FREE Ohio CNA (STNA) Exam Guide 2026: D&S Knowledge Test + 21 Skills

Ohio CNA or STNA? Start With the Current Rules

Ohio's nurse aide exam has two parts: 79 knowledge questions in 90 minutes and three or four skill tasks in 35 minutes. The standard testing fee is $120. To prepare effectively, use Ohio's current Headmaster handbook and practice both components; a generic CNA quiz cannot replace the Ohio skills instructions.

You may still see STNA, short for State Tested Nurse Aide, in job advertisements and older study materials. Ohio law now calls an individual listed on the Nurse Aide Registry in good standing a certified nurse aide (CNA). That wording appears in Ohio Revised Code 3721.32(E), including its current version effective September 30, 2025. CNA is the current legal designation; STNA remains a useful search term for the same Ohio nurse aide pathway.

This guide was checked on October 10, 2026 against the Headmaster Ohio testing page, its linked December 2025 Candidate Handbook, Version 27, and current Ohio rules. Check the vendor page again before paying or attending: the handbook linked there controls test-day requirements.

Start free independent Ohio CNA practice, then use the Ohio study guide for topics you need to review. OpenExamPrep provides independent study material; Headmaster and ODH provide the official requirements and the actual exam.

Ohio Exam Snapshot: What to Book and Prepare For

The exam counts, times, scoring and delivery come from handbook pages 30-42. Fees are listed on page 8 of the handbook; for special circumstances, the handbook says to email ohio@hdmaster.com to request a paper payment form. Training and registry rules are explained below.

Do not confuse the exam clock with the whole appointment. Headmaster advises allowing up to six hours at the site when taking both components on the same day. Travel, check-in, waiting and testing are separate parts of that day.

1. Choose an Eligible Training Route Before Paying Tuition

For most new candidates, the route is an ODH-approved Nurse Aide Training and Competency Evaluation Program (NATCEP) followed by both exam components. Use the ODH nurse aide training page and its licensed-program directory to confirm a program's approval.

What the 75 hours actually include

Ohio Administrative Code 3701-18-12 requires at least 75 total hours. The first 16 hours cover classroom instruction, which may include laboratory simulation, before direct resident contact. The remaining 59 minimum hours include 16-25 hours of clinical experience. Unless ODH grants the specified variance, that experience takes place in an Ohio long-term care facility.

This is not a universal rule requiring 59 classroom hours plus 16 clinical hours. A program may use more clinical hours within the permitted structure. Ask for its actual calendar, classroom/lab schedule and clinical placement rather than assuming every 75-hour course has the same split.

Before enrolling, obtain written answers to these questions:

• Is this exact program currently ODH-approved?
• What does tuition include: books, uniforms, clinical placement and exam fees?
• What happens if you miss class or a clinical session?
• Which enrollment requirements are school policies, and which apply to paid employment?
• When will the program enter your completion and eligibility information in TMU?
• If a facility is sponsoring you, who pays each charge?

Do not treat an online-only course or a generic CNA certificate as proof that Ohio's training and eligibility requirements have been met.

Training waivers require approval

Certain nursing students and candidates with qualifying hospital-aide experience may seek a training waiver. OAC 3701-18-23 describes nursing-course documentation and hospital experience equivalent to at least 12 months of full-time work in the preceding five years, defined as 1,600 continuous hours in a 12-month period. The handbook also describes documentation for qualifying military training and experience.

Contact Headmaster about your specific route and obtain approval before booking. A waiver of training does not mean a waiver of both exam components.

School admission and employment screening are different

The ODH Nurse Aide Registry FAQ, whose linked PDF is dated May 2025, says a criminal background check is not required to enroll in training or take the state test. Employment in direct care has separate screening requirements. The FAQ also distinguishes physical/TB requirements for unpaid students from paid workers and facility policies.

Confirm minimum age, diploma/GED, health records and any screening policy with your chosen program and employer. Do not assume a school's age cutoff, vaccination list or lifting requirement is a statewide exam prerequisite. A past conviction requires an employer-specific review under the applicable Ohio rules; it is not accurate to call every listed offense an automatic permanent bar in every situation.

Ask about training reimbursement

ODH explains that candidates employed by, or offered employment by, a covered facility when training begins cannot be charged for the program or competency evaluation. It also describes prorated reimbursement when employment begins within 12 months after training. OAC 3701-17-07.1(I)-(J) addresses charges and repayment demands by long-term care facilities.

Discuss your situation with the facility and the ODH/Medicaid contacts on the training page. Keep receipts and the written funding arrangement. Do not assume that an advertised work commitment overrides these rules.

2. Complete TMU, Pay the Correct Fee and Confirm Both Appointments

Use Ohio TMU for your candidate account. Your eligibility record must be complete, demographic details correct and testing fees paid before you can schedule.

1. Sign in and complete all missing account information.
2. Match your first and last names to your acceptable photo ID and original Social Security card.
3. Ask whether your school or sponsor already paid or scheduled you.
4. Select the knowledge and skill appointments you need; confirm the site, date and start time for each.
5. Save the confirmation and review TMU notifications, directions and the current handbook.

The standard knowledge exam or retake costs $30; the optional audio version or retake costs $40; the skills exam or retake costs $90. Therefore, standard knowledge plus skills is $120, while audio knowledge plus skills is $130. These are testing charges, not a total tuition-and-employment budget.

If you need an accommodation, submit the vendor's ADA request with supporting documentation and obtain approval in advance. Allow time for review rather than booking first and assuming a change can be made at check-in.

Remote testing is limited to knowledge retakes. The handbook permits a remotely proctored knowledge retake subject to its equipment, check-in and monitoring rules. It does not offer a general remote first-attempt knowledge-and-skills exam. Skills are demonstrated in person.

For changes to an appointment, read the current rescheduling/refund sections and act promptly. Do not rely on a school's informal deadline or assume a no-show will be refunded.

3. Study the Actual 12-Domain Knowledge Outline

The handbook publishes the following question counts. Together they total 79, so use all twelve areas in your plan.

The Care Impaired category covers physical as well as mental limitations. It should not be reduced to dementia questions alone.

A practical knowledge-study method

Start with a mixed independent practice set. For each missed answer, record the topic, the clue you overlooked and why your chosen option fails. Then read the explanation and your course material before attempting a new question on that topic. Repeatedly remembering the same answer letter is weaker evidence of understanding than explaining a fresh scenario.

Use a timer during practice. 90 minutes divided by 79 questions is about 68 seconds per question, an average pacing guide rather than a required time for every item. Some questions will take less time and some more. Leave a review buffer in your own practice session.

The official passing rule is 70% or better. As simple raw-score arithmetic, 55/79 is about 69.6%, while 56/79 is about 70.9%. Those calculations are study context, not an independently published Headmaster score-reporting algorithm or a reason to aim only at the minimum.

Know the audio option's limit

The standard audio exam reads the first 59 questions aloud. The remaining 20 questions are answered without oral assistance to assess English reading comprehension. With an approved ADA accommodation for audio, all 79 are read. Request audio before submitting payment.

The handbook allows published word-for-word translation dictionaries without definitions or handwritten notes. Electronic dictionaries are prohibited. Show an allowed dictionary at check-in. A basic calculator and scratch paper can be provided by the proctor if needed; follow the vendor's rules rather than bringing unapproved equipment.

4. Rehearse the 21 Skills Using the Official Task Sheets

Your skill test starts with one of five mandatory tasks containing soap-and-water handwashing. You then receive two or three additional randomly selected tasks. The complete test lasts 35 minutes.

The first-task possibilities are bedpan assistance/output, male brief change with perineal care, urinary-drainage-bag care with PPE/output, female catheter care with PPE, and female perineal care. Soap-and-water handwashing is embedded at the end of each. It is still tested even though it is not a separate task on the current list.

Use this paraphrased index to organize practice; the handbook's numbered task sheets contain the exact steps and bolded scoring elements.

The scoring rule is task-specific

You must correctly demonstrate every bolded key step and at least 80% of the non-key steps on every assigned task. Passing one task cannot compensate for failing another. For a hypothetical task with 20 non-key steps, 80% would mean 16 non-key steps, in addition to all its key steps; the actual number of steps varies by task.

Do not use a made-up list of five actions said to be automatic failures on every skill. Read the bolded steps on the exact task sheet. Privacy, hygiene, safety and respectful care matter, but their scoring treatment is specified on each sheet. The handbook says steps are not order-dependent unless a step uses BEFORE or AFTER.

A partner drill that reveals missed steps

• Choose one mandatory first task and two or three additional tasks for a practice run.
• Have a partner read scenarios and mark the current handbook sheet as you work.
• Actually demonstrate the actions. Narrating a step normally does not earn credit for doing it.
• Practice measuring and recording where a task requires it; do not assume every test has a separately assigned measurement task.
• Identify every missed key step and rehearse the complete task again.

The examiner cannot answer procedural questions after the skill timer starts, but you may ask for a scenario to be repeated. You may correct or repeat a step on any task within the remaining time, before declaring the test finished. A correction must be demonstrated. Follow explicit task-specific exceptions, such as the nail-care instruction allowing the five-minute soak to be verbalized and acknowledged.

For the pulse/respiration task, the current sheet permits a full 60-second count or 30 seconds multiplied by two, with the required start/stop announcements and recording. Practice the exact task instructions instead of an older rule insisting on one counting method.

What the old STNA material gets wrong

The August 2020 Headmaster skills update (Internet Archive copy) dates the move away from five individual tasks and standalone handwashing to October 1, 2020. These were not new changes introduced by the December 2025 handbook. The current handbook lists 21 tasks; use that current list without assuming every past task was removed on the same date.

The handbook also cautions that exam task sheets do not describe all the care required in a real workplace. For patient care, follow your training, care plan, employer procedures and licensed nurse's instructions.

5. A Six-Week Plan for Knowledge and Hands-On Practice

This is an optional preparation plan, separate from the required NATCEP training. Adjust it to your class schedule, previous knowledge and available supervised practice. No fixed self-study total guarantees a pass.

For each study session, spend part of the time answering questions, part reviewing mistakes and part demonstrating a skill. If your partner identifies a missed key step, make that skill the next session's priority even if your knowledge scores are improving.

Open the free Ohio practice bank. The local Ohio bank contains 197 independent practice questions, checked on October 10, 2026. That is the practice-bank size, not the official exam length, a promise of live exam questions or proof of an identical question mix. You can supplement it with general CNA topic practice, while keeping the Ohio handbook as your logistics and skills reference. Optional AI tools provide 10 free AI sessions daily.

6. Avoid a Test-Day Turn-Away

Use handbook pages 16-20 and your confirmation as the final checklist:

• Be in the designated waiting area 20 minutes before the confirmed start. For an 8:00 a.m. start, that means 7:40 a.m.; allow extra travel time yourself.
• Bring your original Social Security card and an acceptable original, current photo ID. A Social Security office letter, photo, copy or digital card is not accepted.
• Ensure first and last names match on your documents and TMU record. Resolve changes in advance; the handbook does not provide same-day name-change service.
• Wear a scrub top with scrub pants or a scrub-material skirt and clinically appropriate closed-toe shoes for both components. Pull back long hair and keep fingernails short, clean and well-kept.
• Know your TMU login. All Ohio sites use electronic knowledge testing.
• Do not wear or bring a wristwatch into either testing room. The rule includes ordinary wristwatches as well as smartwatches, fitness monitors and Bluetooth devices.
• Keep phones, notes, bags and other personal items in the designated area. The handbook permits items such as snacks or study material during free time in the waiting area; that permission does not extend into the testing rooms.

Late arrival, unacceptable documents, incomplete account details or incorrect attire can produce no-show status and forfeited fees. Verify these items several days before the appointment, while there is still time to fix a problem.

7. Retakes, Results and the Two-Year Window

Headmaster sends passing knowledge and skills results electronically to ODH for registry placement. Check both your TMU account and the Ohio Nurse Aide Registry rather than treating a practice score as certification.

If you fail one component, ordinarily retake that failed component, paying its fee. The attempt allowance is three per component, not three combined bookings. Both components must be completed within the two-year training window. After three failures on a component, OAC 3701-18-23(B) requires another approved training program before further registration and successful completion of both components afterward.

For a disputed testing condition or result, contact Headmaster promptly. Its handbook requires a formal review request within three business days of official scoring, with a $25 deposit; the deposit is refunded if the review finding is in your favor. Read that process before submitting a request. Do not assume the examiner can change a result during a conversation at the site.

8. Keep Registry Eligibility Active, or Transfer From Another State

Paid work, verification and in-service education

OAC 3701-17-07.3, effective July 17, 2025, requires verification of at least 7.5 consecutive hours or eight hours within a 48-hour period of qualifying paid nursing or nursing-related services during the relevant 24-month period. The period follows initial listing or the most recent verified work date; it is not simply a universal calendar renewal date.

Long-term care facilities can use HEA 7713 to report employment. Other work settings may need different documentation, including a statement from an authorized provider or a physician/nurse. The ODH FAQ explains the required information. A W-2 alone does not prove qualifying duties.

If your status is inactive, distinguish two situations:

• You did qualifying work but it was not verified: submit the documentation ODH requires.
• You did not do qualifying work for the relevant period: ODH's current rules require the applicable additional training and competency-evaluation pathway. Contact the registry about your circumstances; do not assume paying for two tests alone always restores eligibility.

Long-term care facilities must also provide at least 12 hours of annual in-service education, under OAC 3701-17-07.1(K). That workplace duty is separate from the paid-work verification requirement.

Reciprocity into Ohio

If you are listed in another state's nurse aide registry, use ODH's Nurse Aide Registry requirements and reciprocity instructions. ODH verifies the transferring state's information; certification is not automatically portable without registry review.

The ODH FAQ requests the reciprocity form, a clear picture of a driver's license or state ID, and a clear picture of the Social Security card. It lists email, fax and mail submission options. Follow the current form and registry instructions rather than assuming a guaranteed processing time or that every territory follows an identical transfer route.

For work-status or transfer questions, contact NAR@odh.ohio.gov or (800) 582-5908. For exam booking and testing questions, contact ohio@hdmaster.com or (877) 851-2355. For training-program questions, contact NATCEP@odh.ohio.gov or (614) 752-8285.

After Certification: Evaluate the Actual Job Offer

Nurse aides assist with personal care and daily activities under licensed nursing supervision. ODH's training page describes the role in Ohio nursing homes and long-term care facilities. Other employers may use titles such as nursing assistant or patient care technician and set additional job-specific requirements.

When comparing offers, ask about base pay, shift differentials, guaranteed hours, benefits, orientation, lifting equipment and supervision. Compare pay with current BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics and actual local postings; do not treat an undated salary estimate as a guaranteed Ohio wage or a sign-on bonus as permanent earnings.

CNA experience can help you explore nursing, but CNA, LPN and RN are different roles. Ask an approved nursing program about its admissions, clinical requirements and total cost before assuming an automatic bridge or fixed completion timeline.

Your Next Three Actions

1. Download the current handbook from the official Ohio Headmaster page.
2. Confirm your training route, TMU names, fees and both exam appointments.
3. Start free Ohio knowledge practice and rehearse the current skills sheets with a partner and your instructor's guidance.

Keep the official requirements beside your practice plan. That combination helps you prepare for the questions, the demonstrations and the administrative checks that Ohio actually uses.