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NCSPrep.com offers learning by problem-solving rather than pure memorization. It is intended to support and augment self-study in preparation for the NCS exam by testing your knowledge through complex cases and thoroughly explaining the reasoning behind each answer. The NCSPrep resources now also include extensive checklists to identify gaps in knowledge, study plans to keep you on track, and study advice specific to the 2025 exam.
Free Study Resources
Preparing for the NCS exam can be challenging, but there are many free resources to help you. Check out our recommended resources - and before you go, don't forget to read the interviews with past test takers for valuable insights.
These are checklists created by the content creators at NCSPrep and adjusted each year to reflect the many subtopics on the NCS exam. Use these lists to identify gaps in knowledge and to ensure you don't miss any essential information. These lists can also be found in each chapter of NCS Exam: 115 Case-Based Questions, Explanations, and Study Plan (2025)
Making judgement calls based on best-available evidence is a cornerstone of the NCS exam. This section contains pertinent research articles compiled by the Academy of Neurologic Physical Therapy. This is the most up-to-date list and is considered to be the most important aspect of preparation for the NCS exam.
This is a virtual test environment to practice the actual computer software you’ll be using to take the exam. It is important to be comfortable with navigating through the exam questions and practice how to use all the features that will augment your test, including the ability to highlight parts of a case, flag questions to return to later, and create comments.
This section gives you a sample of a weekly study plan and calendar to help keep you on track. Use these tools to spend the right amount of time on each topic and to ensure you pace yourself during your long study journey. This study plan can be used either as a self-study guide, or in conjunction with video-based prep courses.
Knowing which outcome measures have the highest evidence based on each patient population is essential for tackling the complex cases on the NCS Exam. This section gives you access to the most recent recommendations compiled by the APTA Edge Task Force. Each measure is separated by inpatient, outpatient, acute, or chronic, and is organized by component of the ICF model.
Three individuals share their insights on how they successfully navigated the study process, managed all the complex information, and tackled the exam. During this online focus group, they were able to discuss what worked and what didn't work for them, providing valuable advice to help you with your studying journey.
Learn by problem-solving through case-based study questions in the same format, complexity, and challenge of the questions on the NCS exam. Each practice question is hand-picked to target a different aspect of the various topics needed for evidenced-based practice in neurologic rehabilitation. All questions include detailed explanations and cite relevant research articles so the reader can find more information on any of the topics covered on the NCS exam.
Explore the Collection
Learn by problem-solving through case-based study questions in the same format, complexity, and challenge of the NCS exam. Each practice question is hand-picked to target a different aspect of the various topics needed for evidenced-based practice in neurologic rehabilitation. All questions include detailed explanations and cite relevant research articles so the reader can find more information on any of the topics covered on the NCS exam.
