Candidates for the ONC examination are not required to have a BSN but must meet the following eligibility criteria at the time of application:
- Have two full years of experience practicing as an RN.
- Have a minimum of 1,000 hours of work experience as an RN in orthopaedic nursing practice within the past three years. The ONCB® accepts, but does not limit the practitioner to orthopaedic experience in the areas of administration, adult care, clinic, critical care, education, emergency room, home health care, long-term care, medical-surgical nursing, office practice, oncology, operating room, community nursing, and pediatrics.
- Hold a current, full and unencumbered license as a registered nurse (RN) in the United States, or its possessions, OR hold a current, full and unrestricted license to practice as a first-level, general nurse in the country in which the candidate’s general nursing education was completed, and have educational equivalency established by one of the following approved agencies:
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- CGFNS , International
- Educational Credential Evaluation
- Foreign Academic Credentials Services, Inc.
- Foundation for International Services, Inc.
- International Consultants of Delaware, Inc.
- International Education Research Foundation Credentials Evaluation Service
- Josef Silny and Associates
- World Education Services, Inc.
The foreign-educated nurse who holds active certification from the following may submit a copy of his or her certificate in lieu of additional education verification:
ONCB and its test vendor Meazure Learning do not discriminate among exam candidates on the basis of age race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, national origin, disability, or marital status.
ONCB reserves the right to review any examination application to confirm candidate eligibility. This may be done for cause or as part of a quality assurance activity. Candidates will be notified of findings.
Examination Appeals
Denial of eligibility of an individual to take the certification examination may be appealed. The candidate shall assume responsibility for providing adequate documentation to support the appeal. Examination eligibility criteria shall not be altered. An Appeals Task Force will be named by the ONCB President, to include one ONCB Public Member and the Test Committee Chair, with Test Committee members involved as appropriate.
Examination scores may be appealed only on the method of scoring. Any unsuccessful candidate can challenge a specific question following the exam by contacting the test vendor in writing. Challenges to any question should be made no later than 6 months after the examination date. Candidates will not be given an opportunity to view any specific items after the examination has been completed. No fee is assessed for this appeals process. However, a fee may be assessed by the test vendor if hand scoring is requested by the candidate.
Please contact ONCB for specific information on filing an appeal if you believe you have grounds based on the above information.