LICENSURE BY EXAMINATION
The North Carolina Board of Nursing (NCBON) uses the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) prepared by National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) to measure competence for entry-level practice for graduates of Board-approved programs of nurse education. The National Council of State Boards of Nursing has contracted with Pearson VUE to administer NCLEX using COMPUTERIZED ADAPTIVE TESTING.
You are eligible to take the NCLEX through the NCBON when you have successfully completed the requirements for graduation from a Board-approved practical nurse or registered nurse education program. All programs of study must have North Carolina Board of Nursing approval. Currently, any program approved by its home state Board of Nursing is recognized by the NCBON. To verify that you have completed an approved program, in-state graduates will have a verification form sent to us from their School of Nursing. For graduates from programs outside of NC, please request that an official final transcript, including your coursework, graduation date and degree, be sent to the NC Board of Nursing directly. Additional documentation may be requested after review of the transcript.
To apply to take the NCLEX through the NCBON, you may use our on-line North Carolina Application for Licensure by Exam. Follow the instructions, submit your application on-line, and you will be provided the requirements to be eligible to test through the NCBON and to be eligible for North Carolina licensure once you pass the exam.
Once you have completed the eligibility requirements, the testing service (Pearson VUE) will send an Authorization To Test (ATT) by e-mail if you provided an e-mail address on your NCLEX Registration. If an e-mail address was not provided your ATT will be mailed. The name (first, middle, and last) on your ATT must match exactly the name on your Identification. You must have your ATT document to schedule your exam date time and location. You must take your ATT to the test center on the day of your examination. You will not be admitted to the examination without your ATT.
Examination appointments can be scheduled through the NCLEX Candidate website www.vue.com/nclexor by calling NCLEX Candidate Services 1-866-496-2539. You may select any Pearson Professional Center located around the world. Click here for a list of Pearson Professional Centers in North Carolina.
The Application for Licensure by Examination will be held active for one year or until you are declared eligible and issued an ATT. An ATT is valid for 180 days. If you miss your appointment, are turned away from the testing center, or the ATT expires, you will have to apply to re-establish eligibility. In these cases, information will be provided.
Application status check for Exam: Applicants can check the status of their NC application for NCLEX by selecting "Quick Links>Online Services".
Examination results: Currently, the NCBON can only deliver your official result by mail. All results received from the testing service (Pearson VUE) are mailed on the next licensure day (usually Tuesday and Friday) to the address provided in the North Carolina Application for Licensure by Exam. Pearson VUE has, by contract, up to 30 days to deliver results to the NCBON. Please DO NOT CALL the NC Board of Nursing, NCLEX Candidate Services, the Pearson Professional Centers or NCSBN for examination results. Telephone inquiries, e-mails and letters requesting information will not accelerate the process. The NCBON cannot provide exam results over the phone; to verify a license use our license verification system at 919-881-2272 or on our website under "Verify License". Also, the NCBON does currently participate in the unofficial Quick Results service offered by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN). Go to: http://www.ncsbn.org/testing/candidates_post_candidate_quick_results.asp for more information. These results are unofficial, so please allow the 30-day timeframe to process your official result before contacting the NCBON. The status of your Criminal Background Check (CBC) does not affect pass/fail results; however, completion of the CBC is required for licensure.
On July 1, 2000, the North Carolina Board of Nursing joined the Nurse Licensure Compact. This interstate compact is the basis for the mutual recognition model of nursing regulation among states whose legislatures have enacted the compact. These states are called party states. Click HERE for specific information about how the interstate compact will effect your license in North Carolina. If you plan to reside outside of NC, please review this information before applying to take the exam through the North Carolina Board of Nursing.