EA exam day: ID, check-in, breaks and permitted items

The day before: remove avoidable surprises

Reopen the appointment confirmation and verify the part, time, delivery mode and location. Check the time zone for a remote appointment. A reminder in your personal calendar is useful only if it matches the actual booking.

1. 01

   Confirm the booking

   Save the confirmation number and current PSI support details.

2. 02

   Check identification

   Inspect the expiry date, registered name, photo and signature.

3. 03

   Rehearse the setup

   Check the route or run the remote system check on the device you will use.

4. 04

   Taper your study

   Use a short familiar review and leave time to rest. This is study advice, not a testing rule.

Resolve an ID mismatch before the appointment

The bulletin specifies an original, unexpired government-issued ID with a current photo and signature. If one ID does not contain both, the stated two-ID provision applies. Photocopies and digital images are not accepted.

Where the name differs because of marriage or another legal change, follow PSI’s requirements for original certified supporting documents. Contact PSI before the test if your circumstances do not fit the published rules.

Follow a check-in sequence that fits your delivery mode

For a test-center appointment, plan to arrive at least 30 minutes before the scheduled time, with the required original identification. Follow the administrator’s instructions for storing personal items and entering the testing room. Bringing a prohibited item because you normally use it while studying does not make it a permitted testing aid.

For a remote appointment, use the candidate portal’s current system check on the device and connection you intend to use. Prepare the room, desk and identification before check-in. Remote monitoring and identity requirements still apply at home, and remote working notes use an electronic whiteboard rather than your own paper and pencil.

If you need an accommodation, resolve it through the PSI process during scheduling. An approval from another testing program is not automatically an approval for this appointment. Confirm the approved arrangement before exam day instead of asking a proctor to improvise a change at check-in.

Treat each scheduled break as a section boundary

After question 34 and again after question 67, review the section before submitting it. Each completed section locks. The scheduled break lasts up to 10 minutes; returning late can consume exam time.

An unscheduled break follows different rules. At a center, the exam clock continues; remote unscheduled breaks are not allowed under the bulletin. Ask the proctor about a technical problem instead of leaving the testing area without authorization.

A scheduled break is not permission to consult study material

The closed-book rule continues during breaks. Keep notes, reference books, phones and other unauthorized electronic devices out of use. At a center, follow the administrator’s instructions before accessing a locker for an allowed need such as food, water or medicine. Do not assume that an item stored outside the testing room can be used freely.

The current remote rules prohibit personal scratch paper and unscheduled breaks. Prepare around those restrictions and use the scheduled break process as instructed. A technical problem is a reason to contact the proctor, not permission to leave the designated area or switch to an unapproved device.

Separate two decisions at each scheduled break: first review and submit the current question section; then follow the break procedure. The submission closes access to that section. Thinking of the break as a chance to research an answer creates both a rules problem and a navigation mistake.

What to do when the appointment does not go as planned

Contact PSI promptly when a booking error or disruption appears. Keep the confirmation number and a factual record of the issue. If reporting a technical incident, record the time and support instructions without copying or photographing examination content. The examination nondisclosure rules still apply.

Distinguish a provider cancellation from a candidate’s decision not to attend an available appointment. The bulletin treats them differently. It also states that missing an appointment or arriving 30 minutes or more late prevents testing and forfeits the fee. The requirement to arrive early is not a 30-minute grace period.

Keep the result and plan the next task

The result appears after the exam, and PSI emails a score report. Save the report and pass date. Use PSI’s account if you need to retrieve the report again.

If this is your last required pass, switch from exam scheduling to the enrollment application checklist. If a part remains, use fresh practice and the full outline to plan its preparation.