HRCI Associate Professional in Human Resources (aPHR) Exam

HRCI's exam content outline weights five functional areas, and the weights are the study plan:

• Compliance and Risk Management — 25%
• Employee Relations — 24%
• Talent Acquisition — 19%
• Compensation and Benefits — 17%
• Learning and Development — 15%

Half the exam is compliance and employee relations together — employment law, workplace safety, discipline, documentation, the handling of complaints — which rewards candidates who learn the federal statutes and their thresholds precisely rather than in outline. Talent acquisition and compensation are process knowledge: job analysis, recruiting steps, pay structures, benefits administration. The exam is one continuous sitting, not separately scored sections, so a weak area can be carried by a strong one.

Taking the aPHR exam requires two separate payments: a $300 exam fee and a non-refundable $100 application fee paid before scheduling. If you need to reschedule or cancel your appointment, HRCI charges an additional $150 rescheduling/cancellation fee. For the current full fee schedule, refer to the official HRCI aPHR certification page.

The exam presents 90 questions in 1 hour 45 minutes: 65 are scored and 25 are unscored pretest items mixed in without identification. Results are reported on HRCI's scaled scoring rather than as a raw percentage, so the passing point is a scaled score, not a count of correct answers. Delivery is at a Pearson VUE test center or by online proctoring, and the check-in window is strict — you may check in 30 minutes before the appointment and no later than 15 minutes after it.

Costs come in two parts: a $300 exam fee and a non-refundable $100 application fee paid before scheduling; rescheduling or cancelling carries a $150 fee. The certification is valid for three years and is maintained by earning 45 recertification credit hours across the cycle, or by retesting.