- What the CCC-SLP Exam Actually Tests
- The Three Content Categories You'll Face
- Registration, Fees, and Scheduling Mechanics
- Passing Score and Scoring Mechanics
- Building a Study Timeline Around the Big Nine
- Requirements Beyond the Test Itself
- Keeping the CCC-SLP Once You Have It
- Where First-Time Candidates Lose Points
- Frequently Asked Questions
- The Praxis 5331 has 132 selected-response questions in 150 minutes, split evenly across three content categories.
- You need a scaled score of 162 out of 200; most state boards use this same cut score.
- Registration costs $146 through ETS and includes four score recipients - plan retakes with a 21-day wait.
- All three domains are weighted at roughly 33.3% each with about 44 questions apiece, so no single area can be skipped.
What the CCC-SLP Exam Actually Tests
The Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology, awarded by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), requires candidates to pass the Praxis Speech-Language Pathology test, code 5331. This exam is built and delivered by ETS, and you can sit for it at a Prometric test center or through live remote proctoring from home, year-round rather than during fixed testing windows. If you're still mapping out when to sit for it relative to your Clinical Fellowship start date, the CCC-SLP Exam Dates guide walks through the scheduling logistics in more detail.
The test itself is computer-delivered and consists of 132 selected-response questions to be completed in 150 minutes. Some of those items may be unscored pretest questions that ETS is field-testing for future exams, but since you can't identify which ones are unscored, every question counts as if it matters - and because there's no penalty for guessing, you should never leave an item blank. That single mechanical fact should shape your pacing strategy: with roughly 68 seconds per question on average, guess-and-move-on beats getting stuck.
The Three Content Categories You'll Face
ETS organizes the 5331 into three content categories, each weighted at approximately 33 and one-third percent and each containing roughly 44 questions. Because the weighting is essentially equal, there's no shortcut of "skipping" a domain to focus on your strongest area - a shaky performance in any one category can sink your composite score just as easily as another.
Domain 1: Foundations and Professional Practice
This is where scope-of-practice questions, ethics scenarios, documentation standards, and evidence-based practice principles concentrate. Expect items that test whether you know what falls inside versus outside an SLP's professional boundaries, and how to apply ASHA's Code of Ethics to messy real-world situations.
- Scope of practice and interprofessional collaboration
- Ethical decision-making and confidentiality
- Documentation, billing, and service delivery models
Domain 2: Screening, Assessment, Evaluation, and Diagnosis
This category tests your ability to select appropriate screening and assessment tools, interpret standardized scores, and reach differential diagnoses across the lifespan and across disorder types.
- Selecting valid, reliable assessment instruments
- Interpreting norm-referenced and criterion-referenced data
- Differentiating overlapping communication and swallowing disorders
Domain 3: Planning, Implementation, and Evaluation of Treatment
Here the exam shifts to intervention: writing measurable goals, selecting evidence-based treatment approaches, and monitoring progress to know when to modify a plan of care.
- Goal writing and treatment planning across settings
- Evidence-based intervention selection
- Progress monitoring and discharge criteria
All three categories draw questions from ASHA's "big nine" practice areas: speech sound production; fluency; voice, resonance, and motor speech; receptive and expressive language; social aspects of communication including pragmatics; cognitive aspects of communication; augmentative and alternative communication (AAC); hearing; and feeding and swallowing. A single question might combine a domain (say, assessment) with a practice area (say, AAC), so your prep needs to cross-reference both axes rather than studying them in isolation. For a deeper breakdown of how these areas map onto each domain, see the CCC-SLP Exam Domains Guide.
Registration, Fees, and Scheduling Mechanics
Registering for the Praxis 5331 costs $146, and that fee automatically includes score reports sent to up to four recipients - typically your graduate program and any state licensing board you're applying to. If you don't pass on the first attempt, ETS enforces a mandatory 21-day wait before you can retake the exam, so a failed attempt has a real calendar cost, not just a financial one.
The exam fee is separate from ASHA's certification application fee. Applying for the CCC-SLP itself costs $490 if you're also an ASHA member, or $455 if you're pursuing certification without membership. After that, certification renews annually - $250 with membership or $221 without. These numbers are easy to conflate with the exam fee, so budget for both lines separately. A full breakdown of every fee across the certification lifecycle is available in the CCC-SLP Certification Cost breakdown.
Key Takeaway
Treat the $146 Praxis fee and the $490/$455 ASHA application fee as two distinct budget items on two different timelines - the exam typically comes first, certification application follows once your Clinical Fellowship is underway or complete.
Passing Score and Scoring Mechanics
ASHA requires a scaled score of 162 on a 100-200 point scale to meet the certification standard. Individual state licensing boards set their own cut scores, and the large majority have simply adopted 162 as well, but it's worth double-checking your specific state board before you assume your Praxis score automatically satisfies licensure. The CCC-SLP Passing Score guide covers how the scaled score is calculated and what a near-miss score means for retake strategy.
Because guessing carries no penalty and pretest items are mixed in unscored, your best strategy is to answer every single question, flag uncertain ones for review if time allows, and never leave the exam with unanswered items. With 150 minutes for 132 questions, most candidates who practice pacing beforehand find they have a few minutes of buffer for review passes.
Building a Study Timeline Around the Big Nine
A generic study calendar won't help you much here - what matters is mapping your weeks to the exam's actual weighting. Since Foundations and Professional Practice, Assessment/Diagnosis, and Treatment Planning are each worth about a third of the exam, an even split of study time across them makes more sense than over-indexing on whichever domain feels most familiar from your coursework.
Foundations and Professional Practice
- Review ASHA's Code of Ethics and scope-of-practice documents
- Practice documentation and billing scenario questions
- Drill interprofessional collaboration case items
Screening, Assessment, Evaluation, and Diagnosis
- Review standardized test interpretation across the big nine areas
- Practice differentiating overlapping diagnoses (e.g., apraxia vs. dysarthria)
- Work through hearing and swallowing assessment scenarios
Planning, Implementation, and Evaluation of Treatment
- Practice writing measurable, functional treatment goals
- Review evidence-based intervention approaches by disorder type
- Study AAC implementation and progress-monitoring methods
Full Simulation and Review
- Take full-length timed practice exams under 150-minute conditions
- Review missed items by domain, not just by topic
- Revisit weak big-nine areas identified in practice tests
If you're short on time, resist the urge to cut Domain 1 short just because ethics and documentation feel less "clinical" than assessment or treatment - it carries the same weight as the other two categories. You can find a more detailed week-by-week structure in the CCC-SLP Study Guide, and a condensed one-page reference for last-week review in the CCC-SLP Cheat Sheet.
Requirements Beyond the Test Itself
Passing the Praxis 5331 is necessary but not sufficient for the CCC-SLP. ASHA also requires a master's degree or higher from a program accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CAA). On the clinical side, you need at least 400 clock hours of supervised clinical experience, broken down into 25 hours of guided observation and 375 hours of direct client contact, with a minimum of 325 of those hours completed at the graduate level.
After the exam, most candidates still need to complete a Clinical Fellowship (CF) of at least 1,260 hours across a minimum of 36 weeks, working under a qualified mentor. The CF is registered with form CF-1 and closed out using forms CF-2 through CF-5, and it must be completed within 48 months of starting. Many candidates take the Praxis 5331 either just before or during their Clinical Fellowship, since state boards often require a passing score before the CF can begin or be finalized. If you want the full eligibility checklist laid out step by step, the CCC-SLP Requirements guide covers each prerequisite in order.
| Requirement | Minimum Standard |
|---|---|
| Academic degree | Master's or higher from a CAA-accredited program |
| Clinical clock hours | 400 total (25 observation + 375 direct contact, 325+ at graduate level) |
| Praxis 5331 score | 162 scaled score (100-200 scale) |
| Clinical Fellowship | 1,260 hours across 36+ weeks, within 48 months |
| Certification maintenance | 30 PD hours (3.0 ASHA CEUs) every 3 years, plus annual dues |
Keeping the CCC-SLP Once You Have It
Certification isn't a one-time event - ASHA requires holders to complete 30 professional development hours, equivalent to 3.0 ASHA CEUs, every three years, including designated ethics content, along with paying annual dues. Notably, the standards language describing acceptable professional development content areas was clarified effective January 1, 2026, so it's worth reviewing ASHA's current guidance rather than relying on older summaries. Anyone who falls out of compliance is flagged as "CCC Not Current" starting April 1, which can affect employment eligibility in settings that require active certification.
Understanding this maintenance cycle matters even before you sit for the exam, because it affects the long-term value calculation of pursuing the credential in the first place. If you're weighing whether the ongoing dues and CEU requirements are worth it relative to career opportunities, the CCC-SLP ROI analysis and the CCC-SLP Salary Guide both address that question from different angles.
Where First-Time Candidates Lose Points
Most repeat test-takers don't fail because they didn't know the material - they fail because of predictable, fixable gaps in exam strategy:
- Treating one domain as "extra credit." Because all three content categories are weighted almost identically, under-preparing for Foundations and Professional Practice in favor of clinical content is a common and costly mistake.
- Skipping unanswered questions. With no guessing penalty, leaving items blank is pure lost opportunity - always mark an answer before time runs out.
- Underestimating pacing. 132 questions in 150 minutes leaves little room for getting stuck on any single item; practicing under timed conditions matters as much as content review.
- Misjudging difficulty going in. Some candidates assume clinical experience alone is enough prep. For a realistic sense of what makes this exam challenging, see How Hard Is the CCC-SLP Exam? and the current CCC-SLP Pass Rate data.
- Confusing this credential with similarly-named ones. If you're unclear on exactly what the letters CCC-SLP represent or how the credential functions, the What Is CCC-SLP? and CCC-SLP Meaning explainers clarify the basics before you dive into exam prep.
Running full-length, timed practice sets is one of the highest-leverage ways to close these gaps before test day. Working through realistic question sets on our practice test platform lets you rehearse the 150-minute pacing constraint and see which of the three domains needs another pass before you schedule your Prometric or remote-proctored session.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Praxis Speech-Language Pathology test (code 5331) has 132 selected-response questions to complete in 150 minutes, some of which may be unscored pretest items.
ASHA requires a scaled score of 162 on the 100-200 scale. Most state licensing boards use this same cut score, though it's worth confirming with your specific state board.
The Praxis 5331 registration fee is $146 and includes four score recipients. ASHA's certification application costs $490 with membership or $455 without, renewing annually at $250 or $221 respectively.
You can retake the exam, but ETS requires a 21-day wait between attempts, so plan your Clinical Fellowship timeline and licensure deadlines accordingly.
Yes. Foundations and Professional Practice, Screening/Assessment/Evaluation/Diagnosis, and Planning/Implementation/Evaluation of Treatment are each weighted at approximately 33.3%, with roughly 44 questions per category.