Study guide
1.2 Content Area Breakdown
ATI TEAS 7 Nursing Admission
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1 Introduction to the ATI TEAS 7
1.1 About the ATI TEAS 7 Exam 1.2 Content Area Breakdown 1.3 Scoring and Program Requirements 1.4 Building Your TEAS Study Plan
2 Reading
2.1 Identifying the Main Idea 2.2 Making Inferences and Drawing Conclusions 2.3 Summarizing and Paraphrasing 2.4 Understanding Text Structure 2.5 Author's Purpose, Tone, and Point of View 2.6 Evaluating Arguments, Evidence, and Credibility 2.7 Integrating Information and Interpreting Graphics 2.8 TEAS Reading Strategies, Pacing, and Practice
3 Mathematics
3.1 Whole Numbers and Basic Operations 3.2 Fractions 3.3 Decimals and Percentages 3.4 Ratios and Proportions 3.5 Algebra and Equations 3.6 Measurement and Unit Conversions 3.7 Statistics and Data Interpretation 3.8 Geometry Basics
4 Science
4.1 The Cardiovascular System 4.2 The Respiratory System 4.3 The Digestive System 4.4 The Nervous System 4.5 The Musculoskeletal System 4.6 The Urinary and Reproductive Systems 4.7 Cell Biology and Genetics 4.8 Chemistry Basics 4.9 Scientific Reasoning and the Scientific Method
5 English & Language Usage
5.1 Grammar and the Parts of Speech 5.2 Sentence Structure 5.3 Punctuation 5.4 Spelling and Word Usage 5.5 Vocabulary in Context and Word Parts 5.6 Paragraph Organization and the Writing Process 5.7 Formal vs. Informal Language, Audience, and Tone 5.8 TEAS English Section Strategies and Pacing
1.2 Content Area Breakdown
Key Takeaways Explain This Topic AI
Science is the largest section with 44 scored items (29% of the scored test); Human Anatomy & Physiology alone accounts for 18 of those.
Reading (39 scored) splits into Key Ideas & Details, Craft & Structure, and Integration of Knowledge & Ideas.
Mathematics (34 scored) covers Numbers & Algebra (18) and Measurement & Data (16); an on-screen four-function calculator is provided.
English & Language Usage (33 scored) tests Conventions of Standard English, Knowledge of Language, and Vocabulary acquisition.
The four sections weigh roughly Science 29%, Reading 26%, Math 23%, and English 22% of the scored questions.
Last updated: October 2026
How the Scored Items Are Distributed
Each TEAS 7 section is divided into published sub-content areas , and ATI tells you exactly how many scored items come from each one. This is enormously useful for study planning: the sub-areas with the most items deserve the most attention. The chart and tables below map every scored item so you can target your effort instead of studying everything equally.
The four sections weigh roughly Science 29%, Reading 26%, Mathematics 23%, and English & Language Usage 22% of the 150 scored questions. Note that these percentages describe the scored test; the unscored pretest items are excluded from your final percentage.
Why does ATI structure the exam this way? The content areas mirror the foundational skills a nursing student draws on daily — reading clinical orders, calculating doses, reasoning about body systems, and documenting clearly. Treating the published item counts as a study budget is a simple, reliable way to plan.
Reading — 39 Scored Items (26%)
The Reading section measures whether you can comprehend, interpret, and integrate written material — a daily requirement in nursing, where you read charts, care plans, drug inserts, and research. It draws on both informational and occasionally literary passages, single and paired.
- Reading Sub-Content Area Scored Items What It Tests
- Key Ideas & Details 15 Main idea, supporting details, summarizing, following directions, inference
- Craft & Structure 9 Author's purpose, point of view, text structure, word meaning in context
- Integration of Knowledge & Ideas 15 Evaluating arguments/evidence, comparing sources, interpreting graphics
- Total 39
- Mathematics — 34 Scored Items (23%)
The Mathematics section focuses on the arithmetic, algebra, and data skills nurses use for dosage calculation, intake/output, and interpreting clinical data. The basic on-screen calculator is available here and in every other section.
Math Sub-Content Area Scored Items What It Tests
Numbers & Algebra 18 Fractions, decimals, percentages, ratios/proportions, order of operations, solving equations, word problems
Measurement & Data 16 Unit conversions (standard & metric), data from tables/graphs, basic statistics (mean, median, mode, range), geometry basics
- Total 34
- Science — 44 Scored Items (29%)
Science is the largest and most heavily weighted section, with 44 of the 150 scored items. Within it, Human Anatomy & Physiology has 18 scored items, tied with Math's Numbers and Algebra as the largest sub-area on the exam.
Science Sub-Content Area Scored Items What It Tests
Human Anatomy & Physiology 18 Body systems: cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive, neuromuscular, endocrine, immune, reproductive, integumentary
- Biology 9 Cells, macromolecules, cellular respiration, genetics/heredity
- Chemistry 8 Atomic structure, the periodic table, bonding, reactions, properties of matter, acids/bases
- Scientific Reasoning 9 Scientific method, experimental design, measurement tools, data interpretation
- Total 44
- English & Language Usage — 33 Scored Items (22%)
The English section tests your command of standard written English , which underpins clear, accurate clinical documentation.
- English Sub-Content Area Scored Items What It Tests
- Conventions of Standard English 12 Grammar, punctuation, spelling, sentence structure
- Knowledge of Language 11 Grammar in context, formal vs. informal tone, clarity and concision
- Vocabulary Acquisition 10 Word meaning from context, roots/prefixes/suffixes, affixes
- Total 33
- Putting the Weights to Work
Example: Devin has 60 study hours available. Rather than splitting them evenly (15 hours each), he allocates by item count: Science 44 items → ~18 hours (with most of that on Anatomy & Physiology), Reading 39 → ~15 hours, Math 34 → ~14 hours, English 33 → ~13 hours. By weighting his time toward the largest section, he spends the most time where the most points are.
The headline takeaway: Science, and Anatomy & Physiology in particular, is where points are concentrated. A candidate who masters the 11 body systems ATI lists and can interpret a simple experiment has already secured a large share of the highest-value items on the test.
Question Formats Within Each Section
The sub-content areas tell you what is tested; it also helps to know the formats you will encounter, which appear across all four sections. The TEAS 7 uses five item types: standard multiple choice (pick one of four), multiple select (pick all that apply), fill-in-the-blank (type a value or word), ordered response (drag items into sequence), and hot spot (click the correct region of an image, common in Anatomy & Physiology). Knowing these formats in advance prevents surprises and lets you practice each one before test day.