ANCC or AANP: Which FNP exam should I take?

The American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) are the two major entities that grant nursing certifications. These organizations administer various certification examinations to test the knowledge and expertise of nurses.

ANCC and AANP certifications provide the highest quality and relevant continuing education and clinical resources to build skills that grow with each experience. These demonstrate that a nurse practitioner has met the educational and experiential requirements for practicing as an expert and trusted provider of comprehensive and integrated health care.

FNP tests are varied and range from acute care tests to primary care, which includes family medicine, pediatrics and adolescent medicine, midwifery and psychiatric, and adult-gerontology.

American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC)

The American Nurses Association (ANA) and the National Certification Corporation (NCC) joined together to create the ANCC board, which instructs certification tests for nurses. The ANCC is the largest organization tutoring NP students throughout the nation.

Its certification test certified more specialties than any other of its kind. Some claim that the ANCC certification is a more precise representation of a nurse practitioner’s abilities because it encompasses a broader variety of NP learning materials.

American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP)

The American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) offers the most current certification for nurse practitioners (NPS). It’s an opportunity to show your expertise in advanced healthcare, something that will help you stand out in the doc-in-a-box world. And with many NP jobs still requiring both national certification and state licensure, it’s not surprising that the AANP is one of the most sought-after certifications around.

Which certification is better?

There’s a lot of confusion about which certifying organization is more widely accepted by hospitals nationwide. Although neither credentialing organization is more widely recognized than the other, there was a time when the Veterans Administration only recognized the ANCC. Nowadays, several health care facilities will accept either certification, so organizations cannot discriminate against graduates of the ANCC or the AANP.

Final Word

It is essential that you evaluate the pros and cons of each exam before making your decision. The choice of your exam may have a lot to do with your career outcome. These certifications all carry identical weight, and none is considered “better” than another. It simply comes down to personal preference. Are you planning on obtaining more than one specialty? Are you interested in outcome-based questions? Doing your homework before you commit will give you the best results.