NREMT Paramedic Passing Score and Results: The 950 Scale and When Results Post

What an NREMT Paramedic result shows if you pass or fail

The National Registry Paramedic Certification Examination reports a pass or fail decision. What else you see depends on which one you get. As checked on October 18, 2026, the Paramedic Candidate Handbook describes the two reports like this:

The graphic on a failing report is meant to show how far your attempt was from the passing standard. The handbook presents that gap as a guide to how much more preparation you need before your next attempt.

Pearson VUE cannot help with results. The handbook says Pearson sends your exam data to the National Registry, and Pearson staff do not have access to your results.

When NREMT Paramedic results post: two statements in the same handbook

The Paramedic Candidate Handbook gives two different timings, and the National Registry has not reconciled them:

• Part 1, the introduction, says your results will be posted to your account within 1 to 2 business days after testing.
• Part 4, About the Examination, says the system posts results generally within three business days after you complete the exam.

Passy does not pick one. Plan for up to three business days, and check your National Registry account rather than waiting for an email. To find the result, log in, select the Candidate role, open your application, choose the Examination tile and select Get Results. If the result has not appeared after the longer of the two windows, contact the National Registry. The handbook lists exams@nremt.org for examination results.

While you wait, do not read anything into how long your exam ran. The 110 or 150 questions guide explains why the item count does not reveal the result.

Why 950 is not 95% or a count of correct answers

The 950 is a point on a reporting scale that runs from 100 to 1500. The handbook does not convert it into a percentage, and the July 2024 test plan publishes no raw cut score. So 950 does not mean 95% correct, 950 correct answers or 950 points earned from individual questions.

Two features of the exam make a simple percentage meaningless anyway:

• It is adaptive. The number and difficulty of items vary from one candidate to the next, while the passing standard stays the same for everyone. Two candidates with the same share of correct answers may have answered very different sets of items.
• Twenty items are unscored. Between 110 and 150 items appear, and 20 of them are unmarked pilot items that do not affect your score.

The 95% you may have seen elsewhere is something else again. The test plan says the exam can stop at the minimum length if it reaches a pass or fail decision with 95% confidence. That is a statistical confidence level, not a score.

The same 100–1500 scale and 950 passing point appear in the National Registry's EMT handbook, so the reading is the same at both levels. Passy's EMT guide to what the 950 passing point means goes further into the scale itself, but its item counts and timing are the EMT's, not the Paramedic's.

How the National Registry sets the Paramedic passing standard

According to the test plan, the passing standard is the level of knowledge or ability a competent EMS provider must show. It comes from a standard-setting study:

1. A trained psychometrician leads a representative panel of subject-matter experts from the national EMS workforce through a formal process.
2. The study produces a recommended cut score, which goes to the National Registry Board of Directors with data on its likely effect on the EMS community and the public.
3. Once the Board approves it, the standard applies uniformly to all candidates.
4. The standard is reviewed each time new exam specifications take effect.

The current Paramedic specifications took effect on July 1, 2024, so treat what older study sources say about passing with caution.

Why the NREMT Paramedic report has no domain breakdown

Older score reports from the National Registry used to include domain-level feedback. Its June 6, 2023 explanation of scaled score reports says that feedback was removed on September 1, 2023. The reason given: domain-level scores are computed on too few items to allow for reliable score reporting, and candidates relying on them were getting unreliable guidance for test preparation.

The change applied to National Registry exams generally. It did not change how the exams are scored, only how a failing result is reported. So the overall scaled score is the one official signal you get. For building a re-study plan around it, see the retake policy guide.

Rescoring an NREMT Paramedic exam: what it checks and what it does not

The National Registry offers rescoring by a qualified staff member. The handbook describes it as a way to verify a score, while calling an incorrect score extremely unlikely.

Only the items your request identifies are reviewed. If you think a specific item was outside the Paramedic scope, say so in the request. Rescoring is a separate process from retesting.

If your NREMT Paramedic result is unsuccessful

You can reapply and pay the fee as soon as your result posts, and a new Authorization to Test is issued. Before you test again there is a 15-day wait, described two ways. The handbook says to wait 15 days from your last examination date. Retesting policy 62.10 (version 4, ratified March 31, 2026) says you can schedule 15 days from the date results post, with the posting day counted as day 1. Use the eligible date your account shows.

You have six attempts in total, with remedial education required after the third. Every attempt must fit inside the two-year window after your course completion. The retake policy guide covers the attempt ladder, and the exam cost guide lists the $175 fee for each attempt. For a broader view of how candidates fare, the how hard is the exam guide looks at the pass figures the National Registry publishes.