NREMT Practice Test
This is a free 15-question sampler in the style of the NREMT cognitive exam at the EMT level. It covers airway and ventilation, cardiology and resuscitation, trauma, medical and obstetric emergencies and EMS operations, mixing multiple choice, select all that apply and fill in the blank. Answer all 15 questions, then check your score and read the explanation for every question.
An EMT crew is dispatched to a report of a person down in a parking garage. What must the crew do before making patient contact?
All Nursing & Health quizzes
- Practice test · 15 questions
EMT Practice Test
- Practice test · 15 questions
EKG Practice Test
- Practice test · 15 questions
Anatomy and Physiology Practice Test
Now make your own
Upload your prep book, slides or notes, or just tell Bo what you want to learn. You do not need a document to start.
All 15 questions at a glance
Prefer to read before you play? Every question in the sampler is listed below. Answers and explanations stay collapsed until you open them.
1. An EMT crew is dispatched to a report of a person down in a parking garage. What must the crew do before making patient contact?
- A. Take standard precautions and confirm the scene is safe
- B. Take a full set of vital signs from the doorway
- C. Ask dispatch to repeat the call type
- D. Move the patient to the ambulance to assess in better light
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. Take standard precautions and confirm the scene is safe
Scene size-up comes before any patient care, and it starts with body substance isolation and a check that the scene is safe for the crew, the patient and bystanders. An injured EMT cannot help anyone, so if the scene is not safe you stage at a distance until someone else makes it safe.
2. An EMT finds an unresponsive adult who is breathing with a loud snoring sound. There is no sign of trauma. What should the EMT do first?
- A. Insert a nasopharyngeal airway
- B. Open the airway with a head-tilt chin-lift
- C. Suction the airway for 15 seconds
- D. Begin ventilating with a bag-valve mask
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. Open the airway with a head-tilt chin-lift
Snoring respirations mean the tongue has fallen back against the back of the throat, and a manual maneuver lifts it clear before any device goes in. With no suspected spinal injury the head-tilt chin-lift is the maneuver of choice; if trauma were suspected you would use a jaw thrust instead.
3. A patient needs a high concentration of oxygen through a nonrebreather mask. What flow rate should the EMT set?
- A. 2 liters per minute
- B. 4 to 6 liters per minute
- C. 10 to 15 liters per minute
- D. 25 liters per minute
Show answer and explanation
Answer: C. 10 to 15 liters per minute
A nonrebreather runs at 10 to 15 liters per minute, high enough that the reservoir bag never collapses while the patient inhales, and at that flow it delivers roughly 90 percent oxygen. A nasal cannula is the low flow device at 1 to 6 liters per minute, which is nowhere near enough to keep a reservoir bag filled.
4. Which findings suggest that an adult patient is breathing inadequately?
Select all that apply.
- A. A respiratory rate of 6 breaths per minute
- B. Cyanosis around the lips and nail beds
- C. Retractions and use of the neck and shoulder muscles
- D. Speaking in full sentences without pausing
- E. Equal chest rise with quiet, effortless breathing
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. A respiratory rate of 6 breaths per minute, B. Cyanosis around the lips and nail beds, C. Retractions and use of the neck and shoulder muscles
Adequate breathing in an adult is regular and effortless at roughly 12 to 20 breaths per minute with equal chest rise. A rate that slow, blue skin or visible work of breathing all point to failing ventilation, and they call for assisted ventilations with a bag-valve mask rather than a mask of oxygen alone.
5. A single EMT is performing CPR on an adult in cardiac arrest. Which compression to ventilation ratio should be used?
- A. 5 compressions to 1 breath
- B. 15 compressions to 2 breaths
- C. 30 compressions to 2 breaths
- D. 30 compressions to 1 breath
Show answer and explanation
Answer: C. 30 compressions to 2 breaths
Adult CPR uses 30 compressions to 2 breaths with one rescuer and with two rescuers, until an advanced airway is in place. The 15 to 2 ratio belongs to two-rescuer CPR on an infant or a child, not an adult.
6. Complete the sentence.
High quality chest compressions on an adult are delivered at a rate of _____ compressions per minute.
Options for blank 1: 60 to 80, 80 to 100, 100 to 120, 120 to 140
Show answer and explanation
Answer: 100 to 120
The target rate is 100 to 120 compressions per minute, fast enough to move blood but slow enough that the heart can refill between compressions. Depth matters just as much: at least 2 inches, about 5 centimeters, with full chest recoil and the shortest possible interruptions.
7. During an adult cardiac arrest the AED analyzes the rhythm and announces 'no shock advised'. What should the EMT do next?
- A. Resume chest compressions immediately
- B. Check for a carotid pulse for one full minute
- C. Remove the pads and load the patient for transport
- D. Press the analyze button again right away
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. Resume chest compressions immediately
A no shock advised message is not a sign of recovery, so compressions restart at once and run for about two minutes before the next analysis. Every second the chest is not being compressed, blood flow to the heart and brain falls, which is why interruptions are kept as short as possible.
8. An adult has heavy bleeding from a laceration on the forearm. What should the EMT do first?
- A. Apply a tourniquet just above the elbow
- B. Apply direct pressure over the wound with a gloved hand and a dressing
- C. Elevate the arm above the level of the heart
- D. Cover the wound loosely and wait for the bleeding to slow on its own
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. Apply direct pressure over the wound with a gloved hand and a dressing
External bleeding control starts with firm direct pressure on the wound, which stops the great majority of bleeds by itself. If direct pressure and a pressure dressing fail to control life-threatening bleeding from a limb, the next step is a tourniquet placed above the wound and tightened until the bleeding stops.
9. Which findings would make an EMT suspect that a trauma patient is in shock?
Select all that apply.
- A. Skin that is pale, cool and clammy
- B. A heart rate that keeps climbing
- C. Restlessness and anxiety
- D. A slow, strong, bounding pulse
- E. Warm, dry, flushed skin
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. Skin that is pale, cool and clammy, B. A heart rate that keeps climbing, C. Restlessness and anxiety
Shock is inadequate perfusion, and the body compensates by speeding up the heart and shunting blood away from the skin, which turns the skin pale, cool and clammy and makes the pulse fast and weak. Restlessness and anxiety are early signs of a poorly perfused brain, and they usually appear before the blood pressure ever drops.
10. A restrained driver in a rear-end collision is alert and complains of neck pain. What should the EMT do while assessing this patient?
- A. Ask the patient to turn their head slowly to check range of motion
- B. Hold the head still in a neutral, in-line position
- C. Have the patient walk to the ambulance before assessing
- D. Apply a cervical collar before opening the airway
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. Hold the head still in a neutral, in-line position
Manual in-line stabilization goes on as soon as a spine injury is suspected and is held until the patient is fully secured. Never test range of motion in a patient with neck pain after a crash, because moving a damaged spine can turn a stable injury into a cord injury.
11. A 70-year-old has sudden one-sided facial droop and slurred speech. Which piece of information is most important for the EMT to obtain?
- A. The patient's current medication list
- B. The time the patient was last known to be normal
- C. The patient's usual blood pressure
- D. Whether the patient has had a headache this week
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. The time the patient was last known to be normal
Time sensitive stroke treatment is decided from the last known well time, so the hospital needs that clock, not just the moment someone noticed the symptoms. Get it from family or a bystander if the patient cannot tell you, and pass it on in your radio report and at handover.
12. Complete the sentence.
A patient in the third trimester of pregnancy who has to lie flat should be tilted onto her _____ side so the uterus does not compress the vena cava.
Options for blank 1: left, right, back, front
Show answer and explanation
Answer: left
The inferior vena cava runs slightly to the right of the spine, so tilting the patient to her left lifts the heavy uterus off it and keeps blood returning to the heart. Lying flat on the back late in pregnancy can drop the blood pressure sharply, a problem called supine hypotensive syndrome.
13. Which findings point to anaphylaxis rather than a mild allergic reaction?
Select all that apply.
- A. Swelling of the lips and tongue
- B. Wheezing and difficulty breathing
- C. A blood pressure that is falling
- D. A few hives on one forearm
- E. Mild itching with normal breathing and normal vital signs
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. Swelling of the lips and tongue, B. Wheezing and difficulty breathing, C. A blood pressure that is falling
Anaphylaxis is the whole body reaction that threatens the airway or the circulation, so upper airway swelling, wheezing and a falling blood pressure are what separate it from a local skin reaction. Those findings call for epinephrine without delay, given by auto-injector where your protocol allows it, and rapid transport.
14. Complete the sentence.
An alert diabetic patient with a blood glucose reading of 45 mg/dL who can swallow and follow commands should be given _____.
Options for blank 1: nothing by mouth, small sips of water, oral glucose, a chewable aspirin
Show answer and explanation
Answer: oral glucose
A reading that low in a patient who is awake and can protect their own airway is the classic indication for oral glucose, which raises blood sugar quickly. Nothing is given by mouth once a patient is too drowsy to swallow safely, because the risk then is aspiration rather than low sugar.
15. An alert, oriented adult with no apparent injuries refuses transport after a minor crash. What should the EMT do?
- A. Transport the patient anyway, since they were in a crash
- B. Explain the risks of refusing, then document the refusal and have the patient sign it
- C. Leave the scene as soon as the patient says no
- D. Ask a police officer to order the patient into the ambulance
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. Explain the risks of refusing, then document the refusal and have the patient sign it
A competent adult can refuse care, and treating them anyway can be battery, but a refusal only counts as informed once you have explained in plain words what could happen without care. Document what you told the patient, get the signature and a witness, and tell them to call again if anything changes.
What is actually on the NREMT exam
The NREMT cognitive exam is computer adaptive. The software picks your next question based on how you have answered so far, and it keeps going until it can decide with confidence that your ability sits above or below the passing standard. That is why the number of questions is not fixed: it varies from candidate to candidate between a published minimum and a published maximum, and finishing early is not by itself good news or bad news. You also cannot skip a question or go back and change an earlier answer, so each item has to be settled before you move on.
The questions are drawn from five content areas: airway, respiration and ventilation; cardiology and resuscitation; trauma; medical, obstetrics and gynecology; and EMS operations. Medical, obstetrics and gynecology carries the largest share at the EMT level, and trauma carries less than most candidates expect, which surprises people who spend all their study time on bleeding and splinting. Items are also split between adult and pediatric patients, so a question can put the same complaint in front of you in a six-month-old instead of a sixty-year-old and change the right answer.
Some things vary and you should check them rather than trust a number from a forum. Certification is not the cognitive exam alone: you also have to complete a state-approved course and meet the skills requirements set where you live, and those requirements differ by state. Retest rules, waiting periods and the current item minimum and maximum are set by the National Registry and can change, so read the current candidate handbook and your own state EMS office before you plan a test date.
How to use this sampler
These 15 questions are fixed, not adaptive, so they will not feel like the real thing in pacing. What they do mirror is the content mix and the way the exam asks: scene-based items that hand you a patient and ask what the EMT does first, or which finding is the most concerning. The exam rewards priorities more than recall, so the question is rarely whether you know what a tourniquet is and usually whether you know when it is the next step.
Take it in one sitting without notes, then read the explanation for every question, including the ones you got right. A wrong answer points at a topic, not just a fact. If you missed the shock question and the bleeding control question, review perfusion and hemorrhage as one subject instead of memorizing two answers.
When you study for the real exam, drill the order rather than the trivia. Scene safety and body substance isolation come before patient contact, the primary assessment runs airway, breathing, circulation, and the life threat you find gets fixed before you move on. A large share of exam items can be answered from that order alone, even when the scenario describes a condition you have never seen.
How StudyPDF builds full practice tests from your own materials
Fifteen questions can show you which areas are shaky. They cannot get you exam ready on their own, and a generic question bank does not know which protocols your service runs or which chapters your instructor emphasized.
StudyPDF works from your material instead. You upload your EMT textbook, your class slides or your local protocols, and Bo, the study agent, builds full-length practice tests from those exact pages. Every question is grounded in your material, and every explanation cites where the answer comes from, so you can check the source when something looks off. You can regenerate fresh tests as often as you want, narrow them to one area like airway management or obstetric emergencies, and track which topics you keep missing.
You do not have to upload anything to start. Name a topic instead, something like cardiac arrest management or pediatric respiratory distress, and Bo writes a practice test on it and explains every answer. Starting is free.
Written by the StudyPDF team. Last updated 2026-08-19.