About the exam
NMC Adult CBT Exam structure
An independent study guide aligned to the current NMC Adult Nursing CBT blueprint, nursing test specification and Future Nurse standards.
Issuer and path
NMC Adult Nursing CBT Study Guide is administered through Nursing and Midwifery Council. Check official resources before booking, retesting, or relying on a stale requirement.
Part A: Numeracy
15 scored + 0 pretest
Fifteen applied numeracy questions using constructed one-number answers, with the correct unit where required.
Part B: Clinical
100 scored + 0 pretest
One hundred four-option, single-correct-answer questions mapped to the seven Future Nurse platforms and Annexes A and B.
Before booking and sitting
Confirm that the exam and both modules show RNA Adult nurse, use the passport or NMC-approved alternative identification tied to your application, request reasonable adjustments before booking where required, and follow the current Pearson VUE and NMC instructions.
Official Outline Coverage Map
Coverage is mapped to official outline item counts so content depth can be checked without hard-coding a single exam.
| Topic | Official outline items | Your questions | Your flashcards | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measuring the Correct Dose | 2 | 10 | 10 | Strong |
| Metric Units | 2 | 10 | 10 | Strong |
| Oral Medications | 4 | 21 | 10 | Strong |
| Injections | 3 | 16 | 10 | Strong |
| Intravenous Infusions | 3 | 16 | 10 | Strong |
| Fluid Balance | 1 | 5 | 10 | Strong |
| Platform 1: Being an Accountable Professional | 17 | 89 | 10 | Strong |
| Platform 2: Promoting Health and Preventing Ill Health | 10 | 52 | 10 | Strong |
| Platform 3: Assessing Needs and Planning Care | 14 | 73 | 10 | Strong |
| Platform 4: Providing and Evaluating Care | 15 | 79 | 10 | Strong |
| Platform 5: Leading and Managing Care and Working in Teams | 10 | 52 | 10 | Strong |
| Platform 6: Improving Safety and Quality of Care | 10 | 52 | 10 | Strong |
| Platform 7: Coordinating Care | 10 | 52 | 10 | Strong |
| Annexe A: Communication and Relationship Management Skills | 7 | 37 | 10 | Strong |
| Annexe B: Nursing Procedures | 7 | 37 | 10 | Strong |
How to use this guide
How to prepare for the NMC Adult Nursing CBT
Combine reliable unit-aware calculation with newly qualified adult-nurse judgement grounded in the Code, current UK practice and the person in front of you.
1. Identify the required output
For numeracy, name the value and unit to enter. For clinical questions, identify whether the stem asks for the priority, first action, best explanation, escalation or ongoing plan.
2. Protect immediate safety
Recognise airway, breathing, circulation, acute deterioration, medicine error, infection, safeguarding or accountability risks before routine care.
3. Apply the person and context
Use the adult's baseline, comorbidities, medicines, capacity, preferences, function, support, setting and available evidence.
4. Calculate or compare explicitly
Align units and show the arithmetic for Part A; compare all four actions against the Code, scope, evidence and escalation threshold for Part B.
5. Close the loop
Check magnitude or clinical consequence, then include monitoring, communication, documentation, referral or review when the scenario requires it.
Part A blueprint
Make every unit and step visible
The six official categories total 15 constructed-response questions and are assessed at apply-and-analyse level.
Measuring the Correct Dose
Determine the quantity or volume needed from the prescribed dose and available preparation.
Choose a topic to open below
Metric Units
Convert and express metric mass and volume safely, with unambiguous notation and units.
Choose a topic to open below
Oral Medications
Calculate tablet, capsule and liquid oral doses from prescriptions and stock strengths.
Choose a topic to open below
Injections
Calculate safe injection volumes using concentration, dose, route and patient factors.
Choose a topic to open below
Intravenous Infusions
Calculate infusion rates, duration, volume and concentration with a reasonableness check.
Choose a topic to open below
Fluid Balance
Total intake and output accurately and interpret the net fluid balance in clinical context.
Choose a topic to open below
Part B blueprint
Think like a newly qualified UK adult nurse
The 100 questions sample all seven platforms and both annexes, including ten adult-specific questions.
Platform 1: Being an Accountable Professional
The Code, legal and ethical duties, candour, evidence, inclusion, fitness to practise and accountable decisions.
Choose a topic to open below
Platform 2: Promoting Health and Preventing Ill Health
Population health, determinants and inequalities, prevention, screening, health literacy and supported behaviour change.
Choose a topic to open below
Platform 3: Assessing Needs and Planning Care
Holistic assessment, capacity and consent, risk, prioritisation, evidence-based goals and personalised care planning.
Choose a topic to open below
Platform 4: Providing and Evaluating Care
Safe evidence-based interventions, medicines, deterioration, complex adult care, evaluation, palliation and end-of-life care.
Choose a topic to open below
Platform 5: Leading and Managing Care and Working in Teams
Leadership, delegation, supervision, workload, teamwork and maintaining safe person-centred care.
Choose a topic to open below
Platform 6: Improving Safety and Quality of Care
Risk systems, human factors, infection prevention, incident response, audit, evidence and quality improvement.
Choose a topic to open below
Platform 7: Coordinating Care
Multidisciplinary coordination, discharge, referrals, transitions, continuity, safeguarding and complex pathways.
Choose a topic to open below
Annexe A: Communication and Relationship Management Skills
Therapeutic communication, reasonable adjustments, shared decisions, difficult conversations, documentation and handover.
Choose a topic to open below
Annexe B: Nursing Procedures
Assessment, monitoring, medicines, infection control, nutrition, elimination, mobility, wound care and acute interventions.
Choose a topic to open below
Dose, Strength and Quantity
Convert a prescribed dose and available stock strength into the correct number of dose units.
Key rules
Rule 1
Use required dose divided by stock dose, multiplied by the stock quantity, after aligning the units.
Exam cue: Write the required dose, available dose and available quantity before calculating.
Rule 2
The numerical answer must represent the quantity actually administered, not an intermediate conversion.
Exam cue: Check that the final unit answers the question asked.
Common traps
Dividing stock strength by the prescribed dose.
Prevention: Do not select a familiar task if it ignores deterioration, consent, medicines risk, scope, communication or follow-up.
Leaving mass units in the final field when a tablet count or volume is required.
Prevention: Do not select a familiar task if it ignores deterioration, consent, medicines risk, scope, communication or follow-up.
Memory anchors
What is the core dose formula?
Required dose divided by stock dose, multiplied by stock quantity.
What must happen before using the formula?
Convert required and stock doses to the same unit.
What does stock quantity mean?
The number of tablets or volume that contains the stated stock dose.
What should the final unit describe?
The amount to administer, such as tablets, capsules or millilitres.
What is the final safety check?
Confirm the direction, unit and clinical plausibility of the answer.
Next best moves
Quick check-up
Use a short quiz to confirm the rule pattern is actually sticking.
Check-up Questions
A prescription requires 750 mg of a medicine. Stock liquid contains 250 mg in 5 mL. What volume is required?
A patient is prescribed 400 mg. The available solution contains 200 mg in 5 mL. What volume should be measured?
Answer all questions to submit.
Next step personalized recommendations
Open another topic next
Official resources
Verify the details with the official sources
Use these links for eligibility, scheduling, handbook rules, and issuer updates. Our guide helps you study; official sources tell you what the testing partner currently requires.
NMC CBT: Test of Competence 2021
The current official CBT page with structure, RNA module selection, fees, preparation, results and resit information.
Nursing Test Specification for Candidates v1.11
The official assessment design with Part A category counts, Part B platform and annexe counts, Bloom distribution and pass-standard information.
Adult Nursing Blueprint v1.0
The official mapping of Adult Nursing proficiencies and associated Annexe A and B skills to the CBT and OSCE.
Nursing CBT Candidate Information Booklet v3
The current April 2025 booklet covering the test centre, rules, optional breaks, calculator and note board, response methods, results and resits.
NMC Test of Competence preparation materials
The official hub linking current nursing specifications, blueprints, candidate materials and Pearson VUE practice tests.
Standards of proficiency for registered nurses
The Future Nurse standards defining the seven platforms and associated communication and procedure annexes.
The Code
The professional standards that underpin every CBT question and registered nursing practice in the UK.
FAQ
Common NMC Adult CBT questions
Is this an official NMC or Pearson VUE resource?
No. This is an independent study guide. The current NMC CBT page, nursing test specification, Adult Nursing blueprint, candidate information booklet, the Code and direct NMC or Pearson VUE instructions remain authoritative.
What is the current Adult Nursing CBT structure?
The RNA CBT has Part A Numeracy with 15 questions in 30 minutes and Part B Clinical with 100 questions in 150 minutes. The maximum total testing time is three hours, including any optional unscheduled breaks.
What response formats are used?
Part A uses constructed one-number answers and may require the correct unit. Part B uses four-option multiple-choice questions with one correct answer. The current candidate booklet also calls Part B the theory assessment.
What are the six Part A numeracy categories?
The official allocation is Measuring the correct dose 2, Metric units 2, Oral medications 4, Injections 3, Intravenous infusions 3 and Fluid balance 1.
How is Part B Clinical allocated?
The 100 questions are allocated as Platform 1: 17, Platform 2: 10, Platform 3: 14, Platform 4: 15, Platforms 5, 6 and 7: 10 each, Annexe A: 7 and Annexe B: 7.
What cognitive levels appear in Part B?
The official test specification distributes the 100 clinical questions across 38 Remember and understand, 32 Apply and analyse, and 30 Evaluate and create questions. Study should therefore include judgement and prioritisation, not recall alone.
How much of the clinical test is adult-nursing specific?
Ten percent of each Part B test is field-specific and 90% is content that may apply across nursing fields. Adult examples include comorbidity and polypharmacy, cardiac monitoring, blood transfusion, chest auscultation, ageing, dementia, deterioration using A-E and NEWS, end-of-life care and transitions between services.
Can I use a calculator?
The current candidate information booklet says an on-screen calculator is available. Candidates are also given an erasable note board after the tutorial; personal calculators, notes and electronic devices are not permitted.
Must both CBT parts be passed together?
Part A and Part B are taken together initially but are passed independently. If one part is failed, only that part normally needs to be retaken within the applicable attempt and time rules.
What is the Part B pass mark?
It is standard-set separately by nursing field and form. The current nursing test specification says clinical pass marks generally fall within 60%-70%, so do not rely on one fixed percentage.
Why is a full mock not enabled in this guide?
This module contains a complete practice bank, but full-mock mode remains disabled because the current Pass Harbor question framework does not reproduce Part A's constructed numeric response with required units. The 78 Part A items are four-option calculation-practice adaptations; use the official Pearson VUE practice tests for authentic interface rehearsal.
Which version of the Code does this guide use?
It uses the Code currently in force. In July 2026 the NMC approved a public consultation on a proposed replacement Code, planned for September to December 2026, but consultation proposals are not current standards and are not treated as examinable rules here.