The Nursing Entrance Exam for Canada
The Canadian Registered Nurse Exam

The nursing entrance exam for Canada is called the Canadian Registered Nurse Exam. The structural variables include the taxonomy, number, and context of the questions.

The Canadian Registered Nurse Exam is based on 148 nursing competencies for entry level nursing practice in Canada.

The Canadian Registered Nurse Exam has a specific structure. It is developed according to a blueprint or plan that defines how many questions should be on the exam to test specific knowledge and application of that knowledge.

The blueprint also defines the taxonomy of the questions.

What is a taxonomy?

A taxonomy simply means a classification. Cognition means thinking so a cognitive taxonomy simply means a categorization or classification of levels of thinking skills.

Here is the specified taxonomy or classification of cognitive skills used to create the questions on the Canadian nursing entrance exam.

• Knowledge and comprehension- questions written at this level require you to identify facts you have memorized. You can recognize the correct answer because you recognize it from the book or your notes. If you know the information well enough you may be able to retell it in your own words.


• Application - This refers to the level of thinking where you have to apply the knowledge that you have learned outside of its origin. Every time you do a dressing you are applying knowledge since you are applying the principles of surgical asepsis in a new and different situation every time.


• Critical thinking - more complex thinking than just application of knowledge. Questions written at this level will require you to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate data that is presented in the questions. You will not recognize a correct answer; instead you must carry out a complex analysis of the facts presented and what you know in your nursing knowledge base in order to arrive at the correct answer.

Except for the content of the actual questions there are no secrets for the Canadian nursing entrance exam (CRNE). It is based on 148 nursing competencies that are in the public domain on the website of the Canadian Nurses Association.

Variables of the Canadian Nursing Entrance Exam

There are two main categories of variables that affect the way the Canadian nursing entrance exam looks and feels. These are called the contextual and structural variables. Contextual variables are the factors that affect the context of the questions, and the structural variables are the numbers and types of questions and the specific variables that affect the complexity of the questions.

Contextual variables:

All questions are written in context of five specific variables that affect the context of nursing practice:

• the type of care recipient - Clients are defined as individuals, families, and groups, populations, and communities. You can expect the number of questions on the exam testing each of these client populations to reflect Canadian population statistics and the current trends of health care utilization.


• lifespan - client situations will reflect all life stages from preconception to advanced age.


• diversity - questions are developed to test the basics of cultural competency and awareness not the specific practices linked to different cultures other than the First Nations and Inuit peoples of Canada. Questions are written to be inclusive of diversity that includes age, gender, sexual orientation, and marginal populations.



Sometimes the context of the question will have more than one health condition present.

See the example of a case based question.

The patient is viewed holistically and health situations in the test reflect both stable and unstable patient situations that commonly occur in nursing practice.

• health situation - a cross section of health situations are tested. Canadian epidemiological data is used to make sure that the most prevalent health conditions are tested.


• nursing practice environment - the specific environment may or may not be specified (clinic, home, communities, industry) as it is assumed that nursing practice occurs in a variety of settings and environments. Community health nursing competencies are required for entry level nursing practice and are tested on the CRNE.

Structural variables:

The exam will have both case based and independent questions. Each case will have about 3-5 corresponding questions.

Independent questions each stand on their own and test a specific entry level nursing competency. They are not related to a specific case.

The exam is written in one 4 hour session. You must proceed through the questions at a rate of approximately 52 questions per minute in order to complete all the question on the exam.

There are no electronic devices of any kind allowed to be used during the exam and you will not be allowed to take anything into the examination room except for pencils and an eraser. You must also show your candidate identification card issued to you by the provincial regulatory authority.

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Go to the article on the meaning of a nursing license in Canada.

View the comparison chart of the American nursing entrance exam (NCLEX) and the Canadian Registered Nurse Exam

Read about the Substantially Equivalent Nursing Competency Assessment now being used in British Columbian and Alberta and other provinces to assess registered nurse education and competency to practice in the Canadian health care system.

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Go back to Canadian Registered Nurse Exam - Nursing Entrance Test in Canada

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