Where Do I Find My Official CPA Exam Score?

The Certified Public Accountant (CPA) Exam represents a significant milestone for individuals pursuing a career in accounting. This rigorous examination assesses a candidate’s knowledge and skills across various accounting disciplines. After investing considerable time and effort into preparing for and taking the exam, candidates anticipate the release of their scores. These results are an indicator of progress toward obtaining the CPA license, allowing individuals to gauge their performance and plan their next steps in the licensure process.

Score Release Timelines and Considerations

CPA Exam scores are not released immediately after testing; instead, they follow specific schedules published by the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). The AICPA sets the target release dates, and NASBA then posts the scores to candidate portals. Scores are generally released on a rolling or continuous basis throughout the year, with multiple release dates per month for core sections. Discipline sections, introduced with CPA Evolution, have their own specific release schedules, often with five target release dates per quarter. While “target release dates” are provided, actual score availability can vary slightly, sometimes being posted up to 48 hours from the target date due to quality control procedures. Candidates should regularly check the official schedules to align their expectations with the score release windows.

Accessing Your Score Online

The primary method for most candidates to retrieve their CPA Exam scores is through the NASBA Candidate Account Portal, which serves as a central hub for various exam-related activities, including score retrieval. To begin, candidates should navigate to the official NASBA website and locate the CPA Portal or NASBA Application Dashboard. Upon accessing the portal, candidates will be prompted to log in using the credentials established during their exam application process. Once successfully logged in, candidates can navigate to sections like “Score Reports,” “Exam History,” or “View Exam Section History” to find their results. It is important to note that while the NASBA portal is widely used, candidates in some jurisdictions may need to access their scores directly through their state board of accountancy’s website. Candidates should print or save their score notice for their records as the NASBA CPA Candidate Account does not permanently store scores.

Understanding Your Score Report

Once accessed, the score report provides essential information about a candidate’s performance on a CPA Exam section. Each section is graded on a scaled score from 0 to 99, with a minimum score of 75 required to pass. This scaled score does not directly represent a percentage of correct answers but rather reflects a weighted combination of correct responses and the difficulty of the questions. For candidates who pass, the report typically confirms the final score and a “Pass” or “Credited” status. If a candidate does not pass, the score report provides a “Fail” status along with diagnostic feedback. This feedback often includes a breakdown of performance by content area, indicating whether the candidate’s performance was “Stronger,” “Comparable,” or “Weaker” relative to passing candidates. This diagnostic information is valuable for identifying areas for improvement if a retake is necessary. The credit for a passed section generally remains valid for 30 months, meaning all four exam sections must be passed within this timeframe, starting from the date the first section is passed.