TruMerit Certification Program

Applicants must submit a photocopy of their secondary school diploma or external exam certificate for the highest level of secondary education they attained.* Secondary school (high school) is the school attended between elementary school (primary school) and university, usually offering general, technical, vocational, or college-preparatory courses.

* This requirement waived only if the applicant completed secondary education more than 10 years ago.

TruMerit validates and authenticates all licenses, registrations, and diplomas obtained by an applicant for the TruMerit Certification Program. Applicants are required to have a current unrestricted registered nursing license in their country of education. The registered nursing license verification must be sent directly to TruMerit from the licensing body in the country of education. Additionally, TruMerit and state boards of nursing require license validations to be current (the signature of the validation authority must be dated within the last three years).

If that registered nursing license has expired, the applicant must request that the licensing authority from which they have an active license provide verification of that license directly to TruMerit.

A complete academic record or transcript directly from each educational institution attended for the nursing profession being evaluated.

These documents must be in English and translated by the educational institution(s) that the applicant has attended/completed. If the educational institution(s) is unable to provide an English translation, then TruMerit can translate the documents for an additional fee.

All applicants are required to upload a passport-style photograph with a white or off-white background to TruMerit Connect.

Your photograph must be:

• TruMerit’s Nurse Qualifying Exam is the first-ever global competency examination designed to measure the entry-to-practice applied knowledge, skills, and behaviors of first-level, general nurses against a global standard. Formerly the CGFNS Qualifying Exam, the examination was our flagship service, developed at our founding in 1977, and remains a critical requirement in several of our credential verification and evaluation programs. The NQE is for first-level, general nurses* who wish to have their applied nursing knowledge and competencies recognized as meeting a global standard.
• Once you have purchased the Certification Program through the TruMerit Connect portal and all your application materials have been reviewed and accepted by TruMerit, you will receive an Authorization-to-Test notification that contains detailed information about test administration for the Nurse Qualifying Exam, including availability at Kryterion test centers and instructions for how to register for your exam and schedule a date and time for it.

Find out more about the Nurse Qualifying Exam, download the candidate handbook, explore the exam blueprint, and view upcoming exam dates:

*In most countries, including the United States, a first-level nurse is called a registered nurse or a professional nurse. If you are a second-level nurse in your native country, you cannot sit for the NQE. In most countries, second-level nurses are called enrolled nurses, vocational nurses, practical nurses, or nursing assistants. 

NOTE: TruMerit does not accept the at-home versions of English Language Proficiency exams.

TruMerit requires evidence of competency for both spoken and written English as demonstrated through passing scores on one of the following exams:

• Cambridge English (B2 First, C1 Advanced, or C2 Proficiency exams)
• TOEFL iBT (Test of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-based Test)
• TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication)
• IELTS (International English Language Testing System)
• MET (Michigan English Test)
• OET (Occupational English Test)
• Pearson PTE Academic

To be exempt from taking an English language proficiency examination, applicants must meet the following requirements:

English must have been the language of instruction, including the language of the textbooks;

AND

Entry-level nursing education was completed in one of the following countries:

• Australia
• Barbados
• Canada (except Quebec, the only schools approved for exemption are: McGill University, Dawson College, Vanier College, John Abbott College, and Heritage College)
• Ireland
• Jamaica
• New Zealand
• South Africa
• Trinidad and Tobago
• United Kingdom
• United States

The TruMerit Certification Program certificates are awarded to applicants who meet all of the requirements described above. Certificates are mailed directly to the applicant. Applicants are required to request a certification verification letter that will be sent to the state board of nursing to which they are applying for licensure.

Applicants are responsible for ensuring that TruMerit has their current address on file. Copies of certificates and certification verification letters are available to all applicants at an additional cost.