NCCPA Connect: Exams Policies and Procedures

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I. Exam Eligibility & Registration
II. Special Testing Accommodations
III. Irregular Behavior
IV. Pathway II Procedures
V. Deadlines
VI. Financial Policies
VII. Scores
VIII. Exam Grievances
IX. Appeals
X. Information Disclosure
XI. General

I. Exam Eligibility & Registration

NCCPA evaluates applications without regard to age, gender, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, marital status or disability.
Eligibility requirements vary among NCCPA’s exams and are published on NCCPA’s Web site.
NCCPA will not waive any eligibility requirements.
If NCCPA determines that an ineligible individual took an exam, scores for that exam will not be reported or, if previously reported, will be rescinded.
Exam applicants may only be registered for one NCCPA exam administration at any time.
If you register for the Pathway II recertification exam and fail to complete the elective component requirement by the application deadline, you will be withdrawn from the Pathway II and given the opportunity to take the PANRE (if sufficient time remains to process your transfer).

II. Special Testing Accommodations

NCCPA complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and provides reasonable and appropriate accommodations that do not jeopardize exam integrity or security for examinees with documented disabilities and for other examinees with qualifying medical conditions that may be temporary or are not otherwise covered by the ADA.
The decision as to which reasonable special testing accommodations will be provided for medical conditions covered by the ADA is at the sole discretion of NCCPA.
If you require special testing accommodations for a documented disability covered under the ADA you must indicate that accommodations are needed when you apply for the exam.
You should submit appropriate and sufficient documentation by the exam application deadline.
If documentation is not submitted by the exam application deadline, your application may be processed without special testing accommodations or may be rejected for the exam administration for which you are registered. Information on accommodations and the required documentation is available online at NCCPA’s Web site.
Your request for accommodations and application will not be processed until your complete documentation has been received and approved. A delay in providing your documentation will delay your ability to take the Pathway II.

III. Irregular Behavior

NCCPA defines irregular behavior as any behavior that, in the sole discretion of the NCCPA, undermines or threatens the integrity or validity of the application, assessment or certification processes of NCCPA, whether it occurs before, during or after an exam. NCCPA's Disciplinary Policy describes disciplinary actions taken based on irregular behavior.
Irregular behavior includes, but is not limited to, having or seeking access to exam materials before the exam, impersonating an examinee or engaging someone else to take the exam by proxy, copying answers from someone else or allowing one’s answers to be copied, copying or memorizing and reproducing test items, altering or misrepresenting scores, stealing exam materials, possessing unauthorized materials during a computer-based exam (e.g., including, but not limited to, recording devices, photographic materials, reference material, etc.) or other such behavior which may cast doubt on the exam results of that or another person. It may also include making false representations during the application process or in connection with certification status, altering or falsifying NCCPA certification or other documents, or making the false representation that one is certified by NCCPA by using the legally-protected marks, PA-C® or Physician Assistant-Certified® or by any other means.
The content of the NCCPA’s Pathway II recertification examination (“Pathway II”), and each of its items, is proprietary and strictly confidential, and the unauthorized retention, possession, copying, distribution, disclosure, discussion, or receipt of any examination question, in whole or in part, by written, electronic, oral or other form of communication, including but not limited to e-mailing, copying or printing of electronic files, and reconstruction through memorization and/or dictation, before, during, or after an examination, is strictly prohibited. In addition to constituting irregular behavior subject to disciplinary action such as revocation of certification, revocation of eligibility for future certification, and disciplinary fines, such activities violate the NCCPA’s proprietary rights, including copyrights, and may subject violators to legal action resulting in monetary damages.
Exam applicants or examinees can be disqualified from taking or continuing to sit for an examination, or from receiving examination scores, and may be required to retake an examination if, at its sole discretion, the NCCPA determines through proctor observation, statistical analysis or any other means available to it, that said exam applicants or examinees were engaged in collaborative, disruptive, or other irregular behavior before, during the administration of, or following, the examination, or if the NCCPA determines that the integrity or validity of the examination otherwise is in question.
In some instances, while the evidence of irregularity is sufficiently strong to cast doubt upon the validity of scores, such evidence may not enable NCCPA to identify the particular individuals involved. In any such circumstances, NCCPA reserves the right to withhold the scores of all candidates, including candidates not directly implicated in the irregularity and, if necessary, to require all candidates to take an additional examination at a later date under conditions which will ensure the validity of all scores. Such determination is at the sole discretion of the NCCPA.
Anyone who has information or evidence that irregular behavior has occurred should submit a written, signed statement to NCCPA detailing the incident with copies of any supporting evidence or documentation.
If NCCPA determines that allegations of irregular behavior are true, the organization may impose sanctions against the offending individual, which may include temporary or permanent loss of eligibility for exams or certification, revocation of an existing certification, suspension of certification, invalidation of scores, fines or other sanctions as deemed appropriate. Such sanctions also may include legal action against the offending individual.

IV. Pathway II Procedures

Examinees that do not submit and meet the 100-point elective component requirement by the exam application deadline for the exam administration for which they have registered will be withdrawn from the exam administration.
You must complete the exam during the exam administration for which you have registered. If you are deemed eligible yet fail to complete the exam during the exam administration for which you have registered, you must begin the application process again and will incur additional fees.
Once you begin the exam, you may not cancel or reschedule, and no refund of any portion of the exam fee or credit toward future exam fees will be provided.
Examinees are solely responsible for ensuring that they will be able to access the online Pathway II exam through the computer of their choice. To verify that the computer of your choice meets the technical requirements, click here.
NCCPA is not responsible for technical and computer difficulties beyond its control. Problems of this nature are not grounds for an appeal or exam grievance.
Examinees who print a copy of the exam questions are responsible for ensuring the security of the printed copy at all times and may not distribute that copy or other copies to others. All printed copies must be destroyed prior to the submission of the completed exam.
Pathway II questions or portions thereof may not be retained in any written, printed or electronic format after the examination has been completed and submitted or the testing period has concluded (whichever comes first).
Access to the Pathway II exam will be closed at 11:59 PM (Pacific Time) on the final day of the exam administration period.

V. Deadlines

All exam- and certification-related materials must be submitted on or before published deadlines. A document or payment will be considered submitted on or before the published deadline if:
- it is physically received by NCCPA on or before the deadline;
- it is deposited on or before the deadline in the U.S. Postal Service registered or certified mail, and the official U.S.P.S. postmark date (not a private postage meter mark) appears either on the envelope or on the receipt provided by the U.S.P.S. at the time of mailing; or
- it is deposited on or before the deadline with a commercial expedited-delivery courier service.

VI. Financial Policies (Fees, Withdrawals, Transfers, Cancellations & Refunds)

All fees must be paid in U.S. funds and must accompany your application. Until complete payment has been received by the NCCPA, your application will not be processed and you will not be able to take the Pathway II. NCCPA’s acceptance of payment does not imply exam eligibility. If NCCPA receives a duplicate payment from a third party after processing your application and fee payment, we will issue a refund.
Your application will not receive final approval until all outstanding fees due or past due fees have been received by the NCCPA.
All withdrawal, transfer and refund requests must be sent to NCCPA in writing or by e-mail no less than four weeks before the beginning of the exam administration for which you have registered (see testing window dates on our Web site).
A nonrefundable application fee of $125 will apply if you request to be withdrawn or transferred from an exam after it has been determined that you are eligible to take the Pathway II and your elective component points have been approved. The remaining $350 refund is typically processed within six weeks. Refunds will be issued directly to the party who paid the exam fee.
No refund will be issued if the withdrawal request is received less than four weeks before the beginning of the test window.
If you register for the Pathway II and do not take the exam, you will forfeit your entire exam fee and will have to reapply for the exam.
NCCPA will assess a $35 service charge for all returned checks, declined credit cards and credit card charge backs. Your application will not receive final approval until fees are successfully submitted.
NCCPA will assess a $50 charge to issue a replacement certificate due to name change, loss, change of address or other factors beyond NCCPA’s control. The charge for a replacement wallet card only is $10.

VII. Scores

NCCPA will notify you by e-mail as soon as your exam results have been received and posted to your personal certification record (approximately six to eight weeks after the exam deadline).
Your exam score will not be provided to you until payment for all outstanding or past due fees have been received by the NCCPA.
If you request a printed copy of your score report be mailed and do not receive it and your address has not changed, you may submit a written request for a duplicate score report 30 days after the originally requested score report was mailed.
The performance of all examinees is monitored and may be statistically analyzed for irregularity. Scores that, in the sole discretion of NCCPA, do not represent a reasonable assessment of your knowledge as sampled by the exam may be judged invalid (neither pass nor fail).
Scores may be considered invalid for a variety of reasons, which may include aberrations in exam administration beyond the examinee’s control and advertent or inadvertent irregular behavior (see Irregular Behavior) on the part of one or more examinees. Also, if statistical analyses indicate that scores may be invalid, the score will not be released or may be rescinded pending completion of an analysis to verify validity.
NCCPA reserves the absolute right to cancel an examination and/or invalidate one or more scores if, in its sole discretion, NCCPA determines that irregular behavior has occurred.

VIII. Exam Grievances

If you believe that some unusual event or condition relating to the exam administration caused a significant adverse effect on your performance, you may submit an exam grievance regarding the exam administration. However, an exam grievance or appeal may not be used to challenge exam design, content, failing score or technical and computer difficulties beyond NCCPA's control.
To report a grievance, you must submit to the NCCPA within three business days of the end of the Pathway II exam administration for which you were registered, a letter describing the situation with any relevant supporting documentation.

IX. Appeals

If you disagree with an NCCPA decision or policy, you have the right to seek review of that decision or to seek consideration of a policy exception by mailing a written and signed request with appropriate supporting documentation to NCCPA. Upon receipt of the request, NCCPA will make a decision on the request and provide the you with a written notice of the decision. If the decision is adverse, you will be provided a copy of the Appeal Process for Adverse Certification Decisions, which describes the process for requesting further review of the decision. If further consideration is desired, the Request for Review must be filed within 30 days after the date of notice of the adverse decision.

X. Information Disclosure

NCCPA maintains a strict policy regarding the release of registration, certification and exam information to third parties. Upon written or oral request of a third party, the NCCPA will provide verification of your current certification status, your NCCPA certification number, the date of your initial certification or recertification and your certification expiration date. If you have met the certification maintenance requirements for your current cycle, NCCPA will disclose that you have met the requirements and the expiration date of your new certification.
NCCPA will disclose information that is required to be in compliance with state and federal laws, court orders and military deployment information requirements.
NCCPA will report adverse disciplinary decisions to the Federation of State Medical Boards, any state licensing authority with which the physician assistant holds a license to practice as a physician assistant and other interested parties.
Any additional information requested by a third party will only be released with your written and signed authorization.

XI. General

NCCPA has established policies and procedures to govern exam administration to attempt to ensure that no examinee or group of examinees receives unfair advantage or disadvantage on the exam. Efforts are made to ensure that the exam is administered under standard conditions and is consistent with the principles on which the exam is developed and scored. However, if the integrity of the exam process is jeopardized, NCCPA reserves the right to invalidate the entire exam or take other appropriate action.
Only PAs who hold a valid NCCPA certification may use the designations, Physician Assistant-Certified® and PA-C®. Both designations are legally protected certification marks over which NCCPA exercises exclusive control.
Allowing your NCCPA certification to expire may affect your right to work and it is your responsibility to know and comply with state laws and/or your employer's or institution's policies regarding all requirements to practice.
NCCPA certification does not confer any property or contractual rights on any individual regarding continued or future certification or exam eligibility.
NCCPA amends its policies from time to time, and candidates for certification and recertification must comply with NCCPA policies in effect at the time of certification expiration to maintain NCCPA certification.
To ensure receipt of exam and certification materials in a timely fashion, you must notify NCCPA -- in writing, by e-mail or by signing in to your personal certification record online -- of any name, e-mail or address changes, whether or not the U.S. Postal Service is also notified. Notification of a name change must be accompanied by a signed statement and a light, enlarged photocopy of your current driver’s license or passport with your correct name. It is solely your responsibility to keep NCCPA apprised of all name, e-mail or postal address changes. Failure to do so promptly may result in delays in receiving information. Failure to comply with an NCCPA exam-related or other requirement will not be excused on the grounds that a name, e-mail or postal address has been changed unless acceptable and timely notice of such change was received by the NCCPA.

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