Audio and Visual Items on Pearson VUE

By VeriScorePrep Team · 3 min

Some NCLEX items include audio (heart sounds, lung sounds, dialog) or images. The format doesn't change the call, but it does change your listening/reading discipline.

Audio items

• Listen once all the way through, with eyes on the call of the question.
• Take light notes on scratch paper: descriptors, not conclusions (e.g., "soft, blowing, systolic" rather than "murmur — MVP").
• Answer after the audio, not while it plays.

Image items

• Identify what the image is testing (anatomical site, ECG rhythm, wound stage, condition).
• Cross-check the image with the stem's narrative — together they tell the story.

Pitfalls

• Listening for too long or twice if you didn't catch it — re-listening wastes time.
• Reading conclusions onto the image before extracting features (seeing "cardiomegaly" when the image tests pericardial effusion).
• Forgetting that the call of the question still governs — visuals support the call, not replace it.

Practical

On practice, write a one-line feature description per audio. The description discipline improves over time and becomes fast enough for the exam.