7.3 Written Exam Strategy and the Georgia Registry

Written Exam Strategy and the Georgia Registry

Quick Answer: The Georgia Written Examination is 60 multiple-choice questions in 90 minutes, passing at 70% (42 of 60). Most questions are application scenarios that ask what the nurse aide should do. Read for qualifier words (first, best, most, except), pick the safe action within CNA scope, and pace at about 1.5 minutes per question. After you pass both parts, Credentia reports your result and Alliant Health Solutions lists you on the Georgia Nurse Aide Registry.

What the Written Test Actually Asks

The Georgia written test uses the NNAAP (National Nurse Aide Assessment Program) format: 60 multiple-choice questions with a 90-minute limit, scored at 70% (42 of 60 correct). An oral version — read aloud with extra word-recognition items — is available for candidates who have difficulty reading English. Most items are application questions: they describe a resident situation and ask what the nurse aide should do. You are not asked to recite a definition; you are asked to apply a principle of safe, dignified care.

Read the Stem for Qualifier Words

The most avoidable mistakes come from misreading the question. A single qualifier word can flip which option is correct:

• "First" / "initial" — several options may be valid steps, but only one is the right starting action (often hand washing, ensuring safety, or explaining the procedure).
• "Best" / "most important" / "priority" — choose the answer that protects life, safety, or dignity above convenience.
• "Except" / "not" — the correct answer is the option that does NOT belong; you must read every choice.

The Recurring Traps to Recognize

Objective vs. subjective. A sign is observed or measured (a rash, swelling, a blood pressure of 168/96); a symptom is reported by the resident ("I feel dizzy," "My chest hurts"). Many questions test whether you can separate what you saw from what you were told and report subjective complaints in the resident's own words.

Scope of practice. A CNA does not assess, diagnose, give medications, insert or remove catheters, or change sterile dressings. When an option asks you to do something only a nurse may do, it is a distractor — the correct choice is almost always to report or notify the licensed nurse.

When to report vs. when to act. In an emergency you act first within your scope (ease a falling resident to the floor, start abdominal thrusts for a choking adult), then call the nurse. For abnormal vital signs, skin changes, or a refusal of care, you report rather than treat.

Safety-always and dignity. When choices compete, the answer that keeps the resident safe (locked wheels, bed low, call light in reach) and respects dignity and privacy (knock, drape, preferred name) is almost always correct, even if a faster option exists.

A reliable approach to each question

1. Read the full stem and note any qualifier (first, best, most, except, not).
2. Decide what the item is really testing (safety, scope, communication, rights).
3. Eliminate options that are unsafe, out of CNA scope, or that violate resident rights.
4. Choose the safest in-scope action that respects dignity and privacy.
5. Flag and skip anything you are unsure of, then return to it.

Pacing and Distractor Elimination

With 60 questions in 90 minutes, you have about 1.5 minutes per question — enough time to read carefully but not to agonize. Answer the easy items first, flag the hard ones, and come back. On tough questions, eliminate the clearly wrong distractors first: an option that asks the CNA to medicate, diagnose, or act outside scope can be crossed off immediately, often leaving just two plausible answers. Then pick the safer, more resident-centered of the two. Never leave a question blank — there is no penalty for guessing among the remaining choices.

Most-Tested Written Topics (Plan Your Study Time)

The written test is weighted heavily toward physical care, so budget your time the same way. The table maps the major NNAAP areas to their approximate share of the 60 questions and the highest-yield traps in each.

Worked Example: Picking the Safe In-Scope Action

Example: A question reads, "A resident's blood pressure is 168/96. What should the nurse aide do?" The options include (a) give the resident's blood pressure medication, (b) tell the resident their pressure is dangerously high, (c) record the reading and report it to the nurse, and (d) recheck it every few minutes until it normalizes. Apply the steps: this is a scope item. Eliminate (a) — CNAs do not give medications. Eliminate (b) — that is interpreting/diagnosing. Eliminate (d) — repeatedly rechecking delays the report. The safe, in-scope action is (c): record and report to the nurse. Whenever a vital sign is abnormal, the CNA measures, records, and reports — never treats.

After You Pass: Georgia Registry and Renewal

When you pass both the written and skills portions, Credentia reports your result and Alliant Health Solutions — the manager of the Georgia Nurse Aide Registry under Department of Community Health (DCH) authority — adds you to the registry (handled through careconnect.georgia.gov) so you can legally work as a CNA. To keep the listing active, you must perform at least 8 paid hours of nurse-aide work under a licensed nurse (RN or LPN) within each consecutive 24-month period; there is no grace period, no fee, and renewals are not automatic.

If you do not pass, Georgia allows a maximum of 3 attempts within 1 year of finishing your training program; exhaust those attempts or miss the one-year window and you must repeat the entire DCH-approved training program before testing again. (Separately, if an already-listed CNA lets the registry lapse by not meeting the 8-hour work rule, reinstatement requires retesting — or full retraining if the listing has been expired three years or more.)