For both in-person and remote exams, you are asked to arrive/sign in 30 minutes before your scheduled exam time to complete the check-in process. Three (3) hours are provided to complete the exam. The exam will need to be completed in one sitting.
Candidates may adjust the text size of the exam questions at any time by selecting CTRL+ to zoom in and CTRL- to zoom out. Other, however, must be requested and approved by ICF Credentials and Standards prior to the exam appointment.
Upon completion of the exam, you will receive immediate notice from Pearson Vue with preliminary exam results. Please allow 48 hours for ICF to update individual records with official exam results.
After your exam results have been entered into the ICF record, an email will be sent to either award the credential or provide directions on how to retake the exam.
If you do not pass the exam, you may retake the exam. The retake fee is $105 USD.
To provide a fair and consistent testing experience for all ICF credential candidates, the ICF Credentialing Exam is administered in secure testing environments. You may choose to complete the exam at one of Pearson VUE’s 5,000+ test centers, or through Pearson OnVUE, a live, remote-proctored testing service that allows you to test from your home or office while being monitored by an online proctor.
Please review this Exam Format Decision Tree document to help you determine the best testing format for you.
The following resources from Pearson VUE may also help you select the most appropriate testing format and prepare for your exam appointment.
Testing at a Test Center
Video: What to Expect at a Pearson VUE Test Center
Learn more here about Pearson VUE Test Centers
OnVUE Remote Testing
Video : OnVUE Exams Pre-Flight
Video: OnVUE Exams What To Expect
Video: OnVUE Exams Rules
Video: OnVUE Exams Systems Check
Please note that Pearson OnVUE proctors will communicate with candidates in English. Learn more here about OnVUE testing.
Pearson’s OnVUE remote test delivery service is a global offering and approved in most countries, with the exception of U.S. OFAC-sanctioned countries including Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, Sudan, Syria, and the Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine.
Additionally, Pearson VUE has suspended delivery of all testing services throughout Belarus, including in-person exam at test centers and online testing via OnVUE. Remote test delivery is also unavailable in China due to limited internet and connectivity issues
NOTE: The list of countries may change based on OFAC requirements.
To select your preferred exam delivery format (in-person at a Pearson VUE testing center or online through Pearson’s OnVUE remote proctoring service), and to schedule an appointment to complete the exam, please follow the steps listed below:
For more information about registering to take the exam via the Pearson OnVUE remote proctoring service, please review the remote proctoring guide.
Additional information on testing at a Pearson VUE test center, including a video on the testing experience and FAQs, is available on the Person VUE website.
For more information and instruction on how to schedule/reschedule an appointment, please see the Pearson VUE Test Registration guides here: Mobile Guide, Desktop Guide.
To provide a fair and consistent testing experience for all ICF Credential candidates, ICF exams are administered in secure testing centers or remotely through Pearson OnVUE, a remote proctored test delivery service, in alignment with global standards for certification exam delivery.
Resources are available to help prepare for the exam process and for what to expect on exam day for candidates completing the exam at a Pearson VUE testing center or through Pearson VUE’s OnVUE remote proctoring system are available.
Upon arrival at the exam appointment, you will be required to provide proof of identify with two forms of original, valid identification. The primary identification should be an unexpired, original government-issued photo ID with signature. The secondary identification should include the name and signature or the name and photo of the candidate. The first and last name used to register for the exam must match exactly the first and last name on the ID that is presented on test day.
The following are acceptable forms of government-issued identification:
The following are acceptable forms of secondary identification:
All IDs should be issued by the country in which the candidate is testing. Alternatively, an International Travel Passport from the candidate’s country of citizenship, along with a secondary ID may be used. You may review Pearson VUE’s full Identification Policy on their website.
On the day of the examination, you will be asked to arrive 30 minutes before your scheduled appointment.
For candidates completing the exam at a Pearson VUE test center, arriving 30 minutes early allows you to sign in, present required identification, take a required check-in photo, and safely store any personal items in a locker before the designated start time of the exam.
For candidates completing the exam via Pearson’s OnVUE system, arriving 30 minutes early allows you to complete a final system check, shutdown all other applications running on your computer, take a required check-in photo, present required identification photos, and photograph your testing environment.
Prohibited Items When Testing
You are not allowed to bring any restricted items to the testing area. This includes, but is not limited to:
Candidates taking an exam at a Pearson VUE testing center will be provided access to a locker where they may safely store any personal items during the exam. Candidates completing an exam via Pearson’s OnVUE system will be required to show that no prohibited materials are accessible within their testing space.
Candidates requiring personal items in the testing room due to a medical condition, such as food, beverages, medication, or a monitoring device must receive approval from ICF prior to scheduling the exam appointment. Please review the Exam Accommodations section for additional information on requesting and obtaining an Exam Accommodation approval.
To reschedule an exam appointment, candidates must contact Pearson VUE or access their online Pearson VUE account at least 48 hours prior to the exam appointment. Failure to reschedule in time or failure to appear for an exam appointment will result in the forfeiture of exam fees, and candidates will be required to pay an exam retake fee of $105 USD to reschedule their exam.
To cancel an exam appointment, candidates must contact Pearson VUE or access their online Pearson VUE account at least 48 hours prior to the exam appointment. Failure to cancel in time or failure to appear for an appointment will result in the forfeiture of exam fees, and candidates will be required to pay an exam retake fee of $105 USD to reschedule their exam.
Exam “no shows” are candidates who fail to cancel or reschedule their exam appointment at least 48 hours prior to their exam time, who do not appear for the exam on the scheduled appointment date, or arrive at the testing center or for their remote-proctored testing session more than 15 minutes after their appointment time. No show candidates forfeit all exam fees and are required to pay an exam retake fee of $105 USD to reschedule their exam.
Exam “No Shows” for Remote Testing Candidates who are unable to connect to their remote-proctored exam appointment due to technical difficulties are considered “No Shows.” For these remote-proctored candidates, the No Show status will be canceled for the first two attempts to test. Within two business days of a No Show OnVUE exam appointment, the candidate will receive an email notification that their previous exam appointment has been cancelled. Upon receiving this notification, the candidate’s exam authorization will be restored, and the candidate may schedule a new appointment to complete the exam through remote proctored testing or through a Pearson VUE testing center. Candidates whose authorization has expired since their last appointment will be required to contact ICF to request a new authorization.
If a candidate has a third No Show attempt through remote-proctored testing, the No Show status will not be canceled, and the candidate will be subject to the ICF Retake Fee of $105 USD to reschedule their exam.
ICF Exam Retake Policy
This policy is designed to support candidate success by encouraging engagement in additional study and preparation for an ICF exam if a candidate is not successful on the first attempt.
Candidates who do not pass an ICF exam on their first attempt may retake the exam. Each exam retake is subject to the ICF exam retake fee of $105 USD, which covers the cost of exam administration with ICF test delivery partners.
Candidates must wait 14 days following their first attempt to retake an exam. For any subsequent attempts, candidates must wait 30 days to retake the exam following their most recent attempt.
Candidates may take an ICF exam up to six times within a 12-month (365-day) period following the date of their first attempt. Candidates who do not achieve a passing score within the first 12-month period are eligible to retake the exam up to six times during each subsequent 12-month (365-day) period that begins on the anniversary of the candidate’s initial exam attempt.
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