14.1 Timed Practice Strategy
Key Takeaways
The Ohio STNA Knowledge Test is 79 multiple-choice questions in 90 minutes — roughly 68 seconds per question with time to spare.
You must score 70% (about 56 of 79 correct) on the written test, so you can miss up to 23 items and still pass.
The Skills Evaluation is separate: 3 or 4 tasks in 35 minutes (one mandatory first task with embedded hand washing plus 2 or 3 random tasks), and you must pass each one on its own bolded key steps and 80% of non-key steps.
Review every missed practice item by cause (misread cue, wrong sequence, safety violation), not just by raw score.
14.1 Timed Practice Strategy
The Ohio nurse aide credential is listing on the Nurse Aide Registry as a certified nurse aide (CNA), long called State Tested Nurse Aide (STNA), tested by D&S Diversified Technologies / Headmaster (hdmaster.com) under the Ohio Department of Health. Timed practice is how you convert what you learned in Chapters 1–13 into reliable test-day performance.
The exam you are pacing for
The certification has two independently scored parts. You must pass both to be listed on the Ohio Nurse Aide Registry.
| Component | Length | Passing standard |
|---|---|---|
| Knowledge (Written) Test | 79 multiple-choice questions, 90 minutes | 70% (about 56 of 79 correct) |
| Skills Evaluation | 3 or 4 tasks (1 mandatory first task with embedded hand washing + 2-3 random), 35 minutes | Pass each task (every key step + 80% of non-key steps; no partial credit on a failed task) |
An oral version of the written test is available for candidates who request it. You get up to three attempts at each component within 24 months of finishing your state-approved training program; fail three times and you must retrain.
Pacing the written test
Ninety minutes for 79 questions is generous — about 68 seconds per item. Set checkpoints: you should be near question 26 at 30 minutes and question 52 at 60 minutes. That leaves roughly 30 minutes to revisit flagged items.
- Answer every question; there is no penalty for guessing, and 70% means you can miss up to 23 items.
- Flag any item that takes more than ~90 seconds and move on — do not let one infection-control or vital-signs item eat five minutes.
- For "what does the STNA do FIRST" stems, choose the answer that protects safety and stays within the aide scope of practice (observe, report, provide basic care — never diagnose, give meds, or insert tubes).
Worked pacing example
You hit question 40 at the 50-minute mark — about 7 minutes behind your ideal pace. Do not panic. Pick the best-supported answer on the next several items quickly, bank the time, and return to your three flagged items at the end. A common trap is changing a correct first instinct on a vital-signs normal-range item (adult pulse 60–100, respirations 12–20, oral temp ~98.6°F) because a distractor "looked more medical."
Build an error log
After each timed set, write one line per miss: the topic, the cause, and the rule you should have applied. Group causes into a short table so patterns surface.
| Miss cause | Example | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Misread the cue | Picked routine care when the stem said "choking" | Re-read the verb and any emergency word |
| Wrong sequence | Donned gloves before washing hands | Memorize order of care for top skills |
| Out of scope | Chose "administer insulin" | STNA observes/reports; never gives meds |
| Safety violation | Left bed in high position | Lowest position, both side rails per care plan |
If a domain (infection control, safety, communication, resident rights) produces repeated misses, do a short targeted set in that domain before your next full-length attempt.
Practicing skills under time
The written test is only half the credential. The Skills Evaluation is scored separately, so rehearse it under a timer too. The examiner assigns 3 or 4 tasks from the 21-task Ohio skill list — a mandatory first task with handwashing embedded plus 2 or 3 random tasks — so handwashing is always tested. Ohio scores only the steps printed on each task sheet. Hand hygiene, explaining the procedure, courteous interaction and placing the call light within reach appear on every sheet; privacy, raising and lowering the bed, and locking brakes appear only on the tasks that list them.
Critical (must-pass) elements
Some steps are printed in bold as critical/key steps. Miss one and you fail that task regardless of the rest. Examples from the current Ohio task sheets:
- Re-contaminating your hands during hand washing (turning off the faucet with a wet paper towel counts).
- Not locking the wheelchair brakes and the designated bed brakes before a transfer or ambulation.
- Perineal and catheter care strokes: a clean portion of the washcloth for each stroke, labia cleaned from top to bottom, and the catheter cleaned and rinsed only away from the urethra while you hold it near the urethra.
- Not asking the resident at least once about pain or discomfort during range of motion.
- A recorded measurement outside the allowed range: output within 25 mL, fluid intake within 60 mL, food intake within 25 percentage points, pulse within 6 beats and respirations within 4 breaths of the RN Test Observer's.
Lowering the bed, privacy and the call light are scored non-key steps on the tasks that list them: missing them counts against the 80%.
A timed skills drill
Set a 35-minute timer and run four tasks back-to-back as if drawn at random: a handwashing-embedded task, partial bed bath, measuring and recording a radial pulse, and ambulating with a gait belt. Narrate each step aloud the way you would for the examiner, and record the measured values just like the real test. If you forget to lock the wheelchair brakes before a transfer, log it as a critical-element miss; a forgotten privacy curtain on the bed bath is a non-key miss that still counts against the 80%.
Why both halves matter
A strong written score does not rescue a failed skill, and a flawless transfer does not rescue a 65% written test. Treat them as two separate exams that happen to be scheduled together. Most candidates over-study facts and under-rehearse hands-on sequences, so spend at least a third of your final practice time physically performing skills, not just reading about them.
On the Ohio STNA written (Knowledge) test, which statement is correct about scoring and pacing?
There are 79 questions and you must answer all of them correctly to pass
There are 79 questions in 90 minutes and you need about 70% correct to pass
There is no time limit, so you can take as long as needed
You must finish all 79 questions in 35 minutes
While practicing skills under a timer, which omission would count as an automatic (critical-element) failure of that skill?
Taking slightly longer than the average time on one step
Leaving the wheelchair brakes unlocked during a stand-and-pivot transfer
Greeting the resident by their last name instead of first name
Recording the pulse as 72 instead of "about 70"
Sections you finish are checked off in the contents.