ABPMR PM&R exam-day guide
ABPMR PM&R · Prepare for the day ahead.
Your checklist
Unexpired government-issued photo ID
Bring the original physical ID (not a photocopy or a photo on your phone). The name must match your registration record exactly. Confirm with the board and the testing provider which specific ID forms are accepted at your site.
Exam appointment confirmation / scheduling permit
Print or save your confirmation with the test center address, appointment time, and any candidate ID number. Confirm with the provider whether a printed copy is required or a digital copy is acceptable.
Verified test center logistics
Confirm the exact street address, building/floor, parking or transit options, and security screening procedure a few days ahead. Test centers are sometimes inside larger office complexes and are easy to miss.
Plan to arrive early
Build in a buffer well beyond your scheduled report time for traffic, parking, and check-in. Confirm with the provider the latest time you may arrive and still be admitted; late arrival can mean forfeiting the appointment.
Travel and lodging confirmed
If traveling, confirm hotel, transportation, and a backup plan for delays. Staying near the center reduces morning-of risk; avoid same-day long-distance travel if possible.
Review of the board's published content outline
Use the current exam blueprint from the board's website to confirm the domains and rough weightings you should expect. Do not rely on third-party outlines that may be out of date.
Timed practice with single-best-answer format
Do at least one or two full-length timed practice sets in the weeks before so you know your pace per question and can practice moving on from hard items.
Leave prohibited items behind or plan for storage
Phones, smartwatches, fitness trackers, notes, and study materials are not permitted in the testing room. Confirm with the provider whether lockers are available and what may be kept in them.
Layers and comfort items
Testing rooms are often cold or unevenly heated. Wear layers you can remove; check whether a light sweater or jacket is permitted in the testing room.
Food, water, and medication plan
Eat a normal meal beforehand and bring water and a snack if permitted for breaks. Confirm with the provider whether food, drink, and personal medication can be accessed during breaks.
Sleep and pre-exam taper
Protect sleep for the two nights before the exam. Stop heavy new-content cramming 24 to 48 hours out; review summaries and weak areas only.
Contact info and results plan
Confirm the email address and portal login on file with the board, since results and future deadlines will be sent there. Update anything stale before exam day.
Plan the day
Stop learning new material. Re-read your own condensed notes and high-yield summaries, do one short mixed question set per day, and confirm every logistics detail: test center address, report time, ID, travel, lodging, and payment/registration status in the board portal.
Confirm with the board and testing provider anything you are unsure about: accepted ID forms, arrival cutoff, break policy, permitted personal items, and how and when results are released. Get answers in writing if possible.
Protect your schedule. Avoid late nights, new medications, or major changes to diet and caffeine intake. Do not schedule clinical duties that could run long the day before.
Lay out ID, confirmation, layers, and snacks by the door. Re-check the test center location and route, and confirm any parking reservation. Set two alarms.
Do a light review only, ideally in the morning or early afternoon. Spend the evening on something relaxing and go to bed at your usual time rather than unusually early.
Eat a normal breakfast, hydrate, take routine medications, and leave with a generous buffer. Bring only what is permitted; leave study materials and devices in the car or hotel.
Present your ID and confirmation, complete any security screening, and store prohibited items as directed. Ask the proctor how breaks work and whether the clock runs during breaks before you begin.
Read the stem, predict the answer, then read the options; commit and move on. Flag uncertain items only if the interface allows review, and do not let one hard question consume several minutes.
Use scheduled breaks to stand, stretch, hydrate, and eat a small snack. Keep an eye on remaining time relative to remaining questions, and reserve the last stretch to answer every item, since blank answers cannot score.
Write down nothing about specific exam content. Note the date results are expected, confirm how you will be notified, and plan your next steps (Part II preparation, licensure, or a retake timeline) based on the outcome.
Rules to check
Bring only permitted items into the testing room. Phones, smartwatches, fitness trackers, notes, and study materials are typically prohibited, and an unauthorized device can result in dismissal or score invalidation even if it is never used. Confirm the current permitted-items policy with the provider.
Your name on the registration must match your photo ID. If your legal name has changed, resolve it with the board before exam day rather than at the test center, since a mismatch can prevent you from being admitted.
Be admitted on time. Test centers set a cutoff after which a candidate is not seated; confirm that cutoff in advance and treat it as a hard deadline, not a suggestion.
Treat exam content as confidential. You will likely be asked to accept a confidentiality or non-disclosure agreement covering question content; discussing, reconstructing, or sharing recalled items violates testing rules and can invalidate your score.
Breaks are usually structured and may or may not stop the clock. Ask the proctor before you begin, and assume the timer runs during any unscheduled break until you confirm otherwise.
The Part I exam is scored against a criterion-referenced passing standard set by the board, and results are reported as pass or fail rather than as a raw percentage. Confirm current scoring, reporting, and retake/attempt-limit policies directly with ABPMR.
Answer every question; the exam uses a single-best-answer format and there is no credit for items left blank. Guessing-penalty policies, if any, are set by the board, so confirm rather than assume.
If something goes wrong, such as a technical failure or a personal emergency, notify the proctor immediately and document it. Reporting an irregularity at the time of the event is far more likely to be remedied than raising it weeks later, and the appeals process is governed by board policy.