- What the HESI A2 Requires - and Who Needs to Take It
- Baseline Eligibility: Is There a Prerequisite to Register?
- The Seven Academic Sections Programs Draw From
- Optional Sections Some Programs Add
- How Each School Sets Its Own Requirements
- Registration, Payment, and Test-Day Logistics
- Proctoring Formats: Onsite vs. Remote
- Meeting the Requirement: A Domain-by-Domain Plan
- Retakes, Score Use, and Applying to Multiple Programs
- Frequently Asked Questions
- There is no universal prerequisite to sit the HESI A2 - your target program sets the entry requirements.
- Elsevier's HESI NG platform offers seven academic sections; each school selects which ones you must take.
- Programs may also assign Learning Style, Personality Style, or a Critical Thinking module on top of the academic sections.
- The exam supports onsite and remote proctoring through the Elsevier Secure Browser, depending on how your school configures it.
What the HESI A2 Requires - and Who Needs to Take It
The HESI Admission Assessment (A2) Exam is published and administered by Elsevier through the HESI NG platform, and it exists for one purpose: to help nursing and allied health programs evaluate applicants before they're admitted. If you're wondering whether you're "required" to take it, the honest answer is that the requirement doesn't come from Elsevier - it comes from the school you're applying to. If you haven't looked at the fundamentals yet, our overview of what the HESI A2 is and the breakdown of what HESI A2 actually stands for are good starting points before you dig into eligibility specifics.
Because it's an admissions tool rather than a licensure exam, "requirements" here really means two separate things: (1) what your program requires of you to register and sit for it, and (2) what score or section combination the program requires of you to qualify for a seat in the cohort. Both are set locally, and both can vary meaningfully between two schools in the same city.
Baseline Eligibility: Is There a Prerequisite to Register?
Unlike board exams that require a completed degree or supervised clinical hours before you can sit for them, the HESI A2 doesn't carry a universal academic gate. Elsevier's role is to publish and administer the assessment platform; it's the admissions office of your chosen program that decides:
- Whether you need a completed application on file before scheduling your test date
- Whether prerequisite coursework (like anatomy or algebra) must be in progress or completed first
- Which testing window you're allowed to register in relative to your application deadline
- How many attempts you're permitted and how long you must wait between them
This is why two applicants - one applying to an associate degree program and one applying to a bachelor's program - can have completely different "requirements" even though they're sitting for the identical exam. Before you register anywhere, confirm directly with your program's admissions page which sections apply to you and what benchmark they expect, since this single step prevents most of the confusion applicants run into later.
The Seven Academic Sections Programs Draw From
Elsevier's HESI A2 platform is built from seven academic sections, and programs choose which of these you'll actually be tested on. Understanding all seven - even the ones your specific school skips - helps you gauge how the exam is structured overall. For a deeper walkthrough of each content area, see our full HESI A2 exam domains guide.
Domain 1: Mathematics
Covers the arithmetic and applied math skills programs expect incoming students to already have, including calculations relevant to dosage and measurement contexts.
- Whether a calculator is permitted is configured by your school, not fixed platform-wide
Domain 2: Reading Comprehension
Tests your ability to extract main ideas, inferences, and supporting details from passages similar in style to healthcare-related reading material.
- Passage-based questions reward careful re-reading over speed-skimming
Domain 3: Vocabulary and General Knowledge
Assesses familiarity with terminology commonly encountered in academic and clinical reading, not just everyday vocabulary.
- Word roots and prefixes/suffixes carry more weight than memorized word lists
Domain 4: Grammar
Focuses on standard grammar conventions - sentence structure, parts of speech, and usage errors you'll need to recognize quickly.
- Identifying the error type is often faster than trying to rewrite the whole sentence
Domain 5: Biology
Covers foundational biological concepts programs expect before science-heavy coursework begins.
- Terminology precision matters as much as conceptual understanding here
Domain 6: Chemistry
Tests basic chemistry principles that underpin later coursework in physiology and pharmacology-adjacent classes.
- This section tends to feel the least familiar to applicants coming straight from non-science backgrounds
Domain 7: Anatomy and Physiology
Assesses knowledge of body systems, structures, and functions - often considered the most content-dense of the seven sections.
- Frequently the section applicants are told to start reviewing earliest
If you want a sense of which of these sections tend to feel more demanding once you're actually sitting the exam, our guide on how hard the HESI A2 exam really is breaks that down section by section rather than in generalities.
Optional Sections Some Programs Add
Beyond the seven academic sections, Elsevier's platform lets programs configure additional components. It's worth knowing these exist so you're not caught off guard on test day:
- Learning Style - a self-assessment some programs use for advising rather than admissions scoring
- Personality Style - another self-report module some programs attach for cohort or advising purposes
- Critical Thinking - an available version of the assessment some programs choose to include alongside the academic sections
None of these are guaranteed on your exam. Whether you see them depends entirely on how your specific school configured the testing window, so check your admissions instructions rather than assuming based on what a friend at another school experienced.
Key Takeaway
Don't study for sections your program hasn't assigned. Confirm your exact section list in writing from admissions before building a study plan - it saves time and prevents you from over-preparing for content that won't appear.
How Each School Sets Its Own Requirements
Because each school sets its own required sections, admission benchmark, retake rules, and score-use policy, "meeting the requirement" is really a school-specific puzzle. The table below illustrates the categories of decisions that vary - not universal figures, since Elsevier does not publish one fixed national standard.
| Requirement Category | Set By | What Varies |
|---|---|---|
| Required sections | Individual program | Which of the seven academic sections (plus optional modules) you must complete |
| Admission benchmark | Individual program | The score level the program expects applicants to meet or exceed |
| Retake rules | Individual program | Wait time between attempts and maximum number of attempts allowed |
| Score-use policy | Individual program | How long a score remains usable for that program's admissions cycle |
| Proctoring format | Individual program, via Elsevier's platform | Onsite testing center vs. remote proctoring through the Elsevier Secure Browser |
Because the exact benchmark differs by program, it's worth reading our dedicated explainer on the HESI A2 passing score so you understand how "passing" is defined locally rather than assuming a single fixed cutoff applies everywhere.
Registration, Payment, and Test-Day Logistics
Registration mechanics for the HESI A2 run through Elsevier's HESI NG system, and your program configures the specific testing window, section timer, calculator access, payment method, and score reporting for your cohort. In practice, that means:
- Your school tells you when your registration window opens and closes - Elsevier doesn't set one fixed national date
- Payment is handled through the platform your program directs you to, and the amount and payer (you or the school) depend on local policy
- Section timers and calculator availability are configured per exam session, so the same section can run differently at two different schools
- Score reporting - whether scores go straight to the program or to you first - is also a local configuration choice
Since fee structures and payment logistics differ by institution, don't rely on secondhand numbers from forums. For a grounded look at how costs are typically structured, see our HESI A2 certification cost breakdown, and pair that with our HESI A2 exam dates guide so you're not registering at the last minute against your program's deadline.
Proctoring Formats: Onsite vs. Remote
Current Elsevier guidance supports both onsite and remote proctoring, delivered through the Elsevier Secure Browser. Which format applies to you is another decision your program makes, not a personal choice you get to select freely in most cases.
Regardless of format, requirements around identification, environment checks, and the secure browser software itself are non-negotiable - plan to test them ahead of your appointment rather than discovering an issue on test day.
Meeting the Requirement: A Domain-by-Domain Plan
Once you know exactly which sections your program requires, the smartest way to prepare is to sequence your review around section difficulty and content density rather than studying everything at once. A simple four-week structure built around the HESI A2's own domains looks like this:
Anatomy and Physiology + Biology
- Start with the densest content since it needs the most repetition to stick
- Build a running glossary of body systems terminology
Chemistry + Mathematics
- Practice calculation problems under your program's specified calculator rules
- Isolate any chemistry gaps from prior coursework and drill those specifically
Reading Comprehension + Vocabulary and General Knowledge
- Practice timed passages to match your school's section timer settings
- Review word roots rather than memorizing isolated vocabulary lists
Grammar + Full Review
- Run full-length timed practice sessions across every required section
- Revisit weak domains identified from earlier practice scores
If you prefer a more detailed week-by-week walkthrough with specific resource recommendations, our HESI A2 study guide expands on this exact structure. And if you want a fast-reference companion for the final week before your test, the HESI A2 cheat sheet condenses the must-know facts from all seven domains onto one page. The current official preparation reference from Elsevier is the Admission Assessment Exam Review, 6th Edition (2024), which is worth pairing with focused practice sessions on our practice test platform so you can gauge readiness against realistic question formats before your actual appointment.
Retakes, Score Use, and Applying to Multiple Programs
Because the HESI A2 is an admissions assessment rather than a renewable certification, there's no recertification cycle to track - but that doesn't mean scores last forever or transfer freely between schools. Each program independently decides:
- How long a given score remains valid for that admissions cycle
- Whether a score earned for one program's application can be reused for another program's application
- How many retake attempts are permitted and the required wait time between them
If you're applying to multiple programs simultaneously, don't assume one exam sitting satisfies every application - confirm each program's score-use policy individually. This is also a good moment to step back and evaluate whether the exam and the program you're targeting align with your longer-term plans; our analysis on whether the HESI A2 is worth it and our overview of career paths connected to HESI A2 scores can help frame that decision. For context on how programs and score data trend over time, our HESI A2 pass rate analysis is a useful companion read, and our HESI A2 salary guide is helpful once you're weighing which programs to prioritize.
Key Takeaway
Treat every score-use and retake question as program-specific. Get it in writing from admissions rather than assuming policies from one school apply to another - this single habit prevents the most common qualification mistakes applicants make.
Frequently Asked Questions
There's no universal prerequisite set by Elsevier. Some programs require certain coursework to be completed or in progress before testing; others don't. Check directly with your target program's admissions office.
Only the sections your program selects from the seven academic sections, plus any optional Learning Style, Personality Style, or Critical Thinking module they've configured. Confirm your exact list with admissions before you start studying.
Remote proctoring through the Elsevier Secure Browser is supported under current Elsevier guidance, but whether it's available to you depends on your program's configuration. Some schools require onsite testing only.
Each school sets its own admission benchmark rather than Elsevier publishing one fixed national passing score. See our dedicated passing score guide for how to interpret your program's specific requirement.
No. It's an admissions assessment, not a renewable certification, so there's no recertification cycle. However, individual programs set their own rules for how long a score remains usable for their specific admissions cycle.