CNE® Eligibility

You should make attaining the Certified Nurse EducatorCM designation your goal if, after carefully reviewing the test blueprint and the eligibility requirements, you determine that your educational and experiential qualifications have provided you with sufficient opportunity to participate meaningfully in the full scope of the faculty role.

Option A: Must meet criteria 1 & 2

  1. Licensure
    • Documentation of valid licensure/ certificate or other documentation of unencumbered practice in the country of residence
  2. Education    
  • a master's or doctoral degree in nursing with a major emphasis in nursing education or
  • a master's or doctoral degree in nursing plus a post-master's certificate in nursing education or
  • master's or doctoral degree in nursing and nine or more credit hours of graduate-level education courses*

Examples of acceptable courses include: Curriculum Development and Evaluation; Instructional Design; Principles of Adult Learning; Assessment/Measurement & Evaluation; Principles of Teaching and Learning, Instructional Technology

Note: Graduate-level research or statistics courses do not count toward this requirement

    Option B: Must meet criteria 1, 2 & 3

    1. Licensure
      • Documentation of valid licensure/ certificate or other documentation of unencumbered practice in the country of residence
    2. Education
      • A master's or doctoral degree in nursing (with a major emphasis in a role other than nursing education).
    3. Experience
      • Two years or more employment in a nursing program in an academic institution within the past five years.

    All eligibility criteria for initial certification must be met at the time of application.

    For answers to questions about the eligibility requirements, please check our FAQ page.

    Disclaimer: The Certified Nurse Educator exam was developed to measure competence in the full scope of the academic nurse educator practice role. Even though the CNE® eligibility criteria have been expanded to include new graduates of master's and doctoral programs focused in nursing education, the test itself was not developed as a measure of graduate program outcomes.