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NBSTSA · Certification exam

CSFA practice test

The Certified Surgical First Assistant exam from the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting. 175 questions, 150 of them scored, in four hours.

1,223questions to practice
4 htimed exam, 175 questions
66%passes

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CSFA practice test · today’s five, done

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Today’s five
Question 1 of 5 · Intraoperative Procedures

Why is cystoscopysis-TOS-kuh-peeLooking inside the urethra and bladder with a scope passed through the urethra.cyst/o bladder-scopy looking at with an instrumentFull entry done after the trocarTROH-karA sharp or bladed instrument inside a tube (cannula), used to pierce a body wall and leave the tube in place as a port.Full entry are passed for a retropubic midurethral sling?

Press Practice. That's the whole setup.

No question count to pick, no modes, no settings. The CSFA practice test decides what to ask you next.

  1. 1

    Press Practice

    You get 10 questions picked for you. Keep going for 5 more as long as you like, or stop whenever. Nothing is lost.

  2. 2

    Answer, then see why

    Every answer shows the right one and the reason for it, so a wrong answer still teaches you something. Hard words are underlined in practice: tap one to see what it means.

  3. 3

    Sit the exam when your score is ready

    Your score sits next to the 66% pass mark. When it stays over, sit the full exam: 175 questions in 4 hours.

What's on the CSFA exam

NBSTSA publishes how much of the exam comes from each area. Our timed exam deals its questions in the same shares, so it feels like the real one.

Instrument photo questions count toward Intraoperative Procedures, where the real exam asks them.

NBSTSA CSFA content outlineShare of the exam
Perioperative Care 55%
Intraoperative Procedures45%
Postoperative Procedures5%
Preoperative Preparation5%
Advanced Science 31%
Advanced Anatomy and Physiology24%
Microbiology3%
Surgical Pharmacology3%
Ancillary Duties 14%
Equipment Sterilization and Maintenance10%
Administrative and Personnel4%

The CSFA isn’t written from a single book.

“The Certification Examination Reference Lists contain the texts used to develop the questions for the certification examinations.”NBSTSA, 2025 CSFA Candidate Handbook
What you needYour bookThis test
Explains the material
Asks you questions at your level–
Finds the areas you're weak in–
Times you like the real exam–
What our 1,140 written questions citeEvery answer prints its source
Alexander's Care of the Patient in Surgery762
Frey, Surgical Technology for the Surgical Technologist632
Kotcher Fuller, Surgical Technology: Principles and Practice429
Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary172
Tortora and Derrickson, Principles of Anatomy and Physiology96
AORN Guidelines for Perioperative Practice89
Howe and Burton, Pharmacology for the Surgical Technologist71
AST Standards and Guidelines45
CDC infection control guidelines41

CSFA practice test questions, answered

Anything else, ask at the Help Desk. A surgical tech reads every question.

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Is the CSFA practice test free?

Yes. Five new CSFA questions every day with the answers explained, the same five for everyone. No account needed. A free account keeps your days. Pro opens all 1,223 questions and the timed exam.

How many questions are on the CSFA exam?

The Certified Surgical First Assistant exam from the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting. 175 questions, 150 of them scored, in four hours. Our timed exam matches it: 175 questions in 4 hours, and 66% passes.

Does the CSFA practice test have answers and rationales?

Every question. After each answer you see the right one and the reason for it, in practice and on today's five. On the timed exam you see them all when you hand it in, the way you would want to review a real one.

Is there a CSFA practice test PDF?

No. The questions live online so the answer and its reason show the moment you answer, and practice can pick your next question from what you missed. A PDF can do neither. It works on any phone or computer, nothing to download.

Is it up to date for 2026?

Yes. It is built on the current CSFA content outline: its areas are the exam's own, shown above with the share of the exam each one takes.

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All 1,223 CSFA questions in sets as long as you like, the timed exam on the real clock, and your score by area so you know what to fix before you walk in.

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