OET Live

OET grades for Nursing in the US differ by state board

Licensure in the US is state by state, and OET lists individual state boards rather than a national authority — check the board for your own state. Not every board that registers nurses in the United States asks for the same thing — they differ on Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking. The table below gives all 33 of them, sub-test by sub-test, so you can check the one that will actually assess you.

The boards that register you

Every gating body OET lists for nursing in the United States, with the grade each publishes per sub-test. Grade B is 350–440; C+ is 300–340.

OET grades required by Nursing registration boards in United States
BoardListeningReadingWritingSpeaking
Alabama Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Alaska Board of NursingC+C+n/pC+
Arkansas State Board of NursingC+C+C+C+
Connecticut State Department of Public Health - Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Delaware Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs - Board of Nursing - HawaiiC+C+C+B
District of Columbia Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Florida Board of NursingC+C+C+C+
Idaho Board of Nursing - Division of Occupational and Professional LicensesC+C+C+C+
Illinois Board of NursingCCCC+
Iowa Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Kansas Board of NursingC+n/pC+B
Kentucky Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Maryland State Board of NursingC+C+C+C+
Massachusetts Board of Registration in NursingC+C+C+C+
Mississippi Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Missouri State Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Nebraska Board of NursingC+C+C+B
New Hampshire Board of NursingC+C+C+B
New Jersey Board of NursingC+C+C+B
New Mexico Board of NursingC+C+C+B
North Dakota Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Oregon State Board of NursingC+C+C+B
South Carolina Board of NursingBBBB
South Dakota State Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Tennessee Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Texas Board of NursingC+C+C+C+
Utah State Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Vermont State Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Virginia Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Washington State Board of NursingC+C+C+C
Wisconsin Board of NursingC+C+C+B
Wyoming State Board of Nursing (WSBN)C+C+C+C+

Visa and government routes

These decide whether you may enter or work, not whether you may register. They publish their own thresholds and they are not always the same, which is why they are listed apart rather than averaged into the answer above.

Visa and government bodies accepting OET for Nursing in United States
BoardListeningReadingWritingSpeaking
Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)C+C+C+B
Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) - State of MichiganC+C+C+C+
West Virginia RN BoardC+C+C+B
  • Compiled from OET's own list of recognising organisations, captured 2026-08-21. Confirm with the regulator before booking — a board can change its requirement between our weekly refresh and your application.
  • Some boards accept scores combined across two sittings and some do not. Where that rule matters it is stated on the full regulator list.
Considering somewhere else?

The same question, answered for every country that registers nurses.

United KingdomAustraliaNew ZealandIrelandCanadaSingapore

Or read the full guide: OET for Nursing.

Know the grade. Now go and get it.

Practise the Speaking sub-test against an AI patient on nursing cases, and get every one of the nine OET criteria scored about a minute after you finish.

On Android, Windows or a Mac? The app is iPhone-only for now — but you can hear a full role-play, scored turn by turn, right here.

Listen to a scored role-play
Download on the App Store

iPhone · iOS 16 or later. Android is not out yet.

Not installing today?Want the 60 minutes waiting when you do get an iPhone? Leave your email — 60 free practice minutes (≈ 12 role-plays) go on the account you create.