2024 Nursing Board Exam: How to Apply (Step-by-Step Procedure) – Requirements, Schedule, Deadlines, Coverage, Review

The Nursing Board Exam is the last hurdle that you need to go through before you can become a professional nurse in the Philippines. On this page, we will talk about the steps you need to take to register for the nursing board exam.

About the Nursing Board Exam

The board exam for nurses is a 500-item objective multiple-choice exam held by the Professional Regulatory Commission twice every year. It is usually held around June and November. This board exam takes two days to complete, often scheduled on a weekend (Saturday and Sunday). The subjects are divided into those days.

Nursing Board Exam Coverage

The board exam covers 5 main subjects in nursing:

  • Maternal and child nursing
  • Fundamentals of nursing including professional adjustments
  • Community health and communicable disease nursing
  • Nursing of adolescents, adults, and aged
  • Psychiatric nursing, and mental health

What is the Passing Score for the Nursing Board Exam?
For a test taker to become a professional nurse in the Philippines, they must score a 75% rating with no test rated below 60%.

What does it take to become a top-notcher in the Nursing Board Exam?
To be one of the highest scorers, you may need to score between 87 percent and above. In the past two exams, the top 1 spot scored 89.40% (June 2021) and 90%(June 2022)

Steps to Register for the Board Exam

To take the board exam, you must first submit the requirements to the PRC. This starts with online registration.

Can you take the Philippine Nursing Board Exam?
This board exam is limited only to nursing graduates. Check if you are qualified to take the board exam:

  • Must be at least eighteen (18) years of age at the time of the issuance of a certificate of registration
  • Must be in good health and is of good moral character
  • A holder of a bachelor′s degree in nursing from a college or university duly recognized by the proper government agency.

Step 1: Learn when the Application Date

The PRC will only open the online application portal (LERIS) during the registration period. Before this date, you will not be able to register for the exam. The registration period is usually two months long and starts three months before the exam.

PRC Nursing Board Exam Filing and Exam Schedule:

  • Next Exam: May 6,7, 2024
  • Start of filing/application date: February 6, 2024
  • Filing/Application Deadline: April 8, 2024
  • Future Exams: November 9, 10, 2024
  • Start of filing/application date: August 9, 2024
  • Filing/Application Deadline: October 9, 2024

Step 2: Prepare the Requirements for the Online Application

If you are within the date range of the application, you can start with the online application through the LERIS: https://online.prc.gov.ph/

You will need the following information:

  • Email Address
  • Mobile Number
  • Digital ID Picture saved in the computer (in jpg format, 2×2 photo with white background, collared attire, less than 6 months old)
  • Cedula (Community Tax Certificate or CTC)
  • Other Personal Information (Name, Address, School Graduated, Graduation date, etc.)

Step 3: Nursing Board Exam Online Application

If you have all the details listed above, it’s time to start with the Nursing Board Exam online application.
Steps
1) Go to this page: Licensure Examination Online Application Page

Click Here: https://online.prc.gov.ph/


Important (Updated – December 2018):

Please take note that the website is sometimes down due to the high volume of traffic. For best results, please try signing up between 12 midnight to 7 AM.
Please be informed that the previous user accounts from www.prc-online.com are no longer active. Register a new account at online.prc.gov.ph.

2) Fill in the required information to sign up

leris-register in prc website

Accept the Terms of Service and click the “Sign Up Now Button”

If this is not your first time using the LERIS portal, you can sign in using the “Sign In” tab. After typing your email address and password, click the “Sign In” button to start.

PRC Sign In

 

3. Log in to LERIS using the Sign In tab to complete your personal information details and submit the requirements

You will need the following once your are logged in:

  • Personal information
  • Cedula
  • The photo indicated above

After logging in, add your personal information:

PRC Online Registration Form - Personal Information - LET exam Registration for Filing

The Personal Information you need includes:

  • Name (First, Middle and Last)
  • Suffix (Mr, Miss, etc)
  • Gender
  • Single
  • Citizenship
  • Birthdate
  • Birthplace
  • Family Background (Mother’s, Father’s or Spouse’s Name)
  • Employment Status
  • Community Tax Certificate Details (Cedula Number, Place and Date Issued)
When the information fields are complete, click the “Save Information” button at the bottom of the screen.
 
To complete the process, confirm the information you have entered. Check the spelling of your name because this can no longer be changed in the future:
 

Confirm Personal Information

Add your Photo

You will be able to add a photo to your PRC profile on the following page. Make sure that you already have a digital copy of a 2×2 photo with a white background on your PC. You should also be in collared attire in the photo. If you are wearing glasses in the photo, the photo will not be accepted. Those with long hair should also make sure that their ears are visible in the photo.

PRC Online Registration Form - Add a valid photo - LET exam Registration for Filing

Sometimes, you may get an error when uploading a photo in the PRC online registration portal (LERIS). Your photo needs to be in the shape of a square to be accepted by the system. You can crop your photo to make it fit the requirements of the system.

Step 4: Schedule an appointment to the Local PRC Office

You will be able to schedule an appointment with the PRC Office of your choice through LERIS after you have completed your registration. 

To schedule a visit to your local PRC office, go back to your profile and click on the “Select Transaction” Button. This can be found in the sidebar on the upper right side of the screen:

By clicking on the “Select Transaction” button, you will open a pop-up with multiple tabs. Click on the Examination Tab as seen below:

After filling up the required information, click on the “Proceed” button in the bottom part of the popup.

Another popup will show wherein you will be able to choose a PRC office location, date of transaction, and your preferred payment method:

Step 5: Make Payment in your Chosen Payment Method

After following the instructions above, a reference number will be assigned to your transaction. Take note of this reference number because you will need it when making the payment to your preferred payment option.

In our case, Land Bank Online Payment was the only available option. Through this payment option, you can pay using your ATM card and GCash. PRC does state that there will be more payment options on the way.

Regardless of your chosen payment option, you will need to keep a receipt of your payment as proof. Your LERIS will update automatically after a day of two of payment. 

Step 6: Go to the PRC Regional Office on your Schedule

BASIC REQUIREMENTS:

Nursing Board Exam Requirements For Filing For First Time Test Takers:

1. Original and Photocopy of Transcript of Records (TOR) from your school with:

  • Special Order (SO)
  • Date of graduation
  • Seal of the school
  • Scanned picture
  • Remarks “For Board Examination Purposes Only” (CHED recognition and permit to operate for graduates of new schools / programs)

2. Original and Photocopies of Authenticated Birth Certificate (NSO)/ PSA Marriage Contract for female applicants

3. Receipt of Examination Fee (Paid through your selected payment option Step 5)

4. Cedula (Photocopy)

5. PRC Number (From the Information Section of the PRC Office) 

Regional PRC Offices Contact Information

If you have concerns and you need help from the local PRC Offices, you may want to call them through these numbers:



Do You Need Technical Assistance with Your PRC website account?

If you have technical concerns with the PRC websites including resetting your password, mismatched record edit, and other related concerns, you may email them at:

[email protected]