Allow 2 hours 20 minutes in total. Arrive 30 minutes early. Bring one original government-issued photo ID whose name matches your registration exactly. You will store your belongings, pass a security check, accept a confidentiality agreement, run through a short tutorial, answer 100 questions in 2 hours, complete a survey, and see your score on screen before you leave.

Nothing on the day should be a surprise. Here is the whole sequence.

The one thing to check tonight

Your ID. You need one form of valid government-issued identification carrying all four of these:

• • Your name, matching your exam registration exactly
  • A recent, recognisable photograph
  • Your signature
  • A valid issue or expiry date

It must be the original. Duplicates, photocopies and digital IDs on your phone are not accepted — a photograph of your passport is not a passport.

If your name on the ID and your name on the registration do not match, you will not sit the exam. There is no discretion at the desk, no appeal on the day, and the fee is gone. Check this the night before, while there is still time to reschedule instead of forfeiting.

At a Prometric test centre

Arrive 30 minutes early

Not five minutes early. The half hour is for check-in, and arriving late enough to compress it can cost you the appointment. Work out the journey and the parking the day before.

Check-in and security

You will present your ID, sign in, and put everything you brought into a locker. Then a security check that is more thorough than most candidates expect. You will be asked to:

• • Empty your pockets
  • Remove eyeglasses for inspection
  • Roll down your shirtsleeves
  • Remove watches and fitness trackers or monitors
  • Remove jewellery — religious jewellery and wedding rings are exempt
  • Roll up your trouser legs
  • Pass through a metal detector

None of this is personal and all of it is routine. Wearing something simple, leaving the smartwatch at home and carrying as little as possible makes it faster.

Once you are through, a member of staff will take you to your workstation.

What you cannot take in

The exam is closed book. No notes, no printed material, no reference guide, no phone, no watch. Scratch paper or a whiteboard and an on-screen calculator are provided at the centre — you do not bring your own.

At home, with remote proctoring

The exam is identical. The environment around it is stricter.

Log in 30 minutes early for virtual check-in, which involves a facial image capture, ID verification, and a 360-degree webcam scan of your room and your work surface. Have your desk clear before you start; a cluttered desk means a longer check-in and possibly a refusal.

During the exam you may not leave the webcam’s field of vision at any point. Not to stretch, not to answer the door, not for anything. Plan accordingly: use the bathroom first, put the phone in another room, and tell whoever you live with that you are unavailable for the next two and a half hours.

Two practical differences from the test centre:

• • No paper. Scratch sheets and a pen or pencil are not permitted. A digital notepad is provided inside ProProctor instead, and it is worth practising with the idea of on-screen scribbling before the day.
  • A digital calculator is provided. You cannot use your own.

Interactions with the readiness agent and the proctor are conducted in English.

Download ProProctor and run the system readiness check at least a week ahead, not the night before. Remote proctoring has firm requirements — laptop or desktop only, no tablets, no dual monitors, no Bluetooth headsets — and a wired connection is far safer than wi-fi for two hours. The current specification is in the LEED Green Associate Candidate Handbook.

The exam itself

The full structure, including how scored and unscored questions work, is on our LEED Green Associate exam format page.

How to work through it

You can change answers, skip questions and flag them for review. Use all three.

Answer everything as you go. There is no negative marking, so an answered question can only help you, and a blank one cannot. If you are unsure, put down your best guess, flag it, and move on. Return with whatever time is left.

Do not stall. At 1 minute 12 seconds per question on average, three minutes spent wrestling with one item has borrowed time from two others. The candidates who run out of time are almost never the ones who did not know enough — they are the ones who refused to move on.

Watch for the two-thirds mark. If you are not around question 65 with 40 minutes to go, speed up deliberately rather than hoping.

When you finish

Your scaled score appears on screen immediately. You will know before you leave the building, or before you close the laptop.

A score report follows by email to your registered address within 24 hours. If you did not pass, failed the LEED Green Associate exam sets out the retake rules and how to work out where the gap was.

If you passed, the credential is yours, and the clock starts on maintaining it.

Frequently asked questions

What ID do I need for the LEED Green Associate exam?
One original government-issued photo ID showing your name exactly as registered, a recent recognisable photograph, your signature and a valid issue or expiry date. Photocopies and digital IDs are not accepted.

How early should I arrive?
30 minutes before your appointment at a test centre, or log in 30 minutes early for a remotely proctored exam.

Can I bring notes or a reference guide?
No. The exam is closed book. Scratch paper and a calculator are provided at a test centre; for remote exams a digital notepad and calculator are provided instead, and paper is not permitted.

Can I leave the room during a remotely proctored exam?
No. You may not be out of the webcam’s field of vision at any point during the exam.

When do I get my result?
Your scaled score appears on screen as soon as you finish, and a score report is emailed within 24 hours.

Walking in prepared

The best way to remove exam-day nerves is to have already sat the exam, twice, at home, against the clock. Our 50-question mock exam is free. 3FOLD TRAINING prepares candidates across all eight domains in LEED Green Associate training — ask through the course enquiry form.