The Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner (AGACNP-BC) certification exam is an entry-level board certification examination for nurses prepared to provide advanced acute care to adolescent, adult, older adult, and frail elderly patients. The current ANCC exam contains 175 questions covering advanced pathophysiology, pharmacology, assessment, clinical practice, and the professional role of the acute care nurse practitioner.
What Is the AGACNP-BC Certification?
The Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified (AGACNP-BC) credential is awarded by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC).
The certification is intended for nurse practitioners prepared to manage patients with acute, critical, and complex chronic health conditions across the adult-gerontology population.
The ANCC examination is designed to measure the clinical knowledge and skills expected of an entry-level adult-gerontology acute care nurse practitioner.
Do not confuse AGACNP-BC with ACNPC-AG. AGACNP-BC is the ANCC credential covered on this page. AACN Certification Corporation offers a separate Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner credential called ACNPC-AG with its own eligibility requirements and test plan.
Who Is Eligible for the AGACNP-BC Exam?
To qualify for the ANCC Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner certification exam, you must meet current licensure, education, coursework, and clinical-practice requirements.
RN License
You must hold a current, active RN license in a U.S. state or territory or the legally recognized professional equivalent in another country.
Graduate AGACNP Education
You must complete an adult-gerontology acute care nurse practitioner:
Master’s degree
Post-graduate certificate
Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)
The AGACNP program must meet ANCC’s current accreditation requirements. ANCC currently recognizes qualifying programs accredited by CCNE, ACEN, or CNEA.
APRN Core Courses
Your program must include three separate, comprehensive graduate-level APRN core courses:
Advanced physiology/pathophysiology, including principles that apply across the lifespan
Advanced health assessment, including assessment of human systems and advanced assessment techniques
Advanced pharmacology, including pharmacodynamics, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacotherapeutics
Your program must also include content in health promotion or maintenance and differential diagnosis and disease management, including pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic interventions.
Clinical Hours
Your AGACNP program must include at least 500 faculty-supervised clinical hours.
You may be able to test before formal graduation. ANCC may authorize candidates to test after all coursework and required clinical hours are complete but before the degree is officially conferred. Certification is not awarded until ANCC receives and approves the final degree-conferred official transcript.
AGACNP-BC Exam Format
The current examination contains 175 questions. Of these, 150 are scored and 25 are unscored pretest questions.
ANCC uses the pretest questions to evaluate possible questions for future versions of the exam. They are mixed into the examination and cannot be distinguished from scored questions, so you should answer every question.
What’s on the AGACNP-BC Exam?
The current test content outline became effective March 17, 2025. It contains three major domains.
| Content Domain | Scored Questions | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Core Competencies | 36 | 24% |
| Clinical Practice | 65 | 43% |
| Professional Role | 49 | 33% |
Older four-domain outlines are outdated. Previous versions separated Health Care Systems into its own content category. The current ANCC blueprint uses only Core Competencies, Clinical Practice, and Professional Role.
Core Competencies – 24%
Core Competencies contains 36 scored questions and focuses on the foundational clinical knowledge and assessment skills expected of an acute care nurse practitioner.
Knowledge
Advanced pathophysiology
Advanced pharmacology
Skill
Advanced physical assessment
Questions may require you to connect pathophysiology with patient presentation, interpret physical findings, understand medication actions and adverse effects, or choose an appropriate assessment approach.
Clinical Practice – 43%
Clinical Practice contains 65 scored questions, making it the largest section of the exam.
Knowledge
Standards of care and evidence-based principles
Advanced standardized assessment tools
Psychosocial factors, including emotional, cultural, spiritual, and social determinants of health
Cost-effective care
Health promotion and disease prevention
Skills
Risk stratification
Diagnostic testing and procedures
Pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic treatments and procedures
Study priority: Clinical Practice represents 43% of your scored exam. Expect questions that require you to evaluate patient information, prioritize risks, select diagnostic studies, and choose appropriate treatment rather than simply recall isolated facts.
Professional Role – 33%
The Professional Role domain contains 49 scored questions.
Knowledge
Scope and standards of professional practice
Health care policy and advocacy
Quality and safety improvement processes
Skills
Application of research and evidence-based principles
Patient-specific education and promotion of health literacy
Relationship development with patients, families, and multidisciplinary teams
Patients and Body Systems on the Exam
The exam applies the three major domains across adult-gerontology populations and a wide range of body systems.
Patient Age Groups
Body Systems
Clinical questions may involve:
How Much Does the AGACNP-BC Exam Cost?
| Applicant | Initial Fee |
|---|---|
| Nonmember | $395 |
| American Nurses Association Member | $295 |
| American Association of Nurse Practitioners Member | $340 |
| AANP Student Member | $290 |
| GAPNA Member | $340 |
The listed fees include a $140 nonrefundable administrative fee. Additional charges may apply for certain optional services.
How Do I Apply?
1. Confirm your eligibility.
Make sure your license, AGACNP program, clinical hours, and required graduate coursework meet current ANCC requirements.
2. Submit the ANCC application.
Apply through your ANCC account and pay the applicable certification fee.
3. Submit education documentation.
ANCC requires transcripts and education-verification information related to your APRN program.
4. Receive Authorization to Test.
After ANCC approves you to test, you receive an Authorization to Test notice.
5. Schedule through Prometric.
Use the information in your Authorization to Test notice to select an available Prometric testing center and appointment.
How Long Do I Have to Take the Exam?
After ANCC issues your Authorization to Test notice, you have a 120-day testing window.
The old 90-day testing window is outdated. Current ANCC policy provides 120 days after authorization to schedule and complete the certification examination.
If you cannot test during the original window, ANCC currently permits a one-time reassignment to a new 120-day testing window for a $100 reassignment fee, subject to current timing requirements.
Where Is the AGACNP-BC Exam Taken?
The certification exam is delivered by Prometric at approved computer-based testing centers.
ANCC certification examinations are offered year-round at testing centers in the United States and at available international locations.
The certification exam itself is not an at-home exam. ANCC offers remotely proctored Readiness Tests for preparation, but the AGACNP-BC certification examination is taken at a Prometric testing center.
What to Know on Test Day
Arrive at least 15 minutes before your scheduled appointment.
Bring identification that meets the current ANCC and Prometric requirements.
Personal belongings are stored outside the testing room according to Prometric security procedures.
You may mark questions you are unsure about and return to them later if time remains.
Answer every question. Unanswered questions cannot earn credit, and the 25 unscored items are not identified.
How Is the AGACNP-BC Exam Scored?
Your raw score is based on the number of scored questions you answer correctly. ANCC then converts that raw result to a scaled score.
ANCC certification examinations use a scale with a maximum score of 500.
Passing score: 350. You must earn a scaled score of at least 350 to pass the AGACNP-BC certification exam.
The passing score is not the same as answering 70% of the questions correctly. ANCC converts raw scores to the reporting scale, so a scaled score of 350 should not be interpreted as a percentage.
Exam results are reported as pass or fail. Candidates who do not pass receive a scaled score and diagnostic feedback showing high, medium, or low performance in each major content area.
When Will I Get My Results?
After testing at a Prometric center, candidates can access examination results through Prometric’s score-reporting system. Instructions for accessing the report are sent after the examination.
Prometric provides the examination results to ANCC within approximately 24–48 hours.
If you tested before your degree was officially conferred under ANCC’s Authorization to Test provisions, passing the exam does not by itself make you certified. ANCC must also receive and approve your final official transcript showing degree conferral.
What If I Don’t Pass?
You can apply to retake the certification examination after an unsuccessful attempt.
You must wait at least 60 calendar days from your previous test date before retesting.
You may not take the same ANCC certification examination more than three times during any 12-month period.
Each retest requires another application, and you must meet the eligibility requirements in effect when the retest application is submitted.
How Long Is AGACNP-BC Certification Valid?
The AGACNP-BC credential is valid for five years.
To continue using the credential, you must maintain appropriate professional licensure and satisfy the ANCC renewal requirements that apply when your certification is due for renewal.
How Can I Prepare for the AGACNP-BC Exam?
The current blueprint is much more clinically focused than a simple list of diseases. Questions can require you to integrate assessment findings, pathophysiology, medications, diagnostic testing, evidence-based treatment, and professional decision-making.
AGACNP Study Checklist
Use study materials aligned with the current three-domain ANCC blueprint.
Review advanced pathophysiology and connect disease processes with patient presentation and clinical findings.
Know common acute-care medications, indications, contraindications, interactions, adverse effects, and monitoring requirements.
Practice advanced physical-assessment interpretation rather than memorizing examination techniques alone.
Review risk stratification, diagnostic testing, and selection of pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic interventions.
Study common acute and critical conditions across cardiovascular, respiratory, neurological, renal, gastrointestinal, endocrine, infectious, hematologic, and other systems.
Review professional scope, quality and safety, health policy, advocacy, evidence-based practice, and patient education.
Complete timed practice so you are comfortable managing 175 questions within 3.5 hours.
AGACNP Study Resources
AGACNP-BC® is a certification credential of the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). ANCC is not affiliated with StudyGuideZone or Mometrix Test Preparation and does not endorse these products or services.
