Sources

Last updated: September 28, 2026

The category list

Question tags follow the client-needs categories in the published NCLEX-RN test plan from the National Council of State Boards of Nursing. That outline is a public description of what the exam covers. It is not a source of questions, and we do not reproduce it.

NCSBN and Pearson VUE are not affiliated with this site. “NCLEX” is their trademark. We use it to name the exam people are studying for.

The clinical rules inside a rationale

A rationale rests on a standard teaching point (airway before a scheduled medication, two-person identification before a blood transfusion, soap and water for C. difficile spores). Those points are the common content of nursing fundamentals and pharmacology courses. They are not quoted from a licensed item bank.

When a rule is narrow enough that a protocol might differ, the rationale says what the usual teaching parameter is. It is still a study note, not an order.

Exam facts on the homepage

Item counts, the five-hour limit, pretest items, and the three stopping rules come from the 2026 NCLEX-RN Test Plan (NCSBN, effective April 1, 2026). The retake limit of eight attempts a year with 45 days between them is NCSBN’s retake policy; state boards can be stricter. Pass rates are from NCSBN’s annual NCLEX examination statistics.

What we will not cite as a question source

Official retired items, paid banks, and screenshots of the exam. The writing rules are on methodology.

The NCLEX Practice Tests Team

Built and maintained by the NCLEX Practice Tests team. Items are original and checked against the published test-plan categories before they go up. Each rationale is reviewed before publish. These are study questions, not official NCSBN items and not medical advice. About this site →