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Registering for the exam
How to register for the NCE or NCMHCE, step by step.
Registration is the part of the exam nobody studies for, and it is where candidates lose months: the wrong exam for their state, an application filed before the board approved them, a testing window that closed with the fee inside it. The process below is the same for both exams. Where the two differ, the step says so.
Fees, waiting periods and windows change. Every step links to the official page so you can confirm the current number before you pay. Last checked October 2026.
First, know your route
There are two ways into the same exam room.
Route A · State licensure
Your state board approves you, then you register.
Most graduates take this route. You apply to your board for the associate or provisional license, the board confirms you are eligible to test, and you register for the exam your board requires through NBCC's Credentialing Gateway. Your score goes to the board. The board, not NBCC, decides which exam, when you may sit, and how many attempts you get.
Route B · NCC certification
You apply for the National Certified Counselor credential, and the exam is part of it.
Students in CACREP-accredited programs can apply in their final year through their program's exam coordinator and take the NCE before graduating. The application allows three attempts in two years. Most state boards accept a score earned this way toward licensure; confirm with yours before relying on it. The NCMHCE under this route is the exam for the CCMHC specialty credential.
The steps
Nine steps, in the order they happen.
Scheduling
Pick the date the way you would plan a client's discharge.
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NCE at a glance
200 multiple-choice items, 160 scored and 40 unscored pretest items you cannot identify. Three hours and forty-five minutes. Six domains weighted from 30 percent down to 8. Scored on a scaled score with a passing point set by a standard-setting study; the number of correct answers needed varies slightly by form. An unofficial result is shown at the test center; official scores follow. The six domains and their weights →
NCMHCE at a glance
Eleven clinical case studies, ten scored, each with an intake and two later sessions followed by 9 to 15 multiple-choice items; 100 scored items in all. 225 minutes of testing with a scheduled 15-minute break, a 4-hour-15-minute session once the agreement and tutorial are counted. Pass or fail against a cut score set by standard setting; an unofficial result is shown before you leave. Required for independent licensure in some states and for the CCMHC credential. A new blueprint takes effect July 1, 2027: ten cases, 3 hours 45 minutes, six new domains and a 100 to 500 scaled score with 360 passing. The NCMHCE course →