Dissertation (MSc Nursing Education)Background: Attitude and perception towards clinical examination do influence performance in clinical examination. Little is known on the attitude and perception of student nurses towards clinical examination in nursing higher institution in Dodoma. The aim of this study was to assess the attitude and perception of student nurses towards clinical examination. Method: A total of 425 students were involved in this study .Oral and written consent were given prior to the interview, Structured questionnaire was used and Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software program was used for data analysis. The bivariate logistic analysis was done to determine factors associated with perception towards clinical examinations. Results: 49.2% of study respondents had positive perception while 50.8% had negative perception towards clinical examination. 52.5% of respondents had negative attitude, 47.5% had positive attitude towards clinical examination. Factors which influence positive perception were sex of student (Male, AOR=0.201, 95% CI=1.037-2.429, p<0.001), Professional level of a student (degree, AOR=3.327, 95% CI=1.687-7.375, p=0.001) and examination preference (AOR= 3.104, 95% CI=1.793-5.372, p<0.001). The factors which influenced attitude towards clinical examination were; academic year of study (second year, AOR=2.298, 95% CI=0.928-5.690, p< 0.05) and examination preference (all types, AOR=3.073, 95% CI=1.791-5.272). Conclusion: The more than half of respondents had negative perception and negative attitude towards clinical examination. Therefore, this study recommend that innovative interventional studies should be conducted for the purpose of finding solution to improve student nurses’ attitude and perception towards clinical examination.