The Cardiac Medicine Subspecialty Certification (CMC) exam is administered by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN), which is the largest specialty nursing organization in the world. The CMC examination tests your knowledge of cardiac medicine and cardiac-related processes and procedures.
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CMC Certification Exam Eligibility
To be eligible for this exam, you must hold a current RN or APRN license in the United States and meet ONE the following requirements:
- You must have at least 1,750 hours of RN/APRN practice in direct care of acutely/critically ill adult patients within the last two years
- You must have at least 2,000 hours of RN/APRN practice in direct care of acutely/critically ill adult patients within the last five years
CMC Certification Exam Outline
The CMC Certification exam contains 90 multiple-choice questions, 15 of which are unscored, and you will be given a time limit of 2 hours. The unscored questions are unmarked and spread randomly throughout the exam, so you will not know which questions are scored or unscored. These questions are used to evaluate the quality of questions for future exams.
The exam is split into four sections:
I. Cardiovascular Conditions (23%)
The questions in this section are designed to assess your knowledge and skills in the following areas:
- Cardiac conditions
- Vascular conditions
II. Non-cardiovascular Conditions (23%)
The questions in this section are designed to assess your knowledge and skills in the following areas:
- Respiratory
- Endocrine
- Hematology
- Neurology
- Renal
- Multisystem
- Behavioral and Psychosocial
III. Therapeutic Interventions (39%)
The questions in this section are designed to assess your knowledge and skills in the following areas:
- Cardiac procedures
- Vascular interventions
- Cardiovascular pharmacology
- Electrophysiologic interventions
- Respiratory
- Renal
- Multisystem
IV. Monitoring and Diagnostics (16%)
The questions in this section are designed to assess your knowledge and skills in the following areas:
- Cardiovascular
- Respiratory
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CMC Certification Exam Registration
There are two application options for the CMC exam.
You may complete the application online, on the AACN website. The application will ask you for your RN or APRN license number and expiration date, as well as contact information for a co-worker or clinical supervisor, who can verify your eligibility. At this time, you must also pay the $230 examination fee ($140 for AACN members).
Paper Application
For applicants applying with a group, taking a paper-and-pencil exam, and/or testing outside the US, a paper application is required. The application will ask for your RN or APRN license information and an honor statement. At this time, you must also pay the $230 examination fee ($140 for AACN members). Your application will then be processed within 2 to 3 weeks.
After applying, you will receive a confirmation email and an approval-to-test email and postcard from AACN’s testing service, PSI/AMP. The email and postcard will include an exam identification number, instructions for scheduling the exam, and a 90-day window for scheduling and taking the exam.
Test Day
On the day of the exam, you should arrive at the testing center about 30 minutes earlier than the scheduled appointment to allow time for the check-in process. When you arrive, you will need to show a valid, government-issued photo ID. If your ID is invalid or you forget to bring it, you will not be able to take the exam.
Before the exam begins, you will be asked to leave all personal items (cell phone, bags, wallet, food, accessories, etc.) in your car. You will then be asked for your AACN customer number, and a digital photograph of you will be taken.
You will then be given a practice exam to help you familiarize yourself with the computer system. Once the practice exam is complete, the real exam will begin.
You are permitted to take breaks during the exam, but the timer will not be stopped while you are away.
How the CMC Exam is Scored
The CMC exam is scored using the modified Angoff method. This means that AACN panelists are given information such as test results and other panelists’ rating results to determine the cut score. The cut score is a raw number that is based on how the AACN panelists established the difficulty ratings for each question.
To pass the exam, you will need to achieve a cut score of 50.
If you take the computer-based exam, you will receive your score report as soon as you finish the exam. If you take the paper-and-pencil version of the exam, you will receive your score report by mail 6 to 8 weeks after exam day.
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FAQs
Q
How many questions are on the CMC exam?
A
There are 90 questions on the exam, 15 of which are unscored.
Q
How long is the CMC exam?
A
The time limit for the exam is 2 hours.
Q
What is the passing score for the CMC exam?
A
To pass the exam, you must achieve a minimum final cut score of 50.
Q
How much does the CMC exam cost?
A
The examination fee is $140 for AACN members and $230 for non-members.
