Team
Examination sources