CSC Certification: Overview and FAQ
Are you a certified nurse looking to advance your expertise in post-op cardiac nursing? The Cardiac Surgery Certification (CSC Certification) can help deepen your knowledge and showcase your skills in this critical care area. What could this credential do for your career as a cardiovascular or PACU nurse? Here’s an overview.
Offered by the American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN), CSC is a subspecialty certification that’s Magnet-recognized. Specialty certifications set nurses apart, but this is even more true with CSC — fewer than 4,000 nurses in the U.S. have CSC certifications. With a national nursing workforce of about 4.7 million, only about .09% have this credential, so earning it could set you apart from your peers.
What Is CSC Certification?
CSC is a subspecialty nursing certification for experienced nurses who care for patients within the first 48 hours after cardiac surgery. It’s a critical care credential, and nurses who qualify for it may work in these clinical areas:
- Post-anesthesia care units (PACUs)
- Cardiovascular surgery
- Cardiothoracic surgery
CSC-certified nurses most often practice in larger medical centers and hospitals, where surgical teams have the resources to offer advanced surgeries. They care for patients recovering from complex cardiac procedures, including the following:
- Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG)
- Heart valve repair or replacement
- Left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation
- Aortic aneurysm repair
- Cardiac transplant surgery
- Thoracic or minimally invasive cardiac procedures
Benefits of Earning CSC
Why pursue additional credentials like CSC certification? Nursing specialty certifications like this one are optional, and it takes time to qualify for them. But research has shown that nurses who go to the trouble of obtaining them can experience benefits including:
- Improved patient outcomes.
- Higher job satisfaction.
- Reduced complications.
- Increased income due to incentive programs.
- Demonstrated commitment to nursing excellence.
Depending on your career goals, earning a CSC may be a logical next step to get you where you’d like to be. For example, if you plan on moving into a higher level of care, becoming a nurse leader or educator, or you’d like to be more active in research, a certification can make you a more competitive candidate for roles.
How to Earn CSC Certification: 4 Steps
Because CSC is a subspecialty certification, you’ll need to already have a nationally recognized specialty certification to qualify. Learn more about obtaining these prerequisite credentials, which include the following:
- Critical Care Registered Nurse (CCRN)
- Progressive Care Certified Nurse (PCCN)
- Acute Care Nurse Practitioner (ACNP-BC)
- Acute Care Nurse Practitioner – Gerontology (ACNP-AG)
- Certified Clinical Nurse Specialist (CCNS)
- Acute Care Clinical Nurse Specialist – Gerontology (ACCNS-AG)
- Certified Perioperative Nurse (CNOR)
- Certified Registered Nurse First Assistant (CRNFA)
- Certified Post Anesthesia Nurse (CPAN)
Step 1: Meet Eligibility Requirements
CSC certification requirements include:
- A valid, unencumbered RN or APRN license.
- Meeting one of these minimum clinical practice requirements, as verified by a supervisor or colleague RN:
- 1,750 RN or APRN critical care practice hours within the past 2 years, with at least 875 hours within the past year. Note that 875 hours must be spent in the care of critically ill adult cardiac surgery patients within 48 hours of surgery.
- 2,000 RN or APRN critical care practice hours within the past 5 years, with at least 144 hours within the past year. Note that 1,000 hours must be spent in the care of critically ill adult cardiac surgery patients within 48 hours of surgery.
- A current nursing clinical specialty certification.
- The credential must involve care for adult patients and be nationally accredited by the American Board of Specialty Nursing Certifications (ABSNC) or the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA). The test for the credential must go beyond clinical judgment to include professional nursing care competencies and ethical practice.
Step 2: Apply for Certification
Once you meet the requirements, start your application by making an AACN account. Have your RN and/or APRN license ready, as well as the contact information for a coworker who can attest to your experience. You can use a credit card to pay the fees. If you’re applying from outside the U.S., you can use a paper form and pay via check or money order.
Here are the fees for applying to take the exam:
- Computer exam: $145 for AACN members, $235 for nonmembers
- Retests: $120 for AACN members, $165 for nonmembers
You may be able to receive a discount if you organize a group of 10 nurses to apply for the exam together. Discounts are also available for healthcare organizations that purchase exam vouchers for their staff.
Once your application goes through, you’ll receive an email link to schedule your test. You can either take it in your home with live remote proctoring or at an in-person exam center.
Step 3: Pass the CSC Exam
Ready to test your knowledge? The CSC test focuses on clinical judgment and is 90 questions long. You’ll have two hours to complete it; 75 questions are scored, and 15 are research questions, which won’t count towards your performance.
Once you finish, you’ll get a report that shows whether you passed or not, and a more detailed report will arrive in your email within 24 hours. If you pass, you’ll receive your printed CSC certificate in the mail three to four weeks after testing.
Step 4: Maintain Your Credential
You’ll need to renew your CSC credentials every three years in the month that you passed the exam. AACN will send a renewal notice in your email four months before it’s time to renew.
You must not have been subject to formal discipline by your state board of nursing to qualify for renewal, and you’ll also need to maintain your specialty certification. Clinical practice is a requirement for this credential — you’ll need 432 hours of direct care of adult post-operative cardiac patients, with 144 hours accrued within the past 12 months.
There are two options for CSC renewals:
- Continuing education recognition points (CERPs), in which you’ll need to complete 25 Category A clinical judgment education units.
- Retesting, in which you’ll need to schedule and sit for the exam again. Renewal by exam costs $120 for members and $165 for nonmembers.
In addition to exam fees, the renewal fees are $75 for AACN members and $130 for nonmembers.
CSC Certification FAQs
How should I list my CSC credentials?
This certification is displayed along with the nationally accredited certification you used to qualify. So for example, if you are a CCRN, you would list this credential as CCRN-CSC.
CSC vs. CMC: What’s the difference?
CMC stands for Cardiac Medicine Subspecialty Certification, and it’s also offered by the AACN as a subspecialty certification. But while CSC focuses on the care of adult cardiac patients in the postoperative period, CMC is for nurses working in these other areas of cardiac medicine:
- Medical intensive care units (MICUs)
- Cardiovascular intensive care units (CVICUs)
- Cardiac care units
- Cath labs
- Telemetry
- Electrophysiology units
- Progressive care
- Home health
- Heart failure units
- Interventional cardiology
Can you earn CSC certification online?
Yes, you can apply for this credential online and sit for the exam with a remote proctor on your home computer. Visit the AACN site for more information.
Related Certifications
- Cardiac Medicine Certification (CMC)
- Cardiovascular Registered Nurse (CVRN)
- Cardiac-Vascular Nursing Certification (CV-BC)
- Critical Care Registered Nurse (CCRN)
- Progressive Care Registered Nurse (PCCN)
- Certified Nurse Operating Room (CNOR)
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