NCLEX Question Types
8 NCLEX question types with strategies, example questions, and tips to improve your test performance.
Select All That Apply (SATA)
Select All That Apply questions require you to choose every correct option from a list, with partial credit scoring on the NCLEX-RN. These questions test your ability to apply comprehensive nursing knowledge rather than relying on test-taking tricks like eliminating one or two distractors. SATA questions appear frequently on the NCLEX and cover virtually every nursing topic.
🔢Priority and Delegation
Priority and delegation questions test your ability to determine which client to see first, which action to take first, or which task can be safely delegated to another member of the healthcare team. These questions require clinical judgment, knowledge of scope of practice, and the ability to triage based on patient acuity. They are among the most commonly tested question types on the NCLEX.
💊Dosage Calculation
Dosage calculation questions require you to compute the correct medication dose, IV flow rate, or weight-based dosing using mathematical formulas. These questions test your ability to convert between measurement systems, apply dimensional analysis, and determine safe dose ranges. On the NCLEX, you may need to type a numeric answer rather than choose from options, making accuracy essential.
🔍Assessment vs. Intervention
Assessment versus intervention questions test whether you know when to gather more information and when to act. Many NCLEX questions present a clinical scenario and ask what the nurse should do first. The challenge lies in recognizing whether the situation requires further assessment to clarify the problem or whether enough data already exists to take action. Choosing to assess when you should intervene, or intervening when you should assess, is one of the most common reasons students select wrong answers.
💬Therapeutic Communication
Therapeutic communication questions ask you to identify the best nurse response when a client expresses feelings, concerns, or asks a question. These questions test your knowledge of communication techniques that promote trust, encourage client expression, and maintain professional boundaries. The correct answer is almost always the response that acknowledges the client's feelings and invites them to share more.
🧪Lab Value Interpretation
Lab value interpretation questions test your ability to recognize critical lab results, understand their clinical significance, and determine the appropriate nursing action. You must know normal ranges for common labs, understand which abnormal values require immediate intervention, and connect lab findings to specific disease processes. These questions often ask whether you should notify the provider, hold a medication, or implement a specific nursing intervention.
🦠Infection Control
Infection control questions test your knowledge of standard precautions, transmission-based precautions, isolation types, personal protective equipment (PPE), sterile technique, and strategies to prevent healthcare-associated infections. These questions require you to match the correct isolation category to specific diseases and know the correct order for donning and doffing PPE. Infection control is a foundational nursing concept tested heavily on the NCLEX.
📋Patient Teaching
Patient teaching questions test your ability to provide accurate discharge instructions, health promotion education, and medication teaching. A common format asks you to identify a statement by the client that indicates a need for further teaching, meaning the client has made an incorrect statement. These questions assess whether you know the correct information and whether you can recognize when a client has misunderstood it.
Practice NCLEX Questions with AI
Snap a photo of any practice question for instant rationale and explanations.
Download NurseIQ