The Certified Archivist Examination is administered by the Academy of Certified Archivists. It covers eight distinct domains of professional archival practice, featuring exactly 100 questions that candidates must complete within a duration of 180 minutes. The assessment validates your knowledge across selection, appraisal, arrangement, description, reference services, preservation, outreach, managing programs, professional responsibilities, and cultural competency.
Professional archivists and individuals seeking certification who perform archival duties within an institutional mission and wish to validate their knowledge across the profession's core domains.
Study for your learning style by creating flashcards, making detailed notes, and focusing on any domains where you feel less confident about the core concepts. Form study groups or connect with other candidates using available channels to review terms, policies, and practices before your test date.
This domain focuses heavily on identifying sources of archival materials, establishing communications with donors, evaluating record characteristics, appraising collections for enduring value, and implementing effective disposition recommendations across various institutional settings.
Candidates explore analyzing existing arrangement and description structures, designing thorough arrangement plans, and successfully implementing descriptive plans designed to clearly explain administrative structure, historical context, and content to promote accessibility for all users.
This section addresses defining user information needs, developing clear policies and procedures for reference services, responding appropriately to diverse user requests, and assessing the overall quality of reference and access services provided.
This area involves analyzing the current physical condition of archival materials, adopting proactive preservation strategies, applying best practices for long-term storage, ensuring physical security, and preparing emergency disaster response procedures.
Practitioners learn about promoting the use of archival materials through targeted outreach, developing strong relationships with key constituents, participating in educational programming, and actively marketing unique institutional collections to the public.
This domain centers on developing a strategic vision for archival programs, carefully assessing staffing and financial performance, identifying essential facility needs, and creating sustainable organizational policies alongside practical operational procedures.
Candidates examine maintaining ongoing professional awareness through reading and continuing education, actively contributing to the development of the archival profession, and conforming strictly to established professional and ethical standards.
This section focuses on culturally competent identification and acquisition of records, understanding the diverse cultures holding records, and applying culturally appropriate communication strategies and community protocols throughout the archival workflow.
Arrive completely prepared for your testing session, carefully review all instructions provided by the proctors, and manage your time effectively across all 100 questions during the 180 minutes test.
The examination consists of a total of 100 questions covering all designated domains of professional archival practice, giving candidates an evaluation across the entire field.
You should check directly with the Academy of Certified Archivists for specific passing score details and official policies regarding examination scoring and candidate results reporting.
The official examination has a duration of 180 minutes, providing candidates with ample time to read, evaluate, and complete all items presented on the test.
The professional certification examination is fully administered and certified by the Academy of Certified Archivists for qualified professional archivists seeking validation of their skills across the eight domains.
Verified 2026-09-13
This informational overview was carefully synthesized from official exam guides and reference documentation provided directly by the Academy of Certified Archivists.