EPPP in 2027: Part 1, the Beta Test or the Integrated EPPP? Which One You'll Take

The EPPP timeline for 2027 and 2028

As checked on October 27, 2026, ASPPB's beta-test article (October 1, 2026), its May 8, 2026 update and its launch timeline dated October 21, 2026 set these dates:

ASPPB's February 2026 announcement also confirms that the Part 1 and Part 2 exams given in 2026 and 2027 use their current blueprints. Nothing changes in Part 1's content before it retires.

Which EPPP version you'll take

ASPPB doesn't define "first-time" further, so if you've taken any part of the EPPP before, confirm your status with your board. The retake guide works through the March 31, 2028 window with ASPPB's suggested 90-day gap between attempts, and if you're in the repeater rows, Part 1 practice questions planned for repeaters testing before the cutoff follow the outline you'll see again.

What the integrated EPPP looks like

ASPPB's beta-test article and its September 17, 2026 item-development article describe the new exam:

• 215 questions: 175 scored and 40 unscored pretest items
• Up to 5 hours of testing time, with an optional 30-minute break
• One day at Pearson VUE test centers
• Question formats that may include multiple choice with single- and multi-select answers, scenario-based sets, questions built on interviews, assessments or other professional materials, and audio or video scenarios
• Random order: ASPPB says questions will be presented in random order
• Pass or fail on a total score, with the cut set by standard setting after the beta

ASPPB built the blueprint from a 2025 job task analysis with input from nearly 3,000 licensed psychologists in the US and Canada. It reviewed more than 12,000 existing questions against the new blueprint, and the beta forms are mostly made of items from previous Part 1 and Part 2 exams, plus new items. The EPPP format guide compares this with Part 1's 225 questions and 4 hours 15 minutes.

The six domains of the integrated EPPP

From ASPPB's Future EPPP Content Areas:

ASPPB's beta article calls the fourth domain "Supervision and Consultation"; the content-area page and the September article use "Consultation and Supervision."

Part 1 knowledge isn't wasted. The Scientific Orientation domain lists biological, cognitive-affective and social and cultural bases of behavior and lifespan development by name, and assessment, intervention and ethics each get their own domain. What changes is the emphasis on applying knowledge, the larger ethics and assessment weights, and the item formats. Until the launch, though, Part 1's eight areas are what candidates are scored on, and full EPPP prep planned on the current Part 1 outline is built for that exam.

The March–April 2027 EPPP beta test

The beta is the first administration of the integrated EPPP, used to set its passing score. According to ASPPB's beta-test article:

• Who: first-time EPPP candidates whose board or college approves them and participates in the beta. Participating boards' candidates choose between the current EPPP and the beta during the March 1 to April 30, 2027 window, using the same Clarus registration process.
• Cost: $100 plus the $91.88 sitting fee, compared with $691.88 for a Part 1 attempt.
• Scores: not given at the test center; expected in late June 2027.
• ASPPB's recommendations to participating boards: accept a passing beta score as meeting the EPPP requirement, and don't count an unsuccessful beta attempt toward attempt history or limits. Each board makes its own final decision.
• If you don't pass: one discounted Part 1 sitting for $100 plus the sitting fee.
• Preparation: ASPPB points to the content specifications, an integrated EPPP candidate handbook and integrated sample exams, which it said would be available in fall 2026; the sample exams only through candidates' Clarus accounts.

Weighing it is a personal call. The beta is cheaper and, where boards follow ASPPB's recommendations, a fail costs less. On the other side, you wait two to four months for a result, you face new item formats with little practice material, and if your license timeline is tight, an immediate Part 1 score may matter more. If your board doesn't participate, the option doesn't exist for you; ask it directly.

ASPPB's eligibility recommendation for the integrated EPPP

In the May 2026 update, ASPPB recommended, as eligibility for the EPPP, that candidates have completed doctoral coursework acceptable to their board and all or most of their required supervised experience. Boards decide eligibility, so this isn't a rule until your board adopts it. It does differ from ASPPB's advice for Part 1, which is to sit it as soon as possible after academic training. If your board lets you take Part 1 early in training and that matters to your plans, ask whether its timing will change after the launch.

What ASPPB hasn't announced yet

As of October 27, 2026:

• The exact launch day. ASPPB says fall 2027 and, in the May update, the fourth quarter of 2027.
• The integrated exam fee before April 1, 2028. Only the $650 fee from that date is published.
• The passing score. It will come from standard setting after the beta.
• Which boards participate in the beta. Ask yours.
• The Part 2 case in the table above.
• The integrated candidate handbook on ASPPB's public site. The September 2026 EPPP Candidate Handbook covers Part 1 and Part 2 only, and we couldn't find an integrated edition on asppb.net.

Planning an EPPP date around the switch

If you're a first-time candidate and can test before summer 2027 ends, Part 1 is the known quantity: a fixed outline, an immediate score, and, if you fail before the launch, Part 1 retakes through March 31, 2028.

If your date may slide into fall 2027, watch ASPPB for the exact launch day before you pay, because a payment starts a 12-month clock and fees aren't refundable. Testing earlier also protects your retake options: a Part 1 fail before the launch keeps Part 1 open to you through March 31, 2028, while a first attempt after the launch is on the integrated exam. For a test date within the next month or so, the planned 30-day EPPP access option is the shortest window; checkout isn't open yet.

If you've already failed Part 1, you have until March 31, 2028 to retake it. Whatever your situation, enter your date in the free EPPP study planner, which warns you if it falls after the integrated launch.