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ATI PN Fundamentals Proctored Exam — Study Guide, 2026 Exam & 2023 Exam

Three separate PN Fundamentals products, $50 each: the full 70-question Study Guide, plus 70-question practice exams matched to the 2026 and 2023 ATI Fundamentals proctored exam versions. Click a product to read what it covers before you buy.

What's inside

  • ATI PN Fundamentals Proctored Exam Study Guide — 70 practice questions with rationales covering the full Fundamentals content outline. Buy it below.
  • ATI PN Fundamentals Proctored Exam 2026 — 70-question practice exam matched to the 2026 series, with NGN-style items.
  • ATI PN Fundamentals Proctored Exam 2023 — 70-question practice exam matched to the 2023 series.
  • Every product includes a full rationale for every answer in a separate answer key, written for the PN/VN scope of practice, as a printable PDF you keep forever.

Who it's for

Nursing students preparing for the ATI Fundamentals content mastery exam in a PN or VN program. Start with the Study Guide for broad review, then add the practice exam for the version (2026 or 2023) your program has assigned.

Content note

Trademark disclaimer. This site operates independently and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Assessment Technologies Institute, LLC (ATI). Any reference to ATI or ATI proctored exams is used only to identify the subject matter our original study guides are intended to help students review — these are not reproductions of ATI's proprietary exam content.

Study Guide

What the ATI PN/VN Fundamentals proctored exam actually covers

ATI organizes Fundamentals around five content domains, scoped to what a PN/VN performs and reports. Here's what each one tests and how to study for it.
1

Foundations of Practice & Clinical Judgment

PN/VN Fundamentals questions test how you apply the nursing process — assessment, prioritization, and action — within the PN/VN scope. Expect ABC-style priority questions (airway before breathing before circulation) and items that test what a PN/VN reports to the RN versus what they can act on independently. Delegation questions here run in the opposite direction from the RN exam: instead of asking what you can delegate, they ask what a PN/VN can safely perform and what must be referred up to the RN or provider. Know that boundary cold — it's the single biggest scoring lever on this exam.

2

Safety & Infection Control

Standard and transmission-based precautions, PPE donning/doffing order, fall-risk identification, fire safety (R.A.C.E./P.A.S.S.), and medication/equipment safety make up a large share of the exam, and this content is nearly identical at the PN/VN and RN scope — a fall precaution or a PPE sequence doesn't change based on who's performing it. These questions are procedural: there's one correct sequence or one correct precaution level, so memorizing the exact order (gloves come off first) pays off directly.

3

Health Assessment & Documentation

You'll be tested on normal vs. abnormal findings across systems (vital signs, pulses, skin, respiratory effort) and how to document objectively — but PN/VN items lean harder on data collection and reporting than on independent assessment. A PN/VN commonly collects and documents findings, then reports abnormal results to the RN for further assessment and clinical judgment. Practice recognizing which findings are normal, which need reporting, and which are outside PN/VN scope to interpret alone.

4

Physiologic Needs

This domain covers hygiene, mobility, positioning, elimination, sleep, nutrition, hydration, and skin integrity — largely hands-on care that sits squarely within PN/VN scope. Expect lab-value questions, NPO and intake/output scenarios, and basic care-skill questions. These are usually knowledge-recall items, which makes them some of the most efficient points to lock in with focused review.

5

Psychosocial Needs

Culturally competent care, therapeutic communication, coping and loss, and client rights and confidentiality fall here. The trap in this domain is the same at every scope: picking the answer that sounds kind rather than the one that's actually client-centered. A PN/VN's role is usually to gather that information and communicate it clearly, then loop in the RN for care planning that requires independent judgment.

Sample ATI PN/VN Fundamentals questions with rationales

These are five original questions written to the PN/VN Fundamentals scope — the same format and difficulty you'll see in the full quiz engine, with the correct answer and rationale shown.
An LPN/LVN is caring for a client who requests information about the risks and benefits of a scheduled surgical procedure before signing the consent form. Which action should the LPN/LVN take?
A. Explain the risks and benefits using information from the client's chart
B. Notify the RN or provider so informed consent can be properly obtained
C. Ask the client's family member to explain the procedure instead
D. Tell the client that signing consent is required before the procedure can proceed

Rationale: Obtaining informed consent, including explaining risks and benefits, requires provider- or RN-level judgment. The LPN/LVN's role is to recognize this is outside their scope and notify the appropriate team member.

A nurse is preparing to don PPE before entering the room of a client on contact precautions. In which order should the items be put on?
A. Gown, mask, goggles, gloves
B. Gloves, gown, mask, goggles
C. Mask, goggles, gown, gloves
D. Goggles, gloves, gown, mask

Rationale: The standard donning sequence is gown, then mask or respirator, then goggles or face shield, with gloves put on last so the hands stay the cleanest layer until they're immediately needed.

An LPN/LVN notes a small amount of serosanguineous drainage on a postoperative client's dressing, consistent with the client's expected recovery course. What is the most appropriate action?
A. Immediately report the finding to the RN as an emergency
B. Document the finding as an expected postoperative finding
C. Reinforce the dressing and discard the original without documenting
D. Ask the client's family to monitor the drainage going forward

Rationale: A small amount of serosanguineous drainage is an expected postoperative finding that should be documented as part of routine assessment; it does not require urgent escalation unless drainage becomes excessive, purulent, or bright red.

An LPN/LVN is caring for a client with a stage 2 pressure injury on the sacrum. Which finding should the LPN/LVN expect to observe?
A. Full-thickness tissue loss with exposed bone
B. Intact skin with non-blanchable redness
C. A shallow open wound with a pink wound bed and no slough
D. Black, necrotic eschar covering the wound

Rationale: A stage 2 pressure injury presents as partial-thickness skin loss — a shallow open wound with a pink or red wound bed and no slough. Non-blanchable redness over intact skin is stage 1; exposed bone is stage 4; eschar suggests an unstageable injury.

A client who recently immigrated tells the LPN/LVN that a family elder should be present for any discussion of the client's diagnosis. Which response best demonstrates culturally competent care?
A. Explain that privacy laws require discussing the diagnosis with the client alone
B. Honor the client's request and include the family elder as the client wishes
C. Document the request but proceed with explaining the diagnosis to the client only
D. Tell the client that family involvement will be decided by the care team

Rationale: Culturally competent, client-centered care means honoring the client's own wishes about who is involved in care discussions, provided the client consents, rather than imposing a uniform approach to privacy or decision-making.

ATI PN/VN Fundamentals proctored exam FAQ

1

How many questions are on the ATI PN/VN Fundamentals proctored exam?

ATI's official PN/VN Fundamentals proctored exam typically runs a similar range of scored multiple-choice items as the RN version, though your nursing program sets the exact count, time limit, and number of unscored pretest items — check your course syllabus or ATI Learning System for your cohort's specific format.

2

What score do I need to pass ATI PN/VN Fundamentals?

ATI reports results as proficiency levels (Level 1, 2, or 3) rather than a single passing percentage, and each nursing program sets its own required level for the course. Ask your instructor what level your program requires before test day.

3

Is this the same test as ATI's official proctored exam?

No. This is an independent, original study resource written to cover the same content areas and question style as ATI's PN/VN Fundamentals content-mastery exam. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or a reproduction of Assessment Technologies Institute's proprietary exam content.

4

How is this different from the practice assessments inside my school's ATI account?

Your school's ATI Learning System practice assessments are the official ones and should be your primary prep. This site is a free, unlimited supplement — one question at a time with an instant rationale, no login or institutional access required — useful for extra reps between official practice attempts.

5

What should I study first if I'm running out of time?

Prioritize the foundations-of-practice and safety/infection-control domains above — they show up constantly in slightly different clinical wrappers, so mastering the underlying rule (like the PN/VN vs. RN scope boundary or PPE removal order) pays off across many questions at once.

6

How is the PN/VN Fundamentals exam different from the RN version?

The content areas overlap heavily — both cover the same five domains — but questions are scoped differently. RN items test independent assessment, planning, and delegation decisions, while PN/VN items test what a PN/VN performs directly versus what they report up to the RN. Delegation and scope-of-practice items are the single biggest place the two exams diverge, so pay close attention to task boundaries rather than just the clinical content itself.

7

Is this the same exam LPN/LVN students take?

Yes — LPN (Licensed Practical Nurse) and LVN (Licensed Vocational Nurse) programs use ATI's PN/VN-scope Content Mastery Series, so this guide applies whether your program calls the credential LPN or LVN.

8

What is ATI CMS?

CMS stands for Content Mastery Series — ATI's name for the individual proctored exams like this one. Read our full explainer on what ATI CMS means for more detail.

Keep studying
Question Bank

Browse all 70 PN Fundamentals practice questions

Every question below has its own page with the correct answer, a full rationale, and the concept behind it — grouped by Fundamentals topic so you can drill one area at a time.

Safety, Infection Control & Emergencies (16 questions)

Mobility, Transfers & Assistive Devices (11 questions)

Assessment, Documentation & Delegation (10 questions)

Nutrition, Elimination & Fluid Balance (12 questions)

Medications, Oxygenation & Procedures (8 questions)

Communication, Ethics & End-of-Life Care (13 questions)

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