The BACB maintains a large pool of questions that can be used to generate many different forms of each examination. For security reasons, the examination forms are updated on a regular basis. Furthermore, multiple forms of the examinations are in use during each testing period, and candidates are randomly assigned to these forms.

The BACB uses statistical data on how each question performs to evaluate the difficulty of each examination form. The examinations are carefully constructed in order to minimize variations in difficulty from one form to another. However, it is possible to have slight variations in difficulty based on the particular combination of questions that are selected for each examination form. This is taken into account when the passing scores are set, so it does not matter which examination form each candidate takes.

Every BACB examination undergoes psychometric statistical equating to assure that scores on different forms are adjusted for any difference in the levels of difficulty. Therefore, the actual number of correct answers required to pass each examination may vary depending on the form and level of difficulty of that examination. Thus, because the passing score may vary from one examination to another, the raw number of questions answered correctly is not reported.

Passing candidates only receive notice that they have passed the examination; no additional report is provided. Failing candidates are provided with reports regarding their performance. For the BCBA and BCaBA examinations, the report includes the percentage of questions answered correctly and total number of questions within each of the primary examination content areas. For RBT examinations, the report provides a list of the RBT tasks for which the candidate answered items incorrectly. This information is provided solely for the purpose of guiding future study efforts.

Please see the Examination Scoring section, which describes the method used for setting passing scores.

Scaled scores are created when the number of questions that candidates answer correctly is mathematically transformed so that the passing score equals a certain point on a scale starting at 0 and ending at a number that equals the highest possible score. For BCBA and BCaBA examinations, the scale starts and 0 and ends at 500, with the passing score equaling 400. For RBT examinations, the scale is 0 to 250, with the passing score equaling 200.

This transformation is very similar to converting inches to centimeters. For example, a 10-inch ribbon will be 25.4 centimeters long. The length of the ribbon has not changed—only the units of measurement that were used to describe it.

The use of scaled scores allows us to directly compare scores from one examination form to another because the passing standard will always be the same (i.e., a scaled score of 200 for an RBT examination, or 400 for a BCBA or BCaBA examination). In the long run, this process will make the scoring of the examination easier to understand for all concerned. No matter which form of an examination a candidate takes, the scaled passing score will remain constant.

The scales used on the BCBA, BCaBA, and RBT examinations are similar to scales used by other large testing programs, such as the SAT, ACT, or GRE. The scales have more points than there are questions on the examination.

The use of scaled scores does not affect whether an individual candidate passes or fails the examination. The pass/fail decision is always made by comparing the number of questions answered correctly to the passing score that was established using the criterion-referenced process. All candidates who correctly answer more items than are required to pass the examination form that they took will obtain scaled scores that are between the scaled passing score and the top of the scale (i.e., between 200 and 250 for the RBT examination, or between 400 and 500 for the BCBA and BCaBA examinations). Candidates who did not answer enough items to pass will obtain scaled scores between 0 and just under the passing score (i.e., between 0 and 199 for the RBT examination, or between 0 and 399 for the BCBA and BCaBA examinations). Scaling does not affect the rank ordering of candidates. A candidate who answers more questions correctly than another candidate taking the same examination form will always obtain a higher scaled score.

Unfortunately, no. The BACB will not report the number of questions answered correctly or the overall percentage of questions answered correctly. However, failing candidates will be provided with examination reports as described above. This information is provided to assist failing candidates with targeting areas for further study. Visit the RBT, BCaBA, and BCBA sample score reports for examples.

Information on your performance is provided to assist you in identifying areas for additional study. However, you should use caution when interpreting this information. The number of items asked about each task is relatively small and therefore may not be predictive of your understanding of the task. When you prepare to take the examination again, you should study all of the content. If you study only the areas for which you answered items incorrectly, you might perform better on those areas but worse on others.