AG-ACNP Study Plan: Week by Week for ANCC or AACN

Pick your exam and the weeks you have. The plan sizes each week by the published blueprint.

AG-ACNP study plan

Your exam, week by week

Exam

Weeks until the exam

Week 1
- Cardiovascular · ACS, heart failure, rhythms, valves, aortic and vascular emergencies, resuscitation
Week 2
- Cardiovascular · ACS, heart failure, rhythms, valves, aortic and vascular emergencies, resuscitation
- Shock, sepsis & multisystem · Shock states, sepsis, trauma, burns; then toxicology and infectious disease
Week 3
- Shock, sepsis & multisystem · Shock states, sepsis, trauma, burns; then toxicology and infectious disease
Week 4
- Scope, regulation & prescribing · Consensus Model and scope, licensure and privileges, prescriptive authority, billing
Week 5
- Pulmonary · Respiratory failure and the ventilator, ARDS, COPD and asthma, PE, pneumonia
Week 6
- Neurology · Stroke, ICP, brain and spinal cord injury, seizures, CNS infection
- Hematology, oncology & immunology · Anemia and transfusion, platelets and clotting, oncologic emergencies, transplant
Week 7
- Quality, safety & evidence · Quality improvement, patient safety, evidence-based practice, research statistics
Week 8
- Quality, safety & evidence · Quality improvement, patient safety, evidence-based practice, research statistics
- Endocrine · DKA and HHS, inpatient glucose, thyroid and adrenal emergencies
Week 9
- Renal, fluids & acid-base · AKI, CKD and dialysis, electrolytes, IV fluids, acid-base
- Gerontology, palliative care & prevention · Frailty, prescribing for older adults, advance care planning, screening
- GI & hepatic · GI bleeding, liver failure, pancreatitis, the acute abdomen, nutrition
Week 10
- Musculoskeletal, skin & HEENT · Rhabdomyolysis, fractures, bone and joint infection, wounds, eye and ENT emergencies
- Psychosocial & cognitive · Delirium, agitation, dementia, mood, suicide risk
Week 11
- Ethics, communication & teaching · Capacity and consent, ethics, serious-illness communication, health literacy, the team
Week 12
Mixed practice. Timed questions across every area, then only the topics you missed. Nothing new.

Professional role is a third of the ANCC exam, so it gets three blocks. ANCC does not weight body systems; the plan sizes them by AACN’s published shares. Every week: read the cheat sheets first, then answer questions on them.

Start week 1 in the free library

In 30 seconds

1Each week covers an equal share of the exam’s weight, so heavy systems like cardiovascular take more weeks than small ones.
2The last week is mixed, timed practice. Nothing new.
3Every block opens its free library subject, where each topic has a verified cheat sheet.

How the plan is built

AACN ACNPC-AG: each body system is sized by its share of the AACN test plan (cardiovascular 15%, multisystem 14%, respiratory 11% and so on), plus two blocks for professional caring and ethical practice (20%).

ANCC AGACNP-BC: the ANCC outline puts 33% on the professional role, so it gets three blocks spread through the plan. ANCC does not weight body systems, so the plan sizes them by AACN’s shares. That part is our study heuristic, not ANCC’s.

AACN ACNPC-AG test plan, effective January 10, 2022. AACN’s published items sum to 79% (rounding).
AACN system	Share of the exam
Cardiovascular	15%
Respiratory	11%
Multisystem	14%
Neurology	8%
Hematology / Immunology / Oncology	6%
Endocrine	5%
Renal / Genitourinary	5%
Factors influencing health status	5%
Gastrointestinal	3%
Musculoskeletal	3%
Psychosocial / Behavioral / Cognitive Health	3%
Integumentary	1%

What a study day looks like

Open the week’s subject and read one topic’s cheat sheet.
Answer questions on that topic the same day, and read why each wrong option is wrong.
End with a few questions from earlier weeks.

Quick check · no scrolling back

On the ANCC plan, why does professional role get three blocks?

Sources

AGACNP-BC is a credential of the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). ACNPC-AG is a credential of AACN Certification Corporation. NurseSavvy is not affiliated with or endorsed by ANCC, AACN or any prep company named here.

Common questions

How should I plan my AG-ACNP study weeks?

Give each body system and role area time in proportion to its weight on your exam, and keep the last week for timed, mixed practice with nothing new.

Does the plan work for both exams?

Yes. For AACN it uses the published system shares. For ANCC it puts the professional role (33%) in three blocks; because ANCC does not weight body systems, it sizes them by AACN’s shares.