CCRN Exam Day: PSI Testing Center or Live Remote Proctoring, From Check-In to Score Report

A CCRN attempt can be lost before the first question appears: a name on the ID that doesn't match the AACN record, a laptop that fails PSI's check, a late arrival. Every one of those is avoidable. This guide follows the day in order for both testing options, using AACN's Certification Exam Policy Handbook (September 2026) and its testing pages, checked on October 28, 2026. For the screen itself, meaning navigation, bookmarks and pacing, see the CCRN exam format guide.

PSI testing center or remote: choosing your CCRN setting

You choose the option on AACN's scheduling page before you pick a date. The exam is identical; the conditions around it are not.

A practical way to choose, not an AACN rule: if your home has no room you can guarantee will stay quiet and private for four hours, or you rely on scratch paper to work through calculations, a testing center removes two risks. If the nearest center is far away or your schedule is tight, remote testing saves travel but asks more of your equipment and your stillness. Either way, a planned three-hour, 150-question rehearsal in CCRN prep is one way to learn how you hold up over the full sitting.

The week before your CCRN appointment

• Check the exam name. AACN asks you to confirm that your confirmation email names the right exam, because the exam type can't be changed at the time of testing.
• Check your name. It must match your ID exactly. Name changes go through AACN Customer Care by phone, so do them early.
• Find PSI's emails. PSI confirms the date and time when you book and sends a reminder 72 hours before. Each reschedule brings a new confirmation.
• Know your last change date. You can reschedule or cancel up to 48 hours before the appointment. A missed appointment brings no refund and no extension.
• Remote only: run the system check and the Tutorial Test. PSI's Tutorial Test, linked in your scheduling email, runs a full system check plus a five-question generic mini-test. It must be done on the same computer and Wi-Fi network you'll use on test day, can be launched up to three times, and can be started up to 2.5 hours before your exam.
• Remote only: check the hardware. The handbook lists Windows 11 (64-bit), macOS 14 or 15, or Ubuntu 20.04, 22.04 or 24.04; a webcam and microphone; at least 750 kbps broadband; 8 GB of RAM; PSI's lock-down browser and Chrome extension; and third-party cookies allowed for the exam. Tablets, phones, virtual machines and Chromebooks aren't supported.
• Remote only: consider uploading your ID. You can upload it while scheduling so it's pre-verified. AACN says uploads are kept for 90 days after the test and you can delete yours in PSI's portal.

If your date is still open, you can match a planned CCRN access window to your appointment before you commit.

The IDs AACN accepts on CCRN exam day

You need a current, government-issued ID with your photograph and signature, and the name must match your AACN record. AACN lists four types:

• Driver's license
• State or province ID card
• International travel passport
• U.S. visa

Military and temporary IDs aren't accepted. For a remote exam, the handbook adds that without acceptable ID you are denied admission and a retest fee is required.

CCRN check-in at a PSI testing center, step by step

1. Arrive early. You can't start before your appointment time, and you won't be admitted more than 15 minutes late.
2. Leave things in the car. Books, papers, purses, briefcases, headwear, hooded clothing (religious apparel excepted) and coats stay outside. Anything unauthorized goes into secure storage, and PSI, AACN and H&R Block aren't responsible for loss or damage.
3. Expect the security routine. You empty your pockets, the administrator inspects items such as glasses, jewelry or bulky clothing, and scans you with a metal-detector wand.
4. Log in with your AACN number. The screen asks for a Social Security number; you enter your AACN customer number instead. Your photo is taken, stays on screen during the exam and appears on your score report.
5. Use the practice session. An optional practice session runs before the timed exam and isn't counted in your three hours.

AACN suggests dressing in layers so you can adjust to the room's temperature, and you can ask for scratch paper.

CCRN check-in for live remote proctoring, step by step

1. Start from AACN, not PSI. Launch the session from your AACN dashboard ("Take Exam") or AACN's scheduling page ("Launch Exam").
2. Log in 15 to 30 minutes early and allow an hour. AACN says check-in with the live proctor could take 60 minutes or more.
3. Photograph your ID and yourself, then scan the room. You do all three with your webcam.
4. Clear the desk. Headphones, electronics, phones, tablets, notes and reference materials can't be in the testing area.
5. Settle into exam posture. Both hands stay on or above the workspace, your whole face stays visible, and you don't cover your mouth. Talking, whispering and mouthing words aren't allowed.

During the exam the proctor can see and hear you, but you can't see or hear the proctor; messages come by typed chat. AACN doesn't recommend testing from a work environment other than a home office, because noise or distractions can get a session terminated.

The water conflict. One page of the policy handbook says food and drinks aren't allowed "except for water in a clear container." The next page says you may not eat or drink in the testing area, and AACN's violation list counts eating or drinking as a violation. Plan on drinking nothing, and if you need water for a medical reason, ask AACN about a comfort aid or accommodation before test day.

The remote behaviors that can end a CCRN session

AACN publishes its live remote proctoring violations with the maximum number of warnings allowed before the exam is terminated. Grouped by how much room each leaves:

Some of these are easy to do without noticing: reading a long stem half aloud, resting a chin on one hand, leaving a phone face down on the desk. If you test remotely, practice at home in the posture the proctor expects, silent and with both hands on the desk, for a full block of questions. The Test Day checklist planned for full CCRN prep is meant for the final stretch before the exam.

Breaks and the CCRN clock

At both settings you may request up to two breaks of up to five minutes each, whenever you wish, but no time is added. Leaving the testing area without authorization automatically voids the exam. You can't ask about exam content, but you can use the COMMENT button to flag an item, and a brief survey follows the exam. The exam format guide shows how breaks change the per-item pace.

When something goes wrong on CCRN exam day

• You're running late. Past 15 minutes at a center, or 30 minutes remotely, you won't be admitted, and a missed appointment means no refund or extension.
• Bad weather. PSI decides whether to close a site and tries to contact scheduled candidates. Its 24-hour weather hotline is 800-380-5416, and closures are posted at schedule.psiexams.com. An exam usually goes ahead if staff can reach and run the site.
• Your connection drops remotely. The handbook gives PSI's technical support line, 844-267-1017. Remember that the violation list allows only two warnings for connection loss or system errors.
• You're dismissed. AACN voids the score and keeps the fees, then reviews whether you may reapply; a re-exam needs a new application and fee.
• You didn't show up. An application less than a year old can be reactivated by paying a fee equal to the retest fee; an older one needs a new application plus that fee.

PSI centers also close on major holidays, which AACN lists as New Year's, Martin Luther King Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas, noting that the list may not be complete.

After you click End on the CCRN

Before the session closes, the system tells you about any unanswered items. There is no penalty for guessing, so answer them if time remains. Then:

1. Your result appears on screen.
2. A detailed score report follows by email. AACN's pages give 24 hours in some places and 24 to 48 hours in others, a conflict the CCRN passing score guide lays out. Plan on up to 48 hours.
3. Your certification appears in AACN's online verification system the next day, and you can have AACN email a verification letter to yourself, an employer or a state board.
4. A wall certificate is mailed about 4 to 6 weeks after testing, and you can print one sooner from your AACN dashboard.

Scores aren't given by phone or fax, and neither PSI nor AACN releases them to an employer without your written consent except in disciplinary or ethics cases. If you believe something on test day put you at a severe disadvantage, the policy handbook allows a written appeal to certification@aacn.org within 45 days of receiving the adverse decision, such as a score report; an appeals panel of certified peers decides within 30 days, and its decision is final. If you didn't pass, the CCRN retake guide explains the four-attempts-in-12-months rule.

Your next step for CCRN exam day

Put three dates in your calendar today: an ID and name check a week out, the 48-hour change deadline, and, for a remote exam, a Tutorial Test run on the computer you'll actually use. Then rehearse the posture and pace with the free CCRN practice questions, timing yourself at about 72 seconds each.