The two NAB exams are only part of the story. As of July 2026, 32 jurisdictions also require a state-specific exam on that state's laws and rules before they will license a nursing home administrator, and almost nobody tells candidates this until they are deep in the application. Here is the verified list, what these exams actually test, and how to prepare when there is no study guide for sale.
Each link goes to that state's full licensing guide, with the requirement's source cited.
Alabama Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut District of Columbia Florida Idaho Illinois Indiana Kansas Louisiana Maryland Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana New Hampshire North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Vermont West Virginia Wisconsin
You study the state rules from the primary sources. But the Core and NHA Line of Service exams are the bigger hurdle, and those you can prepare for the structured way: a guided daily path of 100 explained questions, weak-spot training, and weekly timed Checkpoints across all four domains.
See prep plansRisk-free for 7 days. Full refund if it is not the right fit.
Per each board's published requirements as of July 2026; rules change, so confirm when you apply.
Alaska Delaware Georgia Hawaii Iowa Kentucky Maine Massachusetts Michigan Nebraska Nevada New Jersey New Mexico New York Rhode Island Utah Virginia Washington Wyoming
Where the NAB exams test the national body of knowledge, state exams test the layer that varies: the state's nursing facility licensure law, its administrative code, and state-specific operational rules. Formats differ far more than the NAB exams do. Verified examples of the range:
A 25-question jurisprudence examination on Connecticut law; at least 18 correct answers to pass (per CT DPH).
An open-book test on Idaho rules, submitted along with the license application (per Idaho DOPL).
A Board-developed written test on DC nursing home law with a 75 percent passing score, plus an interview with the Board (per DC Health regulations).
An exam based on Ohio's laws and rules (per the Ohio Board of Executives of Long-Term Services and Supports).
Most fall somewhere in that range: a written test on the state's rule chapters, taken around the time of the NAB exams or at application.
Honest reality: for most states, no commercial prep product exists for the state exam. Candidates study primary sources, and that is more doable than it sounds:
Your state's page here links the board and its published sources: find yours in the state-by-state guide. For the NAB side of preparation, the Core vs NHA breakdown and the LOS guide cover the national exams.
License transfer processes commonly accept your NAB exam scores, which never expire in the transfer sense, but still require the destination state's own exam, because it tests that state's law. If a move is in your future, check the destination board's reciprocity rules early; it changes nothing about the NAB exams and everything about the state layer.
The lists above were verified against NAB's state requirement pages and state board sources in July 2026, and each state page on this site cites its source. Boards change exam requirements on their own schedules; the board's current published rule is always the final word.
While you study your state's rules from the primary sources, the daily path here keeps the Core and NHA Line of Service preparation structured: 100 explained questions a day, weak-spot training, weekly timed Checkpoints.
See prep plansRisk-free for 7 days. Full refund if it is not the right fit.