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Ohio Nurse Aide Competency Exam
Ohio's statewide nurse aide competency exam, required to be listed on the Ohio Nurse Aide Registry as a Certified Nurse Aide (CNA). The exam has two parts — a 79-question multiple-choice knowledge test (90 minutes, 70% to pass) and a manual skill test in which the candidate performs three or four randomly assigned ODH-approved nurse aide skill tasks before an RN Test Observer (35 minutes) — and both parts must be passed. The Ohio Department of Health (ODH) runs the Nurse Aide Training and Competency Evaluation Program (NATCEP) and the Nurse Aide Registry, approves the Ohio test plan, and has approved D&S Diversified Technologies, LLP (D&SDT-HEADMASTER) to provide the tests and scoring; exams are delivered on D&SDT's TestMaster Universe (TMU) platform at Ohio test sites, scheduled by candidates at oh.tmutest.com. Effective October 24, 2024, ODH retired the term 'STNA' (State Tested Nurse Aide): candidates who pass the competency exam are known as CNAs.
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QuestionsKnowledge test: 79 multiple-choice questions drawn from 12 subject areas on the ODH-approved Ohio test plan (Basic Nursing Skills 9, Personal Care 9, Safety 8, Infection Control 7, Mental Health 7, Role and Responsibility 7, Care Impaired 6, Communication 6, Data Collection 5, Disease Process 5, Older Growth & Development 5, Resident Rights 5 — sums to 79); Skill test: three or four randomly assigned ODH-approved nurse aide skill tasks
Testing time90 minutes for the 79-question knowledge exam (a 15-minute warning is given); 35 minutes for the three or four skill tasks; knowledge and skill portions may be taken on-site the same day
ScoringKnowledge test: 70% or better to pass. Skill test: must correctly perform ALL critical/key steps (shown in bold) and at least 80% of the non-key steps on each assigned task — missing any critical/key step fails that task
Exam feeUSD 30 knowledge exam; USD 40 with the optional audio version (USD 30 + USD 10); USD 90 skill test — USD 120 for both portions. Fees increased effective September 1, 2025 (Handbook V24.5 of 10.1.2024 had listed USD 26 knowledge / USD 36 audio / USD 78 skill). Retakes repay the failed portion at the same prices; replacement CNA card USD 25; test review request USD 25 deposit
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Exam overview
What to know before choosing your prep
- Who runs it
- ODH
- Category
- Nurse Aide & Nursing Assistant
- Current version
- Ohio Nurse Aide Candidate Handbook, Version 27, effective December 1, 2025 (current exam regime under the ODH-approved Ohio test plan)
- Where it applies
- US-OH, United States
- Exam languages
- English
- Testing provider
- D&S Diversified Technologies, LLP (D&SDT), doing business as HEADMASTER ('D&SDT-HEADMASTER') — the Ohio Department of Health-approved provider of nurse aide tests and scoring, delivering the exam through its TestMaster Universe (TMU) platform; D&SDT is also an approved testing vendor for the Ohio CNA exam through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
- Format
- Computer-based knowledge exam delivered on Internet-connected computers through D&SDT's TestMaster Universe (TMU) electronic testing platform at Ohio test sites, started with a code from the Knowledge Test Proctor; the skill test is an in-person, hands-on task demonstration observed and scored by an RN Test Observer
- Availability
- Candidate-scheduled online at oh.tmutest.com after the TMU record is verified and the fee paid; administered at Ohio test sites using electronic TMU testing; D&SDT-HEADMASTER scheduling assistance by phone (877) 851-2355, 8:00AM-8:00PM ET Monday-Friday
- Results
- After passing both portions, results are sent electronically to the Ohio Department of Health by D&SDT-HEADMASTER and the candidate's name is placed on the Ohio Nurse Aide Registry; D&SDT-HEADMASTER mails the 'PASSED' results letter with the laminated CNA card to the address in the candidate's TMU account (replacement card USD 25). No processing time is published
- Credential validity
- No score validity period is published; eligibility to attempt the exam is bounded by three attempts within two years of nurse aide training program completion, after which a new ODH-approved training program is required before further attempts. Registry listing in good standing is what constitutes certification (no expiry stated on the cited pages)
- Remote testing
- Varies by jurisdiction
Exam structure
Two-part state competency exam: (1) a 79-question multiple-choice knowledge test covering the 12 ODH-approved subject areas, delivered on computer; and (2) a manual skill test in which the candidate performs three or four randomly assigned ODH-approved nurse aide skill tasks, each with a scenario read aloud by an RN Test Observer. Both parts must be passed for listing on the Ohio Nurse Aide Registry
Where rules vary
Ohio statewide: a single ODH-approved Ohio test plan governs the exam at all Ohio test sites, and passing candidates are listed on the single Ohio Nurse Aide Registry; NATCEP oversees nurse aide training 'across the state' with no local variation. The training-and-competency-evaluation requirement is the federal one for aides employed by Medicare/Medicaid-certified nursing facilities, implemented statewide by Ohio (OAC chapter 3701-18).
Eligibility
Completion of an ODH-approved NATCEP training program of no less than 75 hours — classroom instruction (some online allowed), skills-lab instruction, and 16 hours of clinical experience in a skilled nursing facility — or a waiver of training under Ohio Administrative Code 3701-18-23 (e.g., nursing students who have completed a course including basic nursing skills; individuals with at least 1,600 hours employed as a hospital nurse aide within the preceding five years). At testing, candidates must present a government-issued, photo-bearing, signed, non-expired ID and their original Social Security card
Retake policy
Three attempts total at the knowledge and skill portions within two years of training completion. A failed portion must be repaid before a retest can be scheduled (knowledge retake USD 30, audio retake USD 40, skill retake USD 90, per the Payment Information table); knowledge retakes may use the Remotely Proctored option. After three failed attempts on either portion, a facility 'can no longer employ you to perform nurse aide duties'; if the two-year window lapses, a new ODH-approved training program is required before further attempts