New: Made in Canada certification exam for baccalaureate-prepared nurses
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 12, 2018
The Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing (CASN) is pleased to announce the creation of the Canadian Examination for Baccalaureate Nursing, a fully bilingual, voluntary national certification exam, which will be launched in late 2019.
The purpose of this computer-based exam is to provide official recognition that graduates of Canadian programs have mastered the essential components of baccalaureate education for nursing in the Canadian context, and are well-prepared to enter practice.
The methodology used to develop the exam has been rigorous and is guided by extensive psychometric expertise to ensure the exam meets international standards for certification testing. CASN has developed an exam blueprint based on the CASN National Education Framework, which incorporates the entry-level competencies for Canadian nursing practice. Anglophone and Francophone nurses practicing in a variety of education and practice settings across Canada have developed and reviewed the questions in the exam bank.
In the coming months CASN will be working with panels of experts to review the exam questions, using an internationally recognized method to set the passing standard. The CEBN will be piloted in early 2019 across the country, in both English and French.
“I am very pleased to announce that this ‘Made in Canada’ exam will soon be available”, said Dr. Cynthia Baker, CASN’s Executive Director. “Canadians need nurses who are well prepared to work in our health care system and the exam tests exactly that. It is being developed in Canada and incorporates the values and diversity that makes nursing in this country unique”.
CASN is a bilingual organization and ensuring the exam is truly bilingual has been a top priority. Questions are written and reviewed in French as well as in English. Twenty-Five percent of the questions in the exam bank have been developed in French by Francophones. The translation is based on a multi-step approach that includes rigorous translation processes developed by Canadian translators for high stakes exams. In addition, the software being used will allow candidates to toggle between French and English as they go through the exam.
When the exam is launched in the fall of 2019 it will be available at secure testing centres across the country. As CASN is a non-profit organization, the exam will be offered at a low fee representing cost recovery for the exam delivery.
More information regarding the launch and delivery of CEBN will be released on the CASN website over the next three months. Please visit www.casn.ca to see updates.
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For more information please contact: Jodie Lachance
Jodie Lachance
Education Projects Coordinator
Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing
1145 Hunt Club Rd., Unit 450
Ottawa Ontario K1V 0Y3
Ph: 613-235-3150 ext. 132
Fax: 613-235-4476
Email: jlachance@casn.ca
Additional exam information:
EN: https://www.casn.ca/2018/09/canadian-examination-for-baccalaureate-nursing/
FR: https://www.casn.ca/fr/2018/09/examen-canadien-du-baccalaureat-en-sciences-infirmieres/
Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing
1145 Hunt Club Rd., Unit 450
Ottawa Ontario K1V 0Y3
