What is CBT and why is it important for nurses?

Computer Based Test or CBT is a compulsory exam conducted by UK Nursing and Midwifery Council for trained nurses to work in the United Kingdom. The CBT exam tests the theoretical and practical knowledge of nurses outside the European Economic Area practising in any area of medicine. The CBT exam evaluates the nurses with 120 questions that assess your applied knowledge. CBT exam consists of two sections- clinical and numeracy. In clinical, there would be 100 questions, which had to be completed within two and a half hours. In numeracy, there are 15 questions, which must be answered within 30 minutes. 

The CBT exam is a crucial measure of a nurse’s readiness to practice in the UK healthcare system. It evaluates their knowledge in nursing theory and its practical application and confirms their ability to deliver quality and safe patient care. Becoming a registered nurse is important for your career, but it is possible to stumble upon some silly mistakes on your journeys. Let’s look at some important things to remember to avoid common mistakes in the CBT exam 2024. 

Remember these points before you set out to write the CBT exam.

Understand the standard and structure of the exam.

Before writing the NMC CBT exam, it is important to understand the standards and guidelines of NMC. Otherwise, the students tend to struggle during the exam. Make sure you understand the principles of the exam and how to apply your skills to clinical scenario questions. Students should be familiar with the exam structure and questions they are going to face. Also, be familiar with the syllabus and cover all portions even if you feel like it’s less important.

Manage your time wisely!

Only practising difficult questions might make you rushed and confused through easy questions. Allocate your time wisely for all types of questions. Also while writing the exam, leave the difficult questions for last and come back later rather than wasting too much time on them. Develop a strategy to pace your writing. Practising with timed mock question papers will help you in this. It will also help you get time to review your answers before submitting. 

Revision is crucial!

Do not be overconfident and rely fully on your language skills. Practice and regularly revise your portions. Even experienced nurses find some questions extremely difficult. Strengthen your skills through practice tests, guides and combined studies. Find the areas you find difficult and focus on them until you feel confident. Never skip any topics, it will leave a gap in your knowledge. Treat all questions with equal importance.

Scenario-based questions are important!

The most important type of questions in CBT is their scenario-based questions. It is to evaluate the ability of nurses to apply clinical knowledge in real life situations. Practicing these questions in a simulated environment helps you stay focused and apply those knowledge to make decisions in a clinical setting. The more you practice, the more you will be familiar with such scenarios.

Never misinterpret questions!

Misreading or misinterpreting questions is a serious mistake that can often happen to students. This small carelessness can cost too many marks. Carefully read each question several times and understand what exactly is being asked to you. Focusing on keywords helps to understand the question easily and answer correctly.

Be calm and get enough rest!

It is important to stay calm and get enough rest during exam preparations. Studying non stop will make you more stressed and exhausted. It won’t lead you to any success but feeling tired and diminishing your energy to think clearly while writing the exam. You can practice meditations or yoga to stay calm while preparing for competitive exams. Prepare everything beforehand and never leave anything for the last minute. 

Preparing for CBT is a crucial point in the life of a nurse planning to migrate abroad. These are just  a few important things to remember during your exam preparation time. Always remember that there is no limit to achieving things. Remember these points, prepare well and stay calm for your exams. Be confident but not overconfident, acknowledge your weaknesses so you can focus working on that. All the best for your exam!

At Tiju’s Academy, we are recognized as the best CBT online coaching centre in Kerala, providing tailored guidance and expert instruction to help you excel in your CBT exams.