According to the NCSBN, before you can take the NCLEX you must submit an application for licensure to the state nursing board where you wish to practice, register with Pearson Vue -- which administers the exam -- and meet any additional criteria upheld by the individual state nursing board. Usually, this set of criteria involves completing the two steps outlined by the NCSBN and providing proof of education. For example, New York requires prospective nurses to have nursing schools verify their education by submitting documentation to the state.
The NCLEX examinations are computer-based tests that integrate all of the content under the heading of "Client Needs." This means that there aren't separate sections for subject areas such as medication dosages or patient assessment. Many questions are multiple choice, but some are fill-in-the blank or ordered response. Each question is doled out by the Computer Adaptive Testing System. This CAT system is a progressive program that estimates your ability based on each new answer you provide, and then gives you your next question based on that estimate. The goal of this system is to always give you a question that you have a 50 percent question of answering correctly, which works to nullify guessing-based strategies.
While the NCLEX-RN and NCLEX-PN are presented and administered in nearly identical fashion, the two tests aren't without differences. For example, the NCLEX-RN gives you a six-hour time limit to answer the maximum of 265 questions. The NCLEX-PN, conversely, contains a maximum of 205 questions and has a five-hour time limit. The reason that the numbers of questions aren't fixed is because of how the examinations are scored, which is also handled by the CAT system.
Aside from estimating your ability so it can continue to give you appropriate questions, the CAT system grades you every time you submit an answer, up until the moment it calculates to 95 percent certainty that you either meet or fail to meet the competency standard. In fact, there are only three reasons why the test will end: The CAT has concluded your competency; you have reached the test's time limit or you have answered every possible question before the CAT could reach its decision. Even though the CAT scores you immediately, however, you won't be informed of your results until the nursing board mails them to you approximately six weeks after you take the exam.