Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC) Pass Rate, Format & Study Guide

The Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC) credential is awarded by the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification (CRCC), the certifying body for rehabilitation counselors. The exam tests the knowledge a rehabilitation counselor needs to help people with disabilities achieve their personal, career and independent-living goals — counseling theory and ethics, assessment, career development and placement, case management and disability management — in a 175-question computer-based exam delivered at Pearson VUE test centers.

Rehabilitation counselors work in vocational rehabilitation agencies, hospitals, schools, community programs and employers, helping clients move from assessment to employment and independence. The CRC credential is the field's recognised mark of professional competence, and its two-part exam — counseling and rehabilitation-and-disability — reflects that the job needs both clinical counseling skill and deep knowledge of disability, work and community systems.

The exam is aimed at master's-level rehabilitation counseling students and graduates, and at graduates of related master's or doctoral programs such as psychology, social work or mental health counseling who qualify under CRCC's Category 3. CRCC lets applicants who are still enrolled apply, and it offers a transcript pre-review for Category 3 applicants who are unsure whether their degree qualifies.

CRCC publishes first-time pass rates for each administration: 52% in July 2025 (57 of 110 first-time candidates), 45% in October 2025 (79 of 176) and 61% in March 2026 (154 of 251). Across those three published sittings roughly half to six in ten first-time candidates passed, so the exam is passable but far from automatic.

CRCC allows two attempts per application. A candidate who does not pass may retake the exam at the next available testing window, and a candidate who fails both attempts must submit a new application. The re-examination fee is $275, and cancelling or rescheduling within 48 hours of the Pearson VUE appointment carries a $200 re-examination fee. The exam is administered three times a year, so a failed attempt usually means waiting for the next window.

The CRC exam has 175 multiple-choice questions: 150 are scored and 25 are field-test items that do not count toward your result. CRCC uses a conjunctive scoring model: the exam is divided into a counseling part and a rehabilitation-and-disability part, and you must achieve a passing score on both parts in a single administration, so a strong result on one part cannot offset a failing result on the other. After the exam you receive a preliminary score from Pearson VUE, and CRCC confirms official results within 24 to 48 hours.

The exam has 175 multiple-choice questions: 150 scored and 25 field-test items that do not count toward your result. You have three and a half hours and CRCC advises setting aside four hours including check-in and the survey. It is delivered at a Pearson VUE test center in two sections, Rehabilitation and Disability and Counseling, with no break between them. CRCC uses conjunctive scoring: you must pass both parts in a single administration.

• Professional Orientation and Ethical Practice10.7%
• Counseling Theories, Techniques, and Evidence-Based Practices11.3%
• Group and Family Counseling4.7%
• Crisis and Trauma Counseling and Interventions6%
• Medical and Psychosocial Aspects of Chronic Illness and Disability9.3%
• Assessment/Evaluation, Occupational Analysis, and Service Implementation10.7%
• Career Development and Job Placement9.3%
• Business Engagement7.6%
• Community Resources and Partnerships8%
• Case Management10%
• Health Care and Disability Management7.3%
• Research, Methodology, and Performance Management5.3%

CRCC publishes 12 knowledge domains with percentage weights: Professional Orientation and Ethical Practice 10.7%; Counseling Theories, Techniques, and Evidence-Based Practices 11.3%; Group and Family Counseling 4.7%; Crisis and Trauma Counseling and Interventions 6.0%; Medical and Psychosocial Aspects of Chronic Illness and Disability 9.3%; Assessment/Evaluation, Occupational Analysis, and Service Implementation 10.7%; Career Development and Job Placement 9.3%; Business Engagement 7.6%; Community Resources and Partnerships 8.0%; Case Management 10.0%; Health Care and Disability Management 7.3%; and Research, Methodology, and Performance Management 5.3%. The percentages are printed to one decimal and sum to 100.2 because of CRCC's rounding.

Category 1 applicants are enrolled in or have graduated from a master's-level rehabilitation counseling or clinical rehabilitation program accredited by CACREP. Category 2 applicants are enrolled in or have graduated from a master's-level rehabilitation counseling or clinical rehabilitation counseling program that is not, or was not, accredited by CACREP or CORE. Category 3 applicants hold a master's or doctoral degree in one of CRCC's approved related fields of study. For graduates of programs from before July 1, 2017, CRCC also requires completion of a 600-hour internship supervised by an on-site CRC or a faculty member who is a CRC. The application is completed online, and once CRCC approves it you schedule the exam through Pearson VUE.

CRCC lists the certification fee as $420, the re-examination fee as $275, the deferral fee as $125 and the optional pre-review fee for Category 3 transcripts as $85. Cancelling or rescheduling within 48 hours of your Pearson VUE appointment results in a $200 re-examination fee. CRCC administers the exam three times a year; for 2026-2027 the application windows run August 16 to December 15, 2026 (testing March 8-16, 2027), December 16, 2026 to April 30, 2027 (testing July 5-13, 2027) and May 1 to August 15, 2027 (testing October 11-19, 2027).

CRC certification must be renewed every five years. Renewal requires 100 clock hours of continuing education earned within the five-year cycle, and CRCC states those hours may be applied only to the current certification cycle and cannot be carried over to the next one.

CRCC's own free study planner is built around 12 weeks of preparation, which is a sensible baseline for a 175-question, 3.5-hour exam taken in a fixed testing window. Because you must pass both the counseling part and the rehabilitation-and-disability part, spread your time across all 12 CRCC knowledge domains rather than concentrating on your strongest area: Counseling Theories (11.3%), Professional Orientation and Ethical Practice (10.7%), Assessment/Evaluation (10.7%) and Case Management (10.0%) carry the most weight, but every domain can decide the result of its part. Finish with timed, full-length practice so the 3.5-hour pace without a break feels familiar.

CRCC updates its fees, testing windows and exam content periodically; the figures here were read on CRCC's website on 2026-10-01. Confirm the current fees and your testing window with CRCC before you apply, and check the CRC Certification Guide for the eligibility rules that apply to your degree.