Appeals Policy

To become certified by AANPCB, all candidates must meet specific educational requirements that assess national competencies of the APRN core, the NP role, and at least one population focus area of practice; hold current registered nurse (RN) licensure; pass the national certification examination; and satisfy eligibility requirements as established by the AANPCB Board of Commissioners. All AANPCB Certificants must maintain active professional nursing licensure and demonstrate competency by meeting current recertification requirements established by the AANPCB Board of Commissioners.

Appeals:

AANPCB provides an appeal process for individuals who do not (1) meet eligibility criteria, (2) pass the certification examination, or (3) meet minimum requirements for recertification.

1. Applicants who do not meet eligibility criteria may appeal their denied application for initial certification.
2. Candidates who do not pass the examination may submit a request in writing to have their exam results reevaluated. Examinees are discouraged from requesting this service. Examinations are computer-based, electronically scored, and responses are verified before test results are finalized. Extensive and rigorous quality control procedures are employed to ensure the accuracy of results and in all previous score challenges there is no record of a score discrepancy being detected. An exam rescore is limited to verifying that the responses as scored were made by the examinee and were correctly transformed into a scaled score. The rescore service is not a review of the exam content, what the correct answer should be, the acceptability of testing conditions, or a reconsideration of the passing standard. The request will be forwarded to the testing vendor within 10 business days of receipt of written request. Candidates will be charged a fee for hand scoring by the testing vendor ($150.00 subject to change). Results of the rescore will be sent to the candidate within six weeks of receipt of request.
3. Applicants who do not meet criteria for renewal of certification may appeal their denied application for recertification. Certificants found ineligible to renew their certification through practice and CE will need to apply for and meet current eligibility requirements for certification by examination as an initial applicant. This option is only available for the Family, Adult-Gerontology, Psychiatric Mental Health, and Emergency certification examinations (Adult and Gerontological examinations are no longer available).

Process for Submitting an Appeal:

Appropriate and complete documentation must be submitted before the appeal can be reviewed. If the appeals request is for an exam rescore, the rescore fee must be received with the request before the appeal can be reviewed. The written appeal will be reviewed within 30 days of receipt of documents. Notice of determination shall be provided to the applicant within 10 business days of the decision via electronic or paper methods to include email and postal service. The appeal decision is final. There is no further appeal beyond this point. The applicant will be responsible for any expenses incurred during the appeals process. Correspondence regarding an appeal should be addressed to the attention of the Business Manager at certification@aanpcert.org.

Certification Verifications and Expirations:

Requests for verification of a certification received from a state board of nursing or third-party vendor will reflect the current status and certification dates in which the certification was valid. NP certification is time-limited. AANPCB-certified nurse practitioners who allow their certification to expire may not use the NP-C credential or present themselves as an AANPCB-certified nurse practitioner. Individuals whose certification has expired risk potential loss of employment, wages, insurance reimbursement, or credentialing privileges. AANPCB is not responsible for financial damages incurred with respect to expiration of a certification