November 08, 2017
September 2018

B.C. and Ontario developing new Practical Nurse exam

The new exam will reflect emerging research, changing client needs and changes in nursing practice.

The College is working on a new regulatory exam for Practical Nurse (PN) applicants. The PN exam is one of the requirements for registration as an RPN, and one way the College meets its mandate to protect the public. We’re developing a new exam to ensure the exam we use remains current with the latest evidence and best practices. 

We’re collaborating with the British Columbia College of Nursing Professionals (BCCNP) on this project. Ontario and B.C. are two of the country’s largest regulators of PNs, assessing a combined total of about 7,000 PN applicants each year. Since we face similar challenges when assessing this large number of applicants, we’re working together to develop the new exam. 

Here are some of our requirements for the new exam: 

  • it reflects latest evidence and best practices, as well as emerging research, changing client needs and changes in nursing practice

  • exam questions are secure

  • applicants have multiple opportunities per year to write the exam

  • applicants will be allowed multiple chances to write the exam

  • exam materials will be available in English and French

  • applicants will receive their results quickly so they can pursue registration in a timely manner.

Collaborating for success

When it is released, the new exam will reflect the most up-to-date entry-to-practice competencies. We will continue to collaborate with Ontario educators from French and English nursing programs to ensure the nursing curriculum contains these updated competencies.

Helping us develop the new exam is the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN). NCSBN is an independent, not-for-profit organization whose membership includes nurse regulators from across the U.S., Canada and around the globe. They bring their expertise in exam development, security, technology, research and administration to the project. 

When launched in 2022, the new PN exam will be used in Ontario and B.C. It will not be the same exam used for licensed practical nurses in the U.S. 

Currently, all jurisdictions (except Quebec, which uses its own exam) use the Canadian Practical Nurse Registration Examination (CPNRE). Ontario and British Columbia will continue to use the CPNRE until we and our stakeholders are ready to implement the new exam. We anticipate starting to use the new exam in 2022.

Learn more about our work creating a new PN exam. 

About CNO

The College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) is the regulator of the nursing profession in Ontario. It is not a school or a nursing association. CNO acts in the public interest by:

  • assessing qualifications and registering individuals who want to practice nursing in Ontario.
  • setting the practice standards of the profession that nurses in Ontario are expected to meet.
  • promoting nurses' continuing competence through a quality assurance program.
  • holding nurses accountable to those standards by addressing complaints or reports about nursing care.

The College was founded in 1963. By establishing the College, the Ontario government was acknowledging that the nursing profession had the ability to govern itself and put the public's well-being ahead of professional interests.

For the latest information, please see our Nursing Statistics page.

Anyone who wants to use a nursing-related title — Registered Nurse (RN), Registered Practical Nurse (RPN) or Nurse Practitioner (NP) must become a member of CNO.

Frequently Asked Questions

Go to the public Register, Find a Nurse, to conduct a search for the nurse. Contact us if you can't find the person you are looking for.

All public information available about nurses is posted in the public Register, Find a Nurse, which contains profiles of every nurse in Ontario. Publicly available information about nurses include their registration history, business address, and information related to pending disciplinary hearings or past findings.

Unregistered practitioners are people who are seeking employment in nursing or holding themselves out as being able to practice nursing in Ontario, but who are not qualified to do so. They are not registered members of CNO. Only people registered with CNO can use nursing-related titles or perform certain procedures that could cause harm if carried out by a non-registered health professional. CNO takes the issue of unregistered practitioners seriously. See Unregistered Practitioners for more information.

To ensure procedural fairness for both the patient (or client) and the nurse, the Regulated Health Professions Act requires that information gathered during an investigation remain confidential until the matter is referred to the Discipline Committee or Fitness to Practise Committee. CNO will not disclose any information that could identify patients (or clients) or compromise an investigation. See Investigations: A Process Guide for more information.

Information obtained during an investigation will become public if the matter is referred to a disciplinary hearing. If a complaint is not referred to a hearing, no information will be available publicly.

See CNO's hearings schedule, which is updated as hearing dates are confirmed. Hearings at CNO are open to the public and the media. For details on how to attend a hearing, contact the Hearings Administration Team.

A summary of allegations and the disciplinary panel outcomes can be found on the public Register, Find a Nurse. Full decisions and reasons are also available.

Where a disciplinary panel makes a finding of professional misconduct, they have the authority to reprimand a nurse, and suspend or revoke a nurse's registration. Terms, conditions and limitations can also be imposed on a nurse's registration, which restricts their practice for a set period. Nurses can also be required to complete remedial activities, such as reviewing CNO documents and meeting with an expert, before returning to practice.

For detailed information see the Sexual Abuse Prevention section.

Related links