Syllabus

NCLEX-RN (2026 Test Plan) — Complete Fine-Grained Syllabus

Prep for the NCLEX-RN®, the registered-nurse licensure exam from the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN), delivered by Pearson VUE. It is used for RN licensure in all US states and territories and by most Canadian regulators (English and Canadian French editions), with an Australian pathway too. Covers the 2026 NCLEX-RN Test Plan (April 2026 – March 2029), including the Next Generation NCLEX (NGN) clinical-judgment case studies. It does not cover NCLEX-PN or REx-PN.

Preview Module 1, Management of Care here, lesson by lesson with its clips. Study all 9 modules in the app.

Module 1 · 22 lessonsPreview here
Management of Care
Legal & Ethical Practice
1. Lesson 1
  Legal liability, negligence and torts
  - List the four elements required to prove negligence or malpractice
  - Distinguish assault, battery and false imprisonment in a clinical scenario
  - Identify defamation (libel vs slander) arising from nursing communication
  - Recognize when Good Samaritan protections do and do not apply
2. Lesson 2
  Scope of practice and recognizing limitations
  - State the role of the nurse practice act and board of nursing in defining RN scope
  - Identify actions that fall outside the RN scope of practice
  - Select the appropriate action when asked to perform an unfamiliar or unsafe task
  - Apply the chain of command to escalate an unresolved client-care concern
3. Lesson 3
  Mandatory reporting obligations
  - Identify client conditions that require mandatory reporting by law
  - State that suspected child or elder abuse is reported on suspicion, without needing proof
  - Follow the correct procedure for reporting a client with a reportable communicable disease
  - Recognize that mandatory reporting overrides confidentiality
4. Lesson 4
  Ethical principles and dilemmas
  - Define autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, justice, fidelity and veracity
  - Match a clinical scenario to the ethical principle it illustrates
  - Recognize an ethical dilemma and select the appropriate reporting or consultation resource (e.g., ethics committee)
  - Identify nursing actions consistent with the nurses' code of ethics
Client Rights, Consent & Directives
1. Lesson 1
  Client rights and refusal of treatment
  - State a competent client's right to refuse any treatment or procedure
  - Select the nurse's actions when a client refuses a treatment (explore reasons, educate, notify provider, document)
  - Describe the nurse's responsibilities when a client leaves against medical advice
  - Educate clients and staff about client rights and responsibilities
  - Identify the rights of voluntary vs involuntarily admitted psychiatric clients
2. Lesson 2
  Informed consent
  - List the required components of informed consent
  - Distinguish the provider's duty to explain the procedure from the nurse's role as witness
  - Identify who may legally consent (competent adult, guardian, emancipated minor, parent)
  - Select the nurse's action when a client lacks understanding or has been sedated before signing
  - Apply the emergency exception to informed consent
  - Arrange a qualified interpreter and materials in the client's language for consent
3. Lesson 3
  Advance directives and life planning
  - Distinguish a living will from a durable power of attorney for health care
  - State the admission requirement to ask about and provide information on advance directives (Patient Self-Determination Act)
  - Integrate a DNR or POLST order into the plan of care
  - Identify who makes decisions when the client lacks capacity and has a designated agent
4. Lesson 4
  Confidentiality and information security
  - Identify breaches of confidentiality involving social media, conversations or disclosure to family
  - Apply the minimum-necessary rule when accessing electronic health records
  - Select the correct action when a staff member breaches confidentiality
  - Determine who is authorized to receive client information
5. Lesson 5
  Client advocacy and equitable care
  - Identify nursing actions that fulfill the client advocate role
  - Select appropriate advocacy resources (social worker, chain of command, ethics consultation)
  - Recognize biased care and choose actions that ensure equal access to care
  - Respect a client's informed treatment decision that differs from the nurse's preference
Delegation & Assignment
1. Lesson 1
  The five rights of delegation
  - List the five rights of delegation (task, circumstance, person, direction/communication, supervision/evaluation)
  - State that the RN keeps accountability for delegated tasks
  - Identify the components of clear delegation instructions, including what to report immediately
  - Evaluate whether a delegated task was completed correctly and select follow-up
2. Lesson 2
  Delegation scope: RN vs LPN/VN vs UAP
  - Identify tasks that may be delegated to unlicensed assistive personnel (routine, stable, standard-procedure care)
  - Identify tasks within LPN/VN scope, such as reinforcing teaching and caring for stable clients
  - State that initial assessment, teaching, evaluation and care of unstable clients remain with the RN
  - Choose the most appropriate staff member for a client given acuity and predictability
  - Recognize an inappropriate delegation in a scenario
3. Lesson 3
  Client assignment, supervision and time management
  - Make appropriate assignments for float or agency nurses based on competency
  - Evaluate a staff member's ability to perform assigned tasks
  - Organize a shift workload to manage time effectively
  - Evaluate a staff member's time-management skills and give corrective feedback
Establishing Priorities
1. Lesson 1
  Prioritization frameworks
  - Apply the airway-breathing-circulation sequence to rank interventions
  - Apply Maslow's hierarchy to rank physiological vs psychosocial needs
  - Prioritize acute over chronic and actual over potential problems
  - Apply the assess-before-intervene rule when information is incomplete
  - Rank findings as expected for the condition vs unexpected and needing action
2. Lesson 2
  Prioritizing multiple clients by acuity
  - Pick the client to assess first from a group using acuity and pathophysiology
  - Identify the client who is stable enough to assign, delegate or see last
  - Recognize which new report finding needs immediate action
  - Revise the plan of care for multiple clients when conditions change
Communication & Continuity
1. Lesson 1
  Receiving, verifying and implementing orders
  - Apply read-back procedures for verbal and telephone orders
  - Identify an incomplete, ambiguous or unsafe order that needs clarification
  - Select the correct action when a provider will not change a questionable order
  - Transcribe and implement orders using electronic systems
2. Lesson 2
  Handoff report and SBAR communication
  - Organize a client report using SBAR
  - Identify the essential data to include in a handoff
  - Select the significant information to report to a provider about a change in condition
  - Follow up on unresolved care issues after handoff
3. Lesson 3
  Documentation and approved terminology
  - Distinguish objective documentation from subjective or judgmental entries
  - Identify error-prone abbreviations on the do-not-use list
  - Apply correct procedures for late entries and correcting documentation errors
  - State that incident reports are not referenced in the client record
4. Lesson 4
  Admission, transfer and discharge
  - List the nursing components of a safe admission
  - Identify and safeguard a client's valuables according to facility policy
  - Identify the information and documents required on a transfer or referral form
  - Determine a client's readiness for discharge
  - Provide discharge instructions for home or community settings
Collaboration & Quality
1. Lesson 1
  Case management, referrals and community resources
  - Identify client needs that call for a referral and obtain the necessary order
  - Match client needs to community resources (respite care, shelters, social services, home health)
  - Assess a client's need for home equipment and supplies
  - Describe the case manager's role in cost-effective continuity of care
2. Lesson 2
  Interprofessional team roles and collaboration
  - Match client problems to the right discipline (PT, OT, SLP, dietitian, social worker, respiratory therapist, chaplain)
  - Identify when an interdisciplinary care conference is needed
  - Review the plan of care for continuity across disciplines
  - Act as a liaison between the client and the health care team
3. Lesson 3
  Conflict management and leadership concepts
  - Distinguish autocratic, democratic and laissez-faire leadership styles
  - Choose the best conflict-resolution strategy (e.g., collaboration) for a staff conflict
  - Select the first action when a conflict arises between a client and staff member
  - Evaluate the outcome of a management or conflict-resolution strategy
4. Lesson 4
  Quality improvement and evidence-based practice
  - Define quality improvement/performance improvement activities
  - Describe the steps of a PDSA cycle and a root cause analysis
  - Identify a sentinel event
  - Use evidence-based resources and policies to guide practice change
Module 2 · 17 lessonsIn the app
Safety and Infection Prevention and Control
Error Prevention · Injury Prevention · Restraints · Environmental & Equipment Safety · Emergency & Security · Infection Prevention
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Module 3 · 16 lessonsIn the app
Health Promotion and Maintenance
Growth & Development · Prevention & Screening · Antepartum & Intrapartum · Postpartum & Newborn · Assessment Techniques
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Module 4 · 20 lessonsIn the app
Psychosocial Integrity
Communication & Milieu · Mental Health Disorders · Crisis, Abuse & Violence · Substance Use · Coping, Grief & End of Life · Culture & Spirituality
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Module 5 · 16 lessonsIn the app
Basic Care and Comfort
Mobility & Skin · Assistive Devices · Elimination · Nutrition & Hydration · Hygiene & Dignity · Comfort & Pain
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Module 6 · 40 lessonsIn the app
Pharmacological and Parenteral Therapies
Medication Safety · Dosage & IV Calculations · IV, Blood & Parenteral Therapy · Cardiovascular & Hematologic Drugs · Endocrine Drugs · CNS & Psychiatric Drugs · Anti-infective Drugs · Other Drug Classes · Pain Management
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Module 7 · 22 lessonsIn the app
Reduction of Risk Potential
Vital Signs & Focused Assessment · Laboratory Values · Diagnostics & Specimens · Tubes & Lines · Perioperative & Procedural Care
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Module 8 · 63 lessonsIn the app
Physiological Adaptation
Foundations, Fluids & Electrolytes · Cardiovascular & Hemodynamics · Respiratory & Ventilation · Neurological & Sensory · Endocrine, Renal & Urinary · GI & Hepatic · Hematologic, Immune, Skin & Oncology · Wounds, Musculoskeletal & Emergencies · Maternal & Newborn Complications · Pediatric Conditions
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Module 9 · 7 lessonsIn the app
Clinical Judgment and NGN Exam Skills
Clinical Judgment Model · Exam Format & Strategy
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NCLEX-RN (2026 Test Plan) — Complete Fine-Grained Syllabus

Management of Care

Safety and Infection Prevention and Control

Health Promotion and Maintenance

Psychosocial Integrity

Basic Care and Comfort

Pharmacological and Parenteral Therapies

Reduction of Risk Potential

Physiological Adaptation

Clinical Judgment and NGN Exam Skills