How to Register and Schedule the LMSW (ASWB Masters) Exam

Three organizations, usually in this order

Each organization does one job. Your board decides whether you are eligible and which exam category you may take. ASWB registers you and issues the Authorization to Test. Pearson VUE runs the test centers. Because ASWB fees are nonrefundable, paying the right organization at the wrong time can cost you money.

Most jurisdictions:

1. Apply to your board. Submit the license application, pay the board's application fee, and wait for approval to register for the exam. The board tells ASWB which category you are approved for, and the ways boards set eligibility vary. If you are applying before your degree is conferred, ask your board how it handles that timing.
2. Register and pay ASWB. In ASWBCentral you answer demographic and education questions, sign the Candidate Rules Agreement electronically, and pay US$230 for the Masters exam. Exam cost lists the other charges that may follow.
3. Wait for the Authorization to Test. ASWB emails it within two business days. It contains the scheduling instructions, and any approved nonstandard arrangements.
4. Schedule with Pearson VUE. Log in to ASWBCentral and go to the Pearson page, or call. Pearson emails a confirmation within 24 hours.

Colorado, Maine, Texas, and Utah: the guidebook says applicants there must first apply to ASWB Licensing Services for exam preapproval. After passing the exam, they apply for the license with their state board. If you are testing for one of these four states, start with ASWB, not the board.

Two things to settle before you pay

Your name. Register with the first and last names that appear on the IDs you will bring. The test center does not check middle names, middle initials, or punctuation such as hyphens. If your name has changed, your jurisdiction must update it before ASWB can change your Authorization to Test, and you must bring the original marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order to the test center. Copies are not accepted.

Nonstandard testing arrangements. Extra time or other arrangements for a disability, a health condition, lactation, American Sign Language, or English as a second language must be requested and approved before you register and pay. They cannot be added to an appointment that is already scheduled, and ASWB says a reply can take up to three weeks. For ESL arrangements, you must already be approved by your board to take the exam. California applicants also need preliminary ESL approval from the Board of Behavioral Sciences, and California does not allow an English or bilingual dictionary.

The Authorization to Test sets your window

• It covers one exam only.
• It may be valid for up to one year, but your board can set an earlier expiration date. You cannot test after a board-imposed date.
• If you do not test before it expires, you forfeit the exam fee.
• If something prevents you from testing in time, you may be able to purchase one extension of up to six months. ASWB allows no more than one extension per registration.

ASWB recommends scheduling four to six weeks ahead of the date you want, because Pearson centers also run many other exams.

Scheduling, rescheduling, and canceling

You can test at any Pearson test center, and your score is always reported to the jurisdiction where you applied. Many candidates with approved nonstandard arrangements must schedule by phone.

To change an appointment without losing the fee:

• Cancel or reschedule at least 24 hours before the appointment, in ASWBCentral or by calling Pearson at 877-884-9537.
• For a Monday or Tuesday appointment, call before 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the Friday before.
• If your arrangements include a reader, scribe, or ASL interpreter, ASWB asks for two business days' notice.
• When you change an appointment online, finish every step, including Submit Order. If no confirmation email arrives within 24 hours, the change did not go through, and you need to contact Pearson.

Changes made within these rules carry no extra fee. ASWB suspended its online-proctoring pilot effective July 31, 2026, so plan on a test center. The format guide covers how long the appointment takes.

Keep these before test day

• Your board approval, or your ASWB preapproval in Colorado, Maine, Texas, or Utah
• The Authorization to Test email, with its eligibility and expiration dates
• The Pearson confirmation email showing the right date, time, and center
• Two original IDs, one from the primary list and one from the secondary list in the guidebook, with first and last names that match your Authorization to Test

Once the date is booked, enter your Pearson date in the free LMSW study-plan builder → to get a dated outline weighted across the three Masters content areas. The study guide shows how to divide those weeks.