ASCP Exam Retake Policy

For ASCP Board of Certification (BOC) certification exams, your next eligibility period can begin no earlier than 30 days after your previous exam date. You can sit for an exam up to five times under one eligibility route as long as you still qualify, and every retake is a new application with a new fee. (ASCP BOC: After the Examination)

Castleport Test Prep Editorial Team · Retake rules, reapplication steps, and listed fees last verified November 1, 2026, against ASCP BOC's published pages.

ASCP retake rules at a glance

Your ASCP retake checklist

These steps cover certification exams. ASCPi, qualification, and licensure-only exams have notes further down.

1. Open your official score report. Log in to your ASCP account and go to BOC Activities → Completed BOC Exam Applications → Show Details. The pass/fail screen at the test center is only preliminary. If your report hasn't appeared, see our guide to finding your ASCP score report.
2. Confirm your category, route, and attempt count. Check that you still meet your route's current requirements and count how many times you've sat under that route. If this would be your sixth attempt, look at the other routes for your credential before paying anything.
3. Make sure your academic records are processed. If you failed or didn't show, ASCP must receive and process your required official transcript before you can schedule another exam date. (Accredited Programs: Re-Application)
4. Arrange testing accommodations first, if you need them. ASCP requires accommodations to be approved before an application is submitted. (Testing Accommodations)
5. Submit a new application and pay the fee. Use your existing ASCP account, choose the right category and route, and pay. The application isn't complete until payment is received and processed. (Submit Application)
6. Watch your application status and wait for your Admission Notification. Fix any deficiency ASCP flags. Paying doesn't authorize you to book; the Admission Notification does, and its dates are the ones that count.
7. Schedule with Pearson inside your new eligibility period. Book as early as you can. Eligibility periods aren't extended. (Schedule or Reschedule Your Examination)

When can you retake the ASCP exam?

"When can I retake it?" is really three separate dates:

Worked examples

These are the earliest possible dates. Your Admission Notification shows your actual eligibility period, and seats depend on Pearson availability.

Why do some sources say 90 days?

That was the old rule. ASCP BOC replaced the 90-day waiting period for certification exams, and the 60-day wait for qualification exams, with a 30-day minimum. It announced the change in its November 2024 newsletter (printed page 5, "Exam Retakes – Revised Timeframe"). Its program director guidance states the same 30-day rule.

Thirty days is a minimum, not a recommendation. ASCP says candidates who need more time can submit their retake application whenever it suits them, as long as they still meet the eligibility requirements when they reapply.

How many ASCP exam attempts are allowed?

Five sittings in total, per exam, per eligibility route. That's five attempts, not five retakes. If you've failed once, you've used one, and you can sit up to four more times under that route if you stay eligible. (Application Policies)

What happens after five unsuccessful attempts?

You can't sit a sixth time on the same route. To test again, you have to meet the current requirements of a different eligibility route for that credential. Waiting longer doesn't reset the count, and choosing a new route only works if you actually meet its conditions.

For example, MLS(ASCP) Route 4 calls for a bachelor's degree with specified biology and chemistry coursework plus five years of full-time acceptable clinical experience within the last 10 years. Qualifying training can substitute for one year of that experience; see the full route for the required laboratory areas, coursework, and documentation. (MLS credential page)

Your route can expire between attempts

Many routes have time limits, and they're measured from the date of each new application. MLS(ASCP) Route 1, for instance, accepts education from a NAACLS-accredited MLS program for five years after you complete it. If you keep retesting near the end of that window, Route 1 can close before your attempts run out. Check the window for your route before each application. (MLS credential page)

What does an ASCP retake cost?

The full application fee for your category, every time. The fee isn't refunded if you're found ineligible or miss your appointment. (Application Policies)

Selected fees checked November 1, 2026. These are examples, not a price list for every ASCP credential. ASCP offers reduced pricing for candidates educated and living in qualifying low-to-middle-income countries. Check your credential's current fee and routes.

What can delay your retake?

Your score report or transcript isn't processed

ASCP emails a notification to view your score within four business days, provided your required official transcripts have been received and processed. (Examination Results)

After a failed attempt or no-show, you can't schedule another exam date until ASCP has processed your required official transcript. That's the case even if you sat your first attempt before the transcript arrived, which accredited-program students can do once. One exception: HT(ASCP) Route 1 applicants don't submit transcripts at all. (Accredited Programs)

Your application is still under review

ASCP says to expect a status update within two to three weeks of submitting. That's a status update, not a guaranteed approval date. Payment must arrive within 30 days of submission. Missing documents not received within eight weeks of submission can get the application deleted, unless your deficiency notice says otherwise. (Submit Application)

You need testing accommodations

Accommodations must be approved before you submit the application. ASCP's page doesn't say whether an earlier approval carries over to a new application, so ask at testaccommodations@ascp.org before you reapply. (Testing Accommodations)

What if you missed the exam or want a score review?

Missed or cancelled appointments

Rescheduling and missing are treated very differently:

• Rescheduling: Contact Pearson at least one full business day (24 hours) before your appointment and pick a new date inside your current eligibility period. No new application is needed. For a Monday appointment, ASCP says to reschedule by Friday. Confirm the change with Pearson.
• Missing or cancelling without rescheduling: You must submit a new application and pay the full fee again. The same applies if your eligibility period runs out before you test.

(Schedule or Reschedule Your Examination)

ASCP's published policy doesn't say whether a missed appointment counts toward your five attempts. If it matters to you, ask the BOC at bocinfo@ascp.org.

Requesting a score review

A score review checks that your exam was administered correctly: that you saw the questions, your answers were recorded, you got the right amount of time, and the exam followed its content guideline. ASCP does not rescore exams, reveal which items you missed, or change the passing standard, and it notes that reviews rarely change a pass/fail result.

To request one, send ASCP BOC a written request that arrives within 30 days after you receive your scores, and enclose a $25 check or money order. That deadline runs from when you receive your scores, not from your exam date. Mailing details are on the Examination Results page.

Use your score report to plan the retake

A failed certification score report breaks your score down by subtest area. Passing reports don't include this, so it's information you only get now. (Examination Results)

A practical way to use it:

1. Rank your subtests from weakest to strongest.
2. Compare the weakest ones with your exam's content guideline. The guideline shows the percentage of the exam each area covers. Use both the size of your knowledge gaps and the area's share of the exam to set priorities. (Content Guidelines & Reading Lists)
3. Keep a short weekly review of your stronger areas so they don't slip.
4. Apply on your schedule, not the minimum. If you need eight weeks, use that as your study target; confirm your actual testing window in the Admission Notification before booking.

Stay away from "recall" sites that claim to share remembered exam questions. ASCP says sharing recalled questions violates its intellectual property rights and can lead to credential revocation and a ban on future ASCP BOC exams. (ASCP BOC: Examination Integrity)

ASCPi, qualification, and licensure-only exams

For broader application and scheduling steps, see our ASCP exam registration guide.

Sources and verification

Every rule on this page comes from ASCP BOC's own published pages, checked by the Castleport Test Prep Editorial Team on November 1, 2026. We checked the published instructions only; we didn't submit an application or book an appointment.

• After the Examination — "I Need to Re-Apply"
• ASCP BOC Application Policies
• Program Directors Guide — The Application Process ("Examination Retake Timeframe")
• ASCP BOC Newsletter, November 2024 ("Exam Retakes – Revised Timeframe")
• Examination Results
• Submit Application
• Schedule or Reschedule Your Examination
• Accredited Programs — Re-Application
• Testing Accommodations
• MLS and MLT credential pages
• ASCP and ASCPi: Similarities and Differences
• State Licensure
• Content Guidelines & Reading Lists
• Examination Integrity

Fees and policies can change. ASCP BOC's pages and your Admission Notification are the final word.

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