AACN Certification Corporation offers volunteer positions for Item Writers, Exam Developers, Practice Analysis Task Force Members and Appeals Panels.
- Item Writers develop exam questions for each certification exam item bank and research problem items during the item analysis.
- Item Writers prepare exam questions from home, communicate via email and attend one two-day meeting.
- Exam Developers refine and approve exam items according to test specification criteria, evaluate the relevance of exam items to the practice of acute/critical care nursing, advise the Board of Directors of any necessary revisions to the test plan (blueprint) and provide mentoring opportunities to Item Writers.
- Exam Development members are required to attend one four-day meeting and should have prior experience as an Item Writer.
- Practice Analysis Task Force (PATF) members are volunteers who create the survey used for national studies of nursing practice, also known as job analyses.
- PATF members are subject matter experts in the area of nursing being studied.
- Appeals Panel members review and deliberate appeals, work primarily through written and electronic correspondence and participate in several conference calls that can be taken from home or work.