What to Expect on Examination Day

NBOME is dedicated to providing a positive testing experience for all candidates. Please review the following video and guidelines in preparation for exam day.

Testing at Prometric Centers

All COMLEX-USA Computer-Based Examinations are conducted at Prometric Centers. We recommend arriving 30 minutes prior to your exam to complete the check-in process and situate yourself at the workstation before the exam begins. Students arriving up to 30 minutes after the scheduled start time, may or may not be permitted to take the exam at the sole discretion of the proctor or testing vendor, and only if the test center is able to deliver it in its entirety. If arrival at the test center is beyond the scheduled start time, the candidate risks being designated a “No Show.”

For more information on Prometric policies and the check-in process, please review the video tutorial below:

Video Tutorial

Prometric Testing Center

What To Bring

• Photo ID
  A form of current (not expired) government-issued photo identification that bears the candidate’s name (first and last name on the ID must match the name on your registration form) and signature. Candidates whose identifications do not match their registration form will be considered a “No Show” and will be responsible for paying the appropriate administration fee to reschedule.
• Testing Accommodations
  Candidates with disabilities, including hearing impairment, should refer to our application for testing accommodations. If you may require test accommodations, please review our test accommodations page.

What To Expect

After check in, the total examination day will last approximately nine hours, consisting of a brief optional (but recommended) tutorial, two optional 10-minute breaks, an optional 40-minute lunch break and eight hours total exam time divided into two four-hour sections of four subsections each.

For all breaks, the candidate will need to leave the testing room. Upon re-entry to the testing area, a valid ID must be shown and a fingerprint will be taken. It is important to allow sufficient time to check in and be seated. Any breaks in addition to the three optional breaks will be considered unscheduled and will be reported to the NBOME by the test center administrator.

• Optional 10-minute Breaks:
  The first optional 10-minute break occurs in the morning and the second optional 10-minute break occurs in the afternoon. For all scheduled breaks, candidates will be permitted access to their lockers for food, drink, medicine, and other stored items including electronic devices such as cell phones. Candidates may NOT access study materials or electronic devices during any unscheduled breaks.
• Optional 40-minute Lunch Break:
  The optional 40-minute lunch break will occur after the morning section is completed. For all scheduled breaks, candidates will be permitted access to their lockers for food, drink, medicine, and other stored items including electronic devices such as cell phones. Candidates may NOT access study materials or electronic devices during any unscheduled breaks.

If the breaks taken exceed the minutes allotted for the break, the additional time will count against the time available to take the examination.  After the 40-minute lunch break, the afternoon examination section (subsections five through eight) will begin, regardless of whether the candidate is seated at the workstation. The candidate may choose to forgo all or part of the lunch break, but unused time will not be added to the examination time.