SCRN · CNRN
The SCRN (Stroke Certified Registered Nurse) and CNRN (Certified Neuroscience Registered Nurse) are ABNN's specialty credentials for nurses working stroke, neuro-ICU, neuro step-down, and rehab. Comprehensive Stroke Centers and Magnet-recognized neuroscience units increasingly expect bedside RNs to carry one of these letters after their name — and many clinical ladders tie a raise or a charge-nurse role directly to it. This page breaks down both exams: what each tests, how PSI delivers them, eligibility, and how to pass on the first attempt.
Pay Only After You Pass
No upfront fee — you settle only after your verified passing result. We advertise guaranteed results — 100% pass guaranteed or money back.
How ABNN builds the SCRN and CNRN — at a glance
170
170 multiple-choice items (150 scored, 20 unscored pretest) in 3 hours, entirely on the stroke continuum: anatomy, hyperacute care, acute management, post-acute care, and prevention.
220
220 items (200 scored, 20 unscored pretest) in 4 hours, spanning the entire neuroscience patient: stroke, seizure, trauma, tumors, infection, neuromuscular and degenerative disease.
5 yr
Each credential lasts five years and expires on December 31 of the fifth full year. Renew by continuing-education contact hours or by re-sitting the exam — your choice.
Both exams are linear (not adaptive): every candidate answers the full item bank, you can flag and revisit questions, and there is no penalty for guessing. Items are clinically framed — most present a stroke or neuro scenario and ask for the priority nursing action, the expected finding, or the correct interpretation of an assessment.
There is no fixed percentage to hit. ABNN sets a criterion-referenced cut score using a panel of neuroscience nursing experts who judge how a minimally competent nurse would perform. Your raw correct answers on the scored items are converted to a scaled score and reported simply as pass or fail. Over five years, about 62% of CNRN candidates passed — this is a real exam, not a formality.
Both are ABNN credentials delivered through PSI — pick the one your unit requires
| Credential | Code | Scope | Items / Time | Best fit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stroke Certified Registered Nurse | SCRN | Full stroke continuum — ischemic, hemorrhagic, TIA, hyperacute to prevention | 170 items · 3 hours | Stroke units, Comprehensive Stroke Centers, ED stroke teams |
| Certified Neuroscience Registered Nurse | CNRN | All of neuroscience — stroke, seizure, neurotrauma, tumors, neuromuscular, degenerative | 220 items · 4 hours | Neuro-ICU, neuro med-surg, neuro step-down, rehab |
Eligibility, fees, the PSI delivery process, and the five-year renewal cycle are identical for both. The fee is $400 for non-members and $300 for AANN members when paying by credit card (add $25 if paying by check). Whichever you sit, the same pay-after-you-pass arrangement applies.
ABNN's SCRN blueprint follows the stroke patient's journey — bars show the relative emphasis across the five content areas
Cerebrovascular anatomy and the circle of Willis, stroke pathophysiology, modifiable risk factors, and primary and secondary prevention — including statins, antithrombotics, and BP targets.
The first minutes and hours: NIHSS scoring, last-known-well, alteplase/tenecteplase windows and contraindications, mechanical thrombectomy, and door-to-needle/door-to-groin metrics.
CT/CTA/MRI interpretation cues, ICP and cerebral perfusion, hemorrhage and ICH management, dysphagia screening, complications, and the acute neuro assessment.
Rehabilitation, discharge planning, post-stroke depression, spasticity, swallowing and mobility recovery, transitions of care, and patient and caregiver education.
Stroke center certification standards, core quality measures, Get With The Guidelines, EMS routing, telestroke, and the systems that drive door-to-treatment times.
The bars above show relative emphasis, not official published percentages — ABNN reports its blueprint as content areas rather than fixed weights, and the hyperacute and acute sections carry the most items. The CNRN spreads the same depth across a far wider field, adding seizure, neurotrauma, neuro-oncology, infectious and degenerative disease. For the exact current outline, always confirm against ABNN's candidate handbook for your test window.
Two ways to sit the exam through PSI — and what to expect on test day
You sit the SCRN or CNRN in a quiet, monitored room at a PSI computer-based testing center. Staff verify your government photo ID, store your belongings, and watch the room throughout. You schedule a date and location after ABNN approves your eligibility and you receive your authorization to test.
You take the exam from a private room at home through the PSI Secure Browser, monitored by a live proctor. Before the exam unlocks you run a system check, install the secure browser, complete an ID check, and show a 360° webcam scan of your room. The browser locks down your machine for the full 3 or 4 hours.
A valid, unexpired government photo ID whose name matches your ABNN application exactly. The proctor captures your photo before the exam begins.
A clear desk, no second monitor, no phone, no notes, and a room scan. The PSI Secure Browser blocks other apps, screenshots, and copy/paste for the whole session.
Stay in frame and on-camera. No talking aloud, no leaving the seat without proctor approval, and no one else in the room. Lost connection or a flagged behavior can pause or void the session.
Specialty credentials for nurses on the neuro front line
An RN license plus real neuro experience — and a genuinely tough exam
Difficulty: These are not pass-everyone exams — roughly 62% of CNRN candidates passed over a recent five-year span. The hard part is breadth and recall under fatigue: alteplase contraindications, NIHSS scoring nuances, ICP waveforms, and seizure or neurotrauma protocols you may not touch daily. Working nurses studying around 12-hour shifts are exactly who our help is built for.
The SCRN and CNRN are dense, recall-heavy exams you have to fit around clinical shifts and family life. Exam Assist pairs you with a specialist who knows ABNN's blueprint and the PSI environment, and works on a pay-after-you-pass model — so the risk sits with us, not you. No upfront fee, guaranteed results: Exam Assist handles the sitting end to end, and you settle only after the verified result.
Tell us which credential (SCRN or CNRN), your delivery choice (PSI center or live remote), your test window, and your background. A couple of minutes over WhatsApp, Telegram, or Discord.
We review your timeline and experience and tell you plainly whether it's realistic — before any money is discussed. If it isn't a fit, we say so.
Exam Assist handles the sitting end to end. You're matched with a neuroscience-nursing specialist who maps the work around the SCRN/CNRN blueprint and the PSI Secure Browser setup — discreetly and confidentially.
You only pay once your passing result is confirmed by ABNN. No verified pass, nothing owed.
Pay-after-you-pass support from specialists who know nursing certification exams and how boards build them.
Understand exactly how live remote proctoring and secure browsers work before your at-home SCRN/CNRN.
A plain-English look at what proctoring software does and doesn't monitor on test day.
Tell us your credential and test window — get an honest feasibility answer, pay only after a verified pass.
Straight answers about the SCRN and CNRN exams
Sibling nursing certification exams in the same specialty cluster
Pair with a vetted nursing specialist on a results-first arrangement. No upfront fee — settle only after a verified pass.
Explore the service CCRNAACN's critical-care nursing certification — the natural pairing for neuro-ICU nurses who also carry the CNRN.
View exam CENBCEN's emergency-nursing credential — common among ED nurses who run the stroke-alert response.
View exam PCCNAACN's progressive/step-down certification — a frequent next step for neuro step-down RNs.
View exam CMSRNMSNCB's medical-surgical certification — relevant for neuro med-surg nurses building toward the CNRN.
View exam CNLCNC's advanced generalist credential — for neuro nurses moving into quality and care-coordination roles.
View examGet expert neuroscience-nursing exam help with no upfront fee — you settle only after your verified passing result. Honest feasibility answer first, results-first arrangement always.