Find your RN OSCE gaps before exam day.
The Australian RN OSCE is a practical exam of 10 stations [S1], held in person in Australia only [S2] [S3], and it costs AUD 4,000 a sitting [S1]. This free check gives you original practice scenarios, a checklist that explains every point, and a report of your gaps.
- Free, no account
- Answers stay on your device
- A reason for every point
- Every exam fact sourced
Scenario 3 of 6Station timer
A dose to calculate and an allergy that is not on the chart
You are the RN preparing the 12:00 medicines for Mr Okafor, 54. The adult medication chart says: amoxicillin 500 mg orally, three times daily.
Stock available: amoxicillin oral liquid, 250 mg in every 5 mL.
When you reach the bedside he says: 'I think penicillin gave me a rash once.' No allergy is written on his chart or on his wristband.
Your task. Part A: work out the volume for one dose. Part B: describe, in order, every check you would make before any medicine reaches the patient, and what you would do about what he just told you.
Then you tick what your answer included:
- Ticked: Safety-criticalIdentifies the patient with at least two identifiers (for example asks him to state his full name and date of birth, and matches them with the ID band and the chart) before giving anything.
- Ticked: Checks the order is complete and correct: right drug, dose, route, time and frequency, a prescriber's signature, and that the dose has not already been given.
- Not ticked: Safety-criticalRecognises amoxicillin is a penicillin, treats his report as a possible allergy, and does not give the dose until it is clarified.Why it matters. A possible penicillin allergy conflicts with the order. Giving the dose first and asking later could cause an anaphylactic reaction.
What is inside the free check.
6 scenarios, one for each skill area, with 47 checklist points. 15 of those points are safety-critical, and every one comes with the reason it matters.
| Scenario | Skill area | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1Explaining an injection to an anxious patient and his daughterCommunication and consent | Communication and consent | 8 2 safety-critical |
| 2An older patient who is 'not herself'Assessment and clinical reasoning | Assessment and clinical reasoning | 9 2 safety-critical |
| 3A dose to calculate and an allergy that is not on the chartMedication safety and patient identification | Medication safety and patient identification | 8 4 safety-critical |
| 4Changing a surgical wound dressingInfection prevention and control | Infection prevention and control | 7 2 safety-critical |
| 5Phoning the doctor about Mrs ChenEscalation and handover (ISBAR) | Escalation and handover (ISBAR) | 8 3 safety-critical |
| 6Writing up a fallDocumentation and evaluation of care | Documentation and evaluation of care | 7 2 safety-critical |
- A dose calculation that is checked for you, with the working shown.
- An optional station timer: two minutes to read, then eight to perform [S1], like a real station.
- Time: about half an hour (our estimate), or up to an hour with the timer on every scenario.
- Your report: gaps by area, missed safety points first, a practice plan, and a copy you can save as a PDF.
How the check works.
Read the scenario
Switch on the station timer for two minutes of reading, then eight to answer [S1].
Answer your way
Type it, or say it out loud as you would in the room. Nothing you type leaves your device.
Tick the checklist
See every point a safe answer covers and why it matters. Safety-critical points are flagged.
Get your report
Your gaps by area, missed safety points first, and a plan for what to practise next.
The RN OSCE, from the official sources.
The exam is run by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) and administered by Ahpra. Every line below comes from the candidate handbook or an NMBA page, with its source. Last checked . If an official page changes, trust it over this one.
What is the RN OSCE?
- The RN OSCE is the practical exam for internationally qualified registered nurses who want to register in Australia as a registered nurse. [S1]
- Candidates who have passed the NCLEX-RN multiple-choice exam can sit the RN OSCE. [S3]
- The OSCE is held in person in Australia only, in Adelaide and Melbourne. It cannot be done online or in another country. [S2] [S3]
How does a station work?
- The exam has 10 stations (clinical scenarios), written to test candidates against the Board's Registered Nurse Standards for Practice. [S1]
- Each station lasts 10 minutes: two minutes of reading time, then eight minutes to perform. [S1]
- Stations use either a simulated patient (an actor) or a manikin, and are set up to look like hospital wards or emergency departments, general practice clinics, aged care or community settings. [S1]
- You are required to demonstrate the skills, not just talk about what you would do. [S1]
- It is a regulatory exam, not an educational one. Examiners do not coach, prompt or give feedback, and when station time is up you move on even if you have not finished. [S1]
What can be tested?
- Skills that may be tested include (the list is not exhaustive): observations and vital signs, calculating drug dosages, subcutaneous and intramuscular injection, aseptic non-touch technique (ANTT), in-hospital resuscitation, safe disposal of sharps, medication administration, wound care, hand hygiene, communication and consent, infection control, patient identification, intravenous therapy and risk management. [S1]
- Communication is assessed at every station (spoken, non-verbal and written). Examiners look at things such as explaining care, seeking informed consent, dealing with anxious relatives and clear documentation. You should know the ISBAR approach for passing on clinical information. [S1]
- Stations cover three primary domains of care: nursing assessment and care planning, care delivery, and evaluation of care. [S1]
- The seven Registered Nurse Standards for Practice are: thinks critically and analyses nursing practice; engages in therapeutic and professional relationships; maintains the capability for practice; comprehensively conducts assessments; develops a plan for nursing practice; provides safe, appropriate and responsive quality nursing practice; evaluates outcomes to inform nursing practice. [S4]
What do you need to know?
- You are not expected to know specific Australian state or territory clinical policies, but you do need to understand relevant Australian national standards and international infection control and prevention standards. [S1]
- The handbook's recommended reading includes the NMBA Registered nurse standards for practice, the Code of conduct for nurses, the Code of Ethics, the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards, Hand Hygiene Australia and the ISBAR toolkit. [S1]
How is it marked?
- Each station is marked by a currently registered RN examiner using criteria written for that station and mapped to the Registered Nurse Standards for Practice. [S1]
- Results are emailed within eight weeks. You get an overall pass or fail and a result for each station. No extra feedback or recheck is available. [S1] [S2]
What does it cost?
- The exam fee is AUD 4,000 for each sitting (handbook dated 7 July 2026). A fail means paying the fee again to resit. [S1]
What this is, and what it is not.
| This is | This is not |
|---|---|
| Original practice scenarios we wrote | Real, recalled or leaked exam content |
| Our own practice checklist, with a reason for every point | The NMBA marking scheme, which is not published |
| A self-check: you tick what your answer covered | An examiner, or an AI, marking you |
| Practice that builds skills and habits | A guarantee of a pass. We do not publish or claim any pass rate |
| Independent | Affiliated with, endorsed by or approved by the NMBA, Ahpra, Prometric, the NCSBN, Pearson VUE or any exam body |
| Practice material for the exam | Advice for caring for real patients. Follow your workplace policy and the NMBA standards |
How it was written. Written with AI from the official RN OSCE handbook and NMBA standards, with every fact linked to its source and checked word for word against it.
The full coach, planned.
Planned, not built yet. Course price: to be announced. Nothing is for sale today, and details may change.
What it is planned to contain
- Practice scenarios for skills this check does not cover yet, such as in-hospital resuscitation, injections, intravenous therapy and safe disposal of sharps.
- Every scenario in the station shape, with the timer built in.
- Dose and drip-rate calculation drills, with the working shown.
- Drills chosen from the gaps in your report, starting with missed safety-critical points.
Hear when it opens
One email when the coach opens. That is all.
- No newsletter, and we never sell or share your email.
- One email to us removes you.
- Your written answers are never sent, not even with your scores.
A drill for each skill area
- Communication. Timed consent and explanation role-plays: a hearing-impaired patient, an anxious relative, a patient who says no. Practise saying it out loud in plain English.
- Assessment. Observation charts with a trend to spot: decide what is abnormal, what it might mean and what you check next, in a fixed order (for example ABCDE).
- Medication. Order-checking drills with traps (allergy conflicts, wrong time, missing signature) plus dose and drip-rate calculations without a calculator habit.
- Infection control. Step-by-step talk-throughs of aseptic non-touch technique for dressings and IV access: hand hygiene moments, key parts, waste.
- Escalation. ISBAR scripts for a deteriorating patient: say the numbers, make a clear request with a time, and read orders back. Repeat until it is short and calm.
- Documentation. Write-ups of a short scenario in 3 to 4 minutes: factual, timed, signed, with the plan and who was told.
How we built this check.
- Facts checked word for word. Every exam fact on this page is matched against a stored copy of the official handbook or page it came from. Last checked .
- Original scenarios. We wrote the scenarios and checklists, with AI, from the handbook's skill list and the NMBA standards. We do not use real exam content, and please do not send us any.
- Our own rubric. The checklist points and their weights are ours. The NMBA marking scheme is not published.
- Corrections welcome. No nurse has checked the scenarios or checklists, so the official sources always win. If a point looks wrong to you, write to [email protected] and we will fix it.
Sources
- [S1] Registered Nurse OSCE Candidate Handbook, 7 July 2026 (Ahpra and the National Boards). Ahpra / NMBA. Document dated 7 July 2026, record WD20/30349 [v12], 43 pages. Linked from the NMBA page S3. Checked 2026-10-27.
Open it on ahpra.gov.au - [S2] NMBA: Objective Structured Clinical Exam (OSCE) page. NMBA / Ahpra. Page shows 'Page reviewed 3/01/2025'. Checked 2026-10-27.
Open it on nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au - [S3] NMBA: Information for registered nurses (internationally qualified nurses, examination). NMBA / Ahpra. Page shows 'Page reviewed 3/01/2025'. Checked 2026-10-27.
Open it on nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au - [S4] NMBA: Registered nurse standards for practice. NMBA / Ahpra. Page shows 'Page reviewed 11/09/2025'. Checked 2026-10-27.
Open it on nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au
Privacy.
- The self-check: what you type and tick is saved in this browser, on this device only, so you can stop and come back later. It is never sent to us. Delete it any time with "Delete my saved answers" on the check page, and do that when you finish if the device is shared.
- The waitlist: we collect your email, and if you choose, the stage you are at and your area scores (never your written answers). If you arrived from an ad, we also note the campaign name in the link. Opus Vault keeps the list in its own database at Cloudflare, the company that hosts this site; Cloudflare may store it outside Australia. The list does not record your IP address, and we do not sell or share it. We use it only to email you about the launch, and we delete it one year after you join if the coach has not opened. To be removed, write to [email protected].
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