12.5 Retakes, Score Transfer, and Board Follow-Up

Retakes and Transfer Are Jurisdiction-Sensitive

After a result you fall into one of three pathways: the score satisfies your board, you need a retake, or you need a score moved to another jurisdiction. ASPPB runs the exam program, but the licensing authority controls score requirements, score acceptance, retake approval, remediation, and final licensure.

The official ceiling: candidates may not take either part more than four times in any 12-month period, regardless of what a board might otherwise allow. ASPPB also recommends waiting about 90 days between attempts to prepare properly. "Either part" matters Part 1-Knowledge and Part 2-Skills count separately, so track attempts by part within the relevant 12-month window. Beyond that ceiling, waiting periods and remediation are board-specific; if you fail, the board where you seek licensure must approve a retake, which creates a new Certemy workflow and requires re-registration.

A strong retake plan is not just more hours it is a different method aimed at the diagnosed failure. Start with domain feedback. For Part 1, decide whether the weakness is knowledge gaps, poor discrimination between similar constructs, statistics, diagnosis, or intervention planning. For Part 2, decide whether errors came from missing the role, overlooking consent/authorization, acting outside competence, ignoring cultural context, mishandling risk, or failing to document.

Then match the fix to the cause: if knowledge is thin, use active recall and spaced repetition plus side-by-side concept comparison; if applied judgment is weak, drill scenario analysis (role, client, risk, data needed, ethical constraints, next step); if pacing failed, do timed sets and review why wrong options were tempting; if stamina or anxiety interfered, run full-length practice and a fixed test-day routine. Repeating the same study method rarely moves a scaled score.

Score transfer uses the ASPPB EPPP Score Transfer Service: you request that your official score be sent to the receiving board, and that board decides acceptance under its own rules. A score that satisfied one authority does not auto-complete another's requirements receiving boards may still evaluate education, supervised experience, jurisprudence, discipline history, and continuing education. A post-result workflow:

1. Save the score report and official correspondence.
2. Confirm the current board received the score.
3. Identify remaining licensure steps and deadlines.
4. If retaking, read the board's retake/remediation rules before scheduling.
5. Track attempts by part across the 12-month period.
6. If transferring, use the ASPPB Score Transfer Service and follow the receiving board's instructions.
7. Keep records organized for future endorsement or mobility.

Budget realistically. A retake costs another part fee ($600 for Part 1, $450 for Part 2) plus another $91.88 sitting fee, all non-refundable, and late reschedules add the $87.50 charge. The result is important, but it is one item in a larger licensure file verify the board rule, keep records, and plan from the official domains so a manageable delay does not become a long one.

A Worked Retake Budget and a 90-Day Remediation Timeline

Put numbers to the retake so there are no surprises. A Part 1 retake costs the $600 application fee plus the $91.88 sitting fee, for $691.88 before any tax or late-change charges; a Part 2 retake is $450 + $91.88 = $541.88. All of it is non-refundable, and a late reschedule adds $87.50 plus tax. If you must retake both parts in a cycle, budget over $1,200 in fees alone, separate from any prep materials.

Match the schedule to ASPPB's ~90-day between-attempts recommendation and your board's waiting period. A defensible 90-day remediation plan: spend Weeks 1-2 diagnosing converting domain feedback into a ranked list of weak content areas or skill failures, not just "study more." Spend Weeks 3-9 on focused relearning using the method matched to the failure type (active recall and spaced repetition for knowledge gaps; scenario drills for applied-judgment errors; timed sets for pacing problems). Reserve Weeks 10-12 for full-length timed practice under realistic conditions, then a light final review and logistics confirmation.

The single most common retake mistake is repeating the original study method at higher volume. If you read the same outlines again and re-took the same practice questions you had memorized, your scaled score is unlikely to move. The fix is changing how you study: test yourself before reviewing, explain concepts aloud, compare confusable constructs side by side, and for Part 2 narrate the role-risk-consent-competence-documentation chain on every scenario until it is automatic.

Track attempts carefully against the four-per-12-months ceiling, by part. If you fail Part 1 in March and again in June, those are two of four for Part 1 in that rolling year Part 2 attempts are counted separately. Exceeding the ceiling, or scheduling before your board approves the retake, simply stalls re-authorization and wastes a cycle. Treat the retake as a project with a budget, a diagnosis, a method change, and a calendar, and the second attempt becomes a controlled effort rather than a hopeful repeat.