In most states you register for the National Counselor Examination only after your state board approves you, then book a Pearson VUE appointment, in a test center or online. There are no fixed test dates: appointments run year-round. Below, each rule sits next to where it comes from, along with the form that replaces today's on July 1, 2027.
Updated Oct 30, 2026 · Not affiliated with NBCC, CCE, AMFTRB, CRCC, ACA or AAMFT.
test datesYear-round
appointment255 min
resultsSame day (unofficial)
retakesAfter 30 days
Every fact, with its source
Fact
Detail
Source
Checked
Exam owner
National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC)For state licensure the exam is administered by NBCC's affiliate, the Center for Credentialing & Education (CCE), and delivered by Pearson VUE.
NBCC: National Counselor Examination (NCE) · NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) [1][2]
Leads to
State counselor licensure (the entry license in most states) and the National Certified Counselor (NCC) credentialOne of the two NBCC licensure exams; the NCC accepts the NCE or the NCMHCE.
NBCC: National Counselor Examination (NCE) · NBCC: National Certified Counselor (NCC) [1][3]
Who can sit
Approval from your state board, generally for a graduate counseling degree that covers the 8 CACREP content areasSome states let advanced graduate students sit before graduating. Texas does not require prior board approval to register.
NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) · Texas BHEC: counseling licensure examinations [2][4]
Questions
200 multiple-choice questionsFrom July 1, 2027: 170 questions with three answer options.
NBCC: NCE Content Outline, 2023 (PDF) · NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) [2][5]
Scored questions
160 scored; 40 unscored field-test questions are mixed in and not marked
NBCC: NCE Content Outline, 2023 (PDF) · NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) [2][5]
Question format
Multiple choice in one unsectioned examFour answer choices (A–D) per question on the current form (NCE handbook p.14); the 2027 form uses three.
NBCC: NCE Content Outline, 2023 (PDF) · NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) [2][5]
Exam time
3 hours 45 minutes (225 minutes)
NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) [2]
Appointment
4 hours 15 minutes (255 minutes)5-minute nondisclosure agreement, 10-minute tutorial, the 225-minute exam and one 15-minute break after question 100.
NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) [2]
Where you test
Pearson VUE test center or OnVUE online proctoringOnly specific, limited accommodations are available on OnVUE.
NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) [2]
When you can test
Year-round by appointment, within the authorization window your state board sets (up to 6 months)
NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) [2]
Passing score
A raw cut score set for each exam form (modified Angoff, then equated)Raw score 0–160; NBCC says the passing score may vary slightly by form, and there is no fixed percentage. From July 1, 2027: a scaled score of 100–500 with 360 to pass on every form.
NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) · NBCC: NCE Examination Specifications, effective July 1, 2027 (PDF) [2][6]
Results
Unofficial score report at the end of the exam; the official score reaches your state board within 30 days of the end of the monthly testing cycle
NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) · NBCC: score reports [2][7]
Exam fee
$275Paid to NBCC/CCE in the Credentialing Gateway. The NBCC handbook does not print the fee; $275 is the figure state boards publish (Virginia, checked Oct 2026). Through the NCC route the exam is included in the $375 NCC application.as of Oct 30, 2026 · state board figure; NBCC does not print the fee
Virginia Board of Counseling: examination information · NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) [2][8]
Other fees
Reschedule $50; score verification refund processing $30; state board application fees are separate
NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) [2]
Retakes
After a 30-day wait, with a new registration and fee; your state board sets the attempt limitNCC route: up to 3 attempts within 2 years per application, each retake with a $150 reregistration fee.
NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) · NBCC: NCE Applicant Handbook for National Certification, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) [2][9]
Pass rate
Not published by NBCCPrograms whose students apply for the NCC as students get aggregate scores compared with national statistics.
NBCC: National Counselor Examination (NCE) · NBCC: NCE Candidate Handbook for State Licensure, rev. Sep 24, 2024 (PDF) · NBCC: student FAQ (NCC student applicants) [1][2][10]
Ethics code tested
ACA Code of Ethics (2014) and NBCC Code of Ethics (2023)ACA is revising the 2014 Code; until its board adopts the new version, the 2014 Code remains current.
ACA: Ethics (Code of Ethics status) · NBCC Code of Ethics, revised Aug 24, 2023 (PDF) [11][12]
Content outline in force
2023 content outline (job analysis finalized June 2019)
iFacts checked Oct 30, 2026 against the testing organizations; sources are listed under Source notes.
Who can register
On the state route the board usually approves you before you register; Texas lets you register without prior approval. Boards also differ: some accept related degrees, and some add a jurisprudence exam on state law (North Carolina, for one). Requirements by state: counseling license requirements. If you are applying for the NCC (National Certified Counselor) instead, the application itself authorizes the exam.
How registration works
Board approval. Apply to your state board and wait for its approval to test.
Register and pay. In NBCC's Credentialing Gateway, at $275 as of Oct 2026.
Book a seat. Through Pearson VUE, for a test center or an OnVUE online session, before the authorization window your board set closes.
A missed appointment costs more than a reschedule (no-show forfeits the fee); the rules are on the cost page.
Test dates
No fixed dates exist: appointments run year-round, inside your authorization window. Open seats are the real limit, so schedule as soon as you are authorized. Online sessions through OnVUE widen the choice of times, but only a limited set of accommodations is offered there.
Format on today's form
Questions:200, 160 of them scored; the rest are unmarked field-test items.
Time: just under four hours of testing inside a longer appointment, with one scheduled break.
Structure: one unsectioned exam; questions from all areas are mixed.
Answer options: four on today's form, labeled A to D (handbook, p. 14); three from 2027.
The field-test items are why a stretch of strange questions should not shake you: some of them do not count.
Content outline: today and from 2027
Fact
Detail
Source
Checked
Content outline in force
2023 content outline (job analysis finalized June 2019)
Professional Practice and Ethics 12% · Intake, Assessment, and Diagnosis 12% · Areas of Clinical Focus 29% · Treatment Planning 9% · Counseling Skills and Interventions 30% · Core Counseling Attributes 8%
Professional Development and Counselor Self-Awareness 15% · Intake and Assessment 18% · Treatment Planning and Continuity of Care 15% · Provision of Counseling Interventions 20% · Indirect Client Care 12% · Legal and Ethical Compliance 20%
NBCC: NCE Examination Specifications, effective July 1, 2027 (PDF) [6]
Ethics code tested
ACA Code of Ethics (2014) and NBCC Code of Ethics (2023)ACA is revising the 2014 Code; until its board adopts the new version, the 2014 Code remains current.
ACA: Ethics (Code of Ethics status) · NBCC Code of Ethics, revised Aug 24, 2023 (PDF) [11][12]
From July 1, 2027: 170 questions with three options (140 scored), a 100–500 scale with 360 to pass, a new 6-domain outline shared with the NCMHCE, and a Spanish form. Candidates who test before the switch take the current form; NBCC plans no overlap period.
Three options per question. Ruling out one wrong option leaves a two-way choice, so partial knowledge counts for more.
Locked halves.170 questions, two halves: once the first half is submitted, its questions are closed.
A reweighted outline. Legal and ethical compliance gains the most weight, and a new domain covers indirect client care: documentation, referral and collaboration.
NBCC's own FAQ tab still said the passing score was undecided when we checked; the specification document sets it, so we cite that. Studying for the new weights: study guide.
Scoring in one paragraph
Today the cut is set per form, with no percentage target. From July 1, 2027 it is a fixed scaled 360 on every form. The method, the myths and what is known about pass rates: passing score.
Results
An unofficial report shows on screen at the end; the board gets the official score later. The board, not the exam owner, then tells you what comes next for the license. From Jul 1, 2027 the score report also breaks results down by domain.
Retakes and rescheduling
A retake comes after 30 days and is registered and paid for again. Your board caps the number of attempts, and the NCC route sets its own cap. The price of each path: full cost.
Appeals:An accepted appeal earns a free retake; the score itself is never changed.
More on this exam
NCEWho needs the exam, today's form and the 2027 form