Minnesota Is the HSRT Capital of the Country
More nursing programs in Minnesota require the HSRT than in any other state. While Texas uses the exam primarily for allied health programs, Minnesota nursing programs — particularly community college ADN and PN programs — have adopted the HSRT as a core admissions criterion. Understanding how each Minnesota program uses the exam is essential if you're applying to nursing school in the state.
The HSRT replaced other critical thinking assessments for many of these programs after the dissolution of the MANE (Minnesota Alliance for Nursing Education) consortium. Individual campuses now set their own score requirements and weighting, which means there's meaningful variation across programs that students often don't realize until they're already in the application process.
Anoka-Ramsey Community College
Anoka-Ramsey is the most well-documented HSRT user in Minnesota, making it a useful benchmark for understanding how the exam fits into a holistic admissions system.
Programs: Nursing (RN/PN)
Published minimum: 74%
Admissions weighting: The HSRT contributes 55% of the quantitative admissions score. The remaining 45% is divided between an experiential component (31%) and an essay (14%).
What this means for your preparation: At Anoka-Ramsey, your HSRT score is the single largest factor in your admissions score. Meeting the 74% minimum isn't the goal — outscoring other applicants is. In competitive cycles, a score at or near the minimum often isn't sufficient for admission. Applicants with stronger experiential portfolios can offset a lower HSRT score somewhat, but a strong HSRT score is the most reliable quantitative lever available before applications close.
Strategic target: Aim for 80%+ to position yourself competitively.
M State (Minnesota State Community and Technical College)
Programs: Nursing RN, Nursing PN, Medical Laboratory Technician, Sonography/Echocardiography, and additional allied health programs
Published minimums: Vary by program: approximately 60% at the lower end for some allied health programs, up to 73% for nursing programs. Check M State's admissions page for the specific program and campus you're applying to — requirements differ across locations.
Strategic target: For nursing programs, aim for 78–80%. For allied health programs, confirm the specific minimum and add 8–10 points.
Central Lakes College
Programs: Nursing RN/PN
Published minimum: 65–70% (range reflects different admission cycles; verify current requirement)
Context: Central Lakes College draws from a regional applicant pool. With a published floor in the 65–70% range, the competitive zone is likely 74–80% based on typical patterns at MN nursing programs with similar minimums.
Strategic target: 76–80%
Not sure where your weak areas are?
Take the free 5-minute diagnostic and get a personalized study plan — no account required.
Northwest Technical College
Programs: Nursing RN/PN
Published minimum: 70%
Context: Northwest Technical College operates in the Bemidji region. As with other MN programs, meeting the minimum floor and being competitive for admission are different targets.
Strategic target: 78–80%
Century College
Programs: Various health sciences programs
Published minimum: No hard cutoff published. HSRT is used as a ranked factor in admissions.
Context: In ranked systems, the practical "minimum" floats based on who else is applying in any given cycle. There's no score you can hit and be guaranteed admission — your score is weighed relative to other applicants.
Strategic target: Aim for 75%+ as a baseline. In competitive cycles, higher is always better.
South Central College & RCTC
Published minimums: Check current program pages — requirements are updated annually and can lag in published materials.
RCTC context: Located in Rochester, MN, adjacent to the Mayo Clinic health system. The program draws a competitive regional applicant pool, which typically means the practical competitive score is meaningfully above any published minimum.
How Minnesota Programs Use HSRT Differently From Texas
One distinction that students often miss: Minnesota nursing programs use the HSRT primarily as an admissions selection tool, while Texas allied health programs typically use it as one factor in a broader points-based ranking. The MN nursing admissions context makes a few specific things true:
- Your score competes against other applicants, not just against a threshold. Programs with limited seats accept applicants in rank order — meeting the minimum doesn't guarantee admission.
- Score improvement matters more at MN programs than at TX programs. At TX programs where the HSRT is one of several criteria, a marginal improvement has limited impact. At MN programs where it's weighted heavily, each point matters.
- Application timing affects who you're competing against. Early applicants often face a different competitive pool than late applicants in the same cycle.
The HSRT Prep Landscape in Minnesota
Students applying to MN nursing programs face a preparation challenge with no real parallel in the entrance exam world: there are no mainstream prep resources for the HSRT. UWorld, Kaplan, ATI, and Archer — the platforms most nursing students use — have zero HSRT content. This leaves applicants either trying to adapt general critical thinking tests or using nothing structured at all.
StudyBuddy is the only platform built specifically for the HSRT, with 463 practice questions across all 6 domains, 38 lessons mapped to the exam structure, and content calibrated for the 65–85% scoring range that MN nursing programs require for competitive admissions.