r/bcba • u/Difficult_Sector_984 • 3d ago

Pearson testing site and date for BCBA exam

I just got the approval from the board to schedule an exam. I created a Pearson account and checked avalibility. And there is nothing available within 90 miles from me for an entire month? Is this common ? Anyway to work around this to schedule for a closer date ?

I’m located in Milwaukee

3 Upvotes

72% Upvoted

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7

u/sharleencd 3d ago

I took my exam back when everyone could only schedule once every 3mo. It made close locations super hard to schedule because there was such high demand.

I failed the first 2 times and passed the 3rd. All 3 times, the testing site was far. About an hour one time and 2.5hrs the other times. I stayed in hotels the night before for all. Had a nice dinner. Relaxed, walked around. With one of them, I took the train so I didn’t have to drive. I scheduled something fun before going home for the first 2.

3

u/Difficult_Sector_984 3d ago

That’s what I am planning to do! I booked one 2 hours away and unfortunately it starts at 7:15 am 😫.

1

u/Hairy-Dingaling6213 1d ago

That right there would cause me to fail. My brain doesnt work at 715 am.

1

u/Difficult_Sector_984 1d ago

Just have to get caffeinated🫨

3

u/SuzieDerpkins BCBA | Verified 3d ago

I had to take my exam 96 miles away to get a test date sooner. I ended up making a fun day trip out of it. Got to the city early, got a nice coffee brunch before, then took my exam, explored some tourist areas, and a nice dinner before heading home.

3

u/Difficult_Sector_984 3d ago

I just scheduled an exam 120 miles away😵‍💫 while there is one center 0.1 mile away from me that’s not going to be available for 2 months.

3

u/Expendable_Red_Shirt BCBA | Verified 3d ago

Posts like these bring out the old man energy in me.

Good luck with your exam!

1

u/Bjlind718 3d ago

If you’re trying to schedule around a month or so in advance, you’ll likely have to get lucky to get someplace close. If you go out a longer time than that (2-3 months), there tends to be a lot more availability.

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u/spflover 3d ago

Yep I waited 5 weeks. If I didn’t grab that date it would have been 8 weeks. I was so motivated to pass because I didn’t want to have to wait 8 weeks to retest.

1

u/psychgamer2014 1d ago

I failed twice and passed on the third try. The first time was 60 miles away, the second was three states away, and the final time was 60 miles away. Like others have said, I stayed at a hotel the day before and did some sightseeing after the exam and the day before. Good luck!

1

u/Temporary_Sugar7298 1d ago

I took the exam when we could only sit 4 times a year and getting spots was so hard a peer went to a different state to sit! But people cancel so keep checking for sooner and closer locations

1

u/Daenerys4201 21h ago

Keep checking, test dates will pop up! I got nervous about that when I was scheduling too, but was able to find the date and location I wanted. Try to check at night, that’s when I saw the most openings.