Scoring the CPN® Exam

All candidates will receive notification of pass/fail status after completing the computer-based exam. Formal PNCB exam results are sent approximately three weeks from your test date. In this mailing, you will receive an Individual Performance Report (IPR) to inform you of your performance on the exam.

All On-site candidates will receive official formal PNCB exam results approximately three weeks from the On-site testing date. In this mailing, you will receive an Individual Performance Report (IPR) to inform you of your performance on the exam.

Successful candidates will receive a certificate of achievement and a Certified Pediatric Nurse lapel pin. No results are given over the telephone or Internet.

Unsuccessful candidates may repeat the CPN® Exam. Candidates may apply for re-examination after receiving formal notification of fail status from the PNCB. PNCB's eligibility requirements must be met at time of application. On receipt of an application and re-examination fees, a new 90-day testing period will be assigned.

How is the exam scored? The CPN Exam is a criterion-referenced exam scored by statistical analysis of test items according to standard psychometric procedures. On your individual score report (IPR), several values are presented to reflect your performance. First, feedback on the number of items you answered correctly in each main content area of the CPN Exam is included. When added together, these figures represent the "raw score," or the total number of items answered correctly on the exam which is then converted linearly to a "scaled score." To understand the scaled score, you need to know the scoring process used by the PNCB.

In the PNCB criterion-referenced certification exam the raw score (percent score) is measured against or compared to an absolute criterion of mastery. This criterion is called the "cut-point". The number or percentage of items that must be answered correctly in order to pass is not decided arbitrarily. Rather, a panel of experts (CPNP® & CPN® National Exam Committees) evaluates each item individually for its level of difficulty. The average of these item values determines the criterion or "cut- point" for the exam depending on the items that appear on the exam. This means that if, for example, Form A of the exam contains more difficult items than Form B of the exam, the cut-point of Form A will be lower than that of Form B. Remember that the cut-point reflects the difficulty level of the items on the exam and indicates the score considered necessary to pass the examination.

Because not every candidate sits for the same form or version of the exam, the cut-points for evaluating the obtained score will differ. The "scaled score" is a way of putting all scores, regardless of the version of the exam a candidate takes or the total number of items on the exam, on the same scale or frame of reference. We use scaled scores that range from 200 (0 items correct) to 800 (all items correct) with a scaled score of 400 corresponding to the cut-point on the exam.

Current Statistics: The exam was administered 2,570 times during 2009 with an 85% national passing rate.