The NCLEX exam is the licensing exam for nurses in the United States and Canada. This Question type realizes the NCLEX Matrix Multiple Response Question and is pre-configured with the required +/- scoring rules.

Watch the "NCLEX matrix multiple response" demo video.

Figure 1: NCLEX Question displays a grid, where learners can select as many cells as applicable.

Learners earn points for every correct response, and lose points for each incorrect response, with a floor score of zero points per column. There are no penalty points for missing a correct answer.

The Question is therefore out of the total number of correct cells that need to be selected, and cannot go below zero.

The Question in action

Here are examples of the scored feedback a learner would receive by selecting different combinations of correct, incorrect, and skipped answers.

Figure 2: The learner’s responses are shown in the grid as pink, with the scoring alongside it.

The above response earns full marks for selecting all eight correct cells, shown highlighted in green, with a green check mark.

Figure 3: The learner’s responses missing correct response.

The above response would earn seven marks since the learner has missed one correct answer, shown as a yellow highlight and dark check mark.

Figure 4: The learner’s responses with incorrect and missing responses.

The response above would score five out of eight:

• Pneumonia: three points for three correct answers (one missed)
• Urinary Tract Infection: two points for two correct answers (zero missed)
• Influenza: zero points. one correct answer, one missed, and minus one for an incorrect answer. The incorrect answer is shown highlighted in red, with a red cross.

Figure 5: The learner’s responses with missing and multiple incorrect responses.

The response above would also score five out of eight:

• Pneumonia: three points for three correct answers (one missed)
• Urinary Tract Infection: two points for two correct answers (zero missed)
• Influenza: zero points. two correct answer, and minus three for incorrect answers with a floor of zero. The incorrect answer is shown highlighted in red, with a red cross.

Create a Question

‘Choice matrix - NCLEX Scoring’ is found in the ‘Other’ category.

Figure 6: NCLEX Question type can be found under the other category.

Figure 7: Composing NCLEX Question

On the edit page, enter a Question in the Compose Question area. ‘Stems’ are rows in the table, the elements selected per column, and ‘Options’ are the column headers. Click +Add for each new stem or option, and the trash can icon beside a stem or option to remove it.

Figure 8: Configure various scoring options

In order to configure scoring for the Question:

• Under ‘Set correct answer(s)’, enter a value in the Point(s) box. This is the number of points given per correct cell. The default value is 1.
• Underneath, you will see the matrix created by the stems and options. To indicate correct responses simply click on the cells.
• Under ‘More options’, set the penalty point(s). This is the number of points subtracted for selecting an incorrect cell. The default value is 1.

Other Scoring options:

• Unscored/Practice usage type - Enabling this option will remove all scoring from the Question.
• Check answer button - If this is enabled, a "Check answer button" will appear to the learner alongside the Question; clicking this button will indicate to the learner if their answer is correct or incorrect, but it will not tell them the correct response. This can be useful for informal assessment.
• Check answer attempts - The value entered here will indicate how many times the learner can use the "Check answer button". A value of 0 indicates an infinite number of times.
• Minimum points if attempted ¹ - Points awarded to the learner for attempting the Question, regardless of a correct or incorrect response.

'Extra' options

The extras section in the authoring interface allows you to add more information about the Question, information that we refer to as metadata.

There are a number of fields available: acknowledgements, contains math, distractor rationale, distractors, instructor stimulus, rubric reference, sample answer, and stimulus (review only).

To learn more about the options shown in the Extras section, see Understanding the Extras Section of the Question Editor.

This Question type is supported on Long Term Support versions 2024.2.LTS and onward. 

1. Note: “Minimum points if attempted” replaces the earlier label “Minimum score if attempted”. Version added: v2026.1.LTS