ExAC Exam Structure and Timing: The Four Sections, the Clock, and the 2026 Dates

Take a breath: the ExAC is long, but the shape of it is simple. The exam is delivered in four three-hour sessions over two consecutive days in November, and the 2026 sitting falls on November 2 and 3. Every section is closed book except Section 2. In our years of working with Intern Architects, the candidates who run out of time are almost never the ones who studied least. They are the ones who walked in without a pacing plan. Examitect, an independent ExAC prep platform unaffiliated with the CACB, put this guide together so you can build that plan before exam week.

Key takeaways

The structure and the clock in eight lines.

  • Four sections, four three-hour sessions, two consecutive days. That is twelve hours of testing, split two sessions per day. The 2026 sitting is November 2 and 3.
  • Every section gets the same three hours, but not the same workload. Section 4 packs roughly 130 multiple-choice questions into the same window Section 2 gives to roughly 75.
  • Only Sections 1 and 3 have written answers. Approximately 8 short-answer questions in Section 1 and 6 in Section 3, marked by hand by trained architect markers.
  • Only Section 2 is open book. Paper copies of NBC 2020 without provincial adaptations and NECB 2020. Tab them in advance, because you cannot annotate in the room.
  • There is no national start time. Start times are staggered across the Canadian time zones. Your Letter of Authorization is the only schedule that applies to you.
  • Arrive 30 minutes early; late entry closes 30 minutes in. Arriving late buys you no extra time, and you cannot leave the room in the final 30 minutes.
  • A blank multiple-choice bubble is scored as incorrect. Guessing is free, so nothing should be left unfilled when time is called.
  • Three consecutive attempts, and passed sections carry forward. Results arrive around mid-February as pass or fail per section, with no raw scores. See whether to sit all four at once.

ExAC structure and timing overview

The ExAC at a glance

2026 sittingNovember 2 and 3, 2026
SectionsFour, each written once
Session lengthThree hours per section, twelve hours total
DaysTwo consecutive days, two sessions per day
FormatPencil and paper, proctored, English or French
QuestionsRoughly 411 items, of which about 14 are written
Open bookSection 2 only, NBC 2020 and NECB 2020
Start timeStaggered by time zone, set in your Letter of Authorization
ResultsAround mid-February, pass or fail per section
AttemptsThree consecutive attempts

What is the ExAC exam structure?

The Examination for Architects in Canada is one exam split into four sections, written across two consecutive days in November. Every licensing authority in Canada has adopted it, and it runs once a year, simultaneously across the country, in English and in French. As of 2025 it is still a pencil-and-paper exam sat at proctored test sites, not a computer-based test.

Underneath the four sections sits a content map. The ExAC Framework Document describes 13 general themes, developed into 38 general objectives and 150 specific objectives, with each theme assigned to exactly one of the four sections. That map is the exam blueprint, and it is stable from year to year, which is why a section that felt heavy on cost management for one cohort will feel similar for the next.

Two details about the structure surprise candidates every cycle. The first is that between 10 and 20 percent of any given exam is repeated from the previous year, which is how the committee keeps difficulty comparable between sittings. The second is that the English and French versions are mirror versions: the same items, the same tasks, the same number of questions.

The practical consequence for your study plan is that the structure is knowable in advance. You are not preparing for a mystery. You are preparing for four fixed windows with a known blueprint, a known reference list, and a known set of question types.

The four sections and what each one covers

The 2026 ExAC Preparation Guide sets out the four sections and the themes inside each. Note that the sections are not ordered by difficulty or by project phase in any tidy way. Section 2 is the code section and sits in the middle; Section 3 pairs the Final Project with Sustainable Design Literacy, the newest theme on the exam.

SectionThemes coveredFormat
Section 1 Programming; Site and Environmental Analysis; Coordinating Engineering Systems; Cost Management; Schematic Design; Design Development Multiple choice plus short answers, closed book
Section 2 National Building Code of Canada 2020; National Energy Code of Canada for Buildings 2020 Multiple choice only, code books permitted
Section 3 Final Project; Sustainable Design Literacy Multiple choice plus short answers, closed book
Section 4 Bidding and Contract Negotiations; Construction Phase Office Functions; Construction Phase Field Functions; Management of the Project and Business Practice Management Multiple choice only, closed book

Sustainable Design Literacy is worth calling out separately. It is Theme 13, added after the objectives were revised to track changes in practice and in the Internship in Architecture Program, and its arrival prompted a formal standard-setting activity in 2024. If you are studying from a colleague notes from several cycles back, that theme is the most likely gap in them.

Question types are consistent across sections: multiple choice makes up the majority, alongside pairing and matching of components, ordering of elements, completion or fill-in-the-blank items, and short written answers. For a closer look at how those formats behave section by section, see our breakdown of ExAC question types and format.

How many questions are on each section?

The Framework Document publishes approximate counts per section. The word approximate is the committee word, not a hedge on our part: exam assembly changes slightly each year as field-test items are folded in and weak items are dropped.

SectionMultiple choiceShort answerItems in the session
Section 1approx. 96approx. 8approx. 104
Section 2approx. 75noneapprox. 75
Section 3approx. 96approx. 6approx. 102
Section 4approx. 130noneapprox. 130
Whole examapprox. 397approx. 14approx. 411

Read that table alongside the fact that every session is the same three hours and the pacing problem announces itself. Section 4 asks for roughly 130 answers in the same window that Section 2 asks for roughly 75. Section 1 asks for 96 multiple-choice answers plus eight written responses in that same window.

Only Sections 1 and 3 carry written answers, and they are marked very differently from the rest of the exam. Every multiple-choice sheet is read by an optical mark reader. Every written response is scored by hand by at least two trained architect markers working from the same rubric, with a third marker brought in and the scores averaged whenever the first two disagree.

How long is each ExAC section?

Every ExAC section is three hours. That is the single most useful number to memorize, because it does not vary by section, by province, or by language. Four sections at three hours each is twelve hours of testing spread over two consecutive days, two sessions per day.

The raw arithmetic of three hours divided by the question count gives you the ceiling on your pace, before any allowance for reading, transferring answers, or checking work.

SectionSession lengthItemsRaw time per item
Section 1180 minutesapprox. 1041 min 44 sec
Section 2180 minutesapprox. 752 min 24 sec
Section 3180 minutesapprox. 1021 min 46 sec
Section 4180 minutesapprox. 1301 min 23 sec

Those raw figures are misleading in two opposite directions, and knowing which way each one bends is most of the pacing skill. Section 2 looks generous at nearly two and a half minutes per question, but every question may send you into a code lookup, and a single bad lookup can eat six minutes. Section 1 and Section 3 look manageable until you notice that a written answer is not a one minute forty-four task; it is closer to eight minutes, which quietly compresses everything else.

Section 4 is the honest one. It has no written answers and no code books, so the raw number is close to the real number: about 83 seconds a question, sustained for three hours, with no natural place to recover lost time. That is why we see candidates lose marks in Section 4 for reasons that have nothing to do with knowledge, which we cover in where Section 4 candidates lose the most marks.

A pacing budget for each section

Here is the budget our team gives Intern Architects. It reserves the written-answer time first, leaves a buffer at the end of every section, and turns the leftover into a per-question target you can actually hold in your head.

Examitect guidance, not official

The section lengths and question counts below come from the ExAC Preparation Guide and Framework Document. The split of minutes inside each session is our recommendation, not a rule published by the Committee for the ExAC. Adjust it to your own speed during practice, not on exam day.

SectionReserve for written answersBuffer at the endTarget per multiple-choice item
Section 160 min for approx. 8 answers10 minapprox. 69 sec
Section 2none15 minapprox. 2 min 12 sec
Section 350 min for approx. 6 answers10 minapprox. 75 sec
Section 4none15 minapprox. 76 sec

Four rules that protect the budget

Give priority to the questions worth more points. The Preparation Guide states that higher-value questions are clearly identified in the booklet, and it tells candidates directly to prioritize them. Working straight through in printed order is the default that costs the most marks.

Never leave a bubble blank. A blank space is scored as an incorrect answer, so a guess is strictly free. Whatever else happens in the final minutes, every multiple-choice bubble should be filled.

Move on at double your target. If a question has taken more than twice your per-question target, mark it and go. The cost of grinding is not the one question; it is the four or five at the back of the booklet you never reach. Our post on Section 2 pacing works through why not finishing is survivable and why grinding is not.

Show your calculations, but inside the lines. On written answers, points are awarded for each step leading to the answer, so show even the simple additions. Anything written beyond the printed lines, in the margins, or on scratch paper will not be read or marked. If a question asks for two points, only the first two you give are marked, so pick your best two rather than listing five and hoping.

One more decision affects pacing more than any technique: whether to sit all four sections at one sitting or split them. We work through the trade-off in all four ExAC sections in one sitting.

The exam-day clock, from arrival to the final bell

There is no national start time to look up, and this trips people up every year. Simultaneous writing across the country is achieved by staggered start times across the Canadian time zones, so that no candidate finishes a section before every other candidate is seated and isolated from communication. Your Letter of Authorization carries the reporting time and start time for your test site. That document, not a forum post, is your schedule.

  • Start minus 30 minutes You must arrive. This window exists for administrative procedures, and it is not optional padding.
  • Start minus 10 minutes Instructions are read to candidates. No entry to or exit from the room is permitted during this period.
  • Start Wait for the signal before making any mark on the answer sheet or writing in the short-answer booklet.
  • Start plus 30 minutes The door closes for good. Late entry is permitted only within the first 30 minutes, and no additional time is granted to anyone admitted late.
  • Final 30 minutes You may not leave the examination room. Use the time: transfer answers, fill every blank bubble, check that nothing runs past the printed lines.
  • Time called Stop writing on the instruction. Wait for all materials to be collected before leaving. Nothing leaves the room, including scratch paper.

Two more rules worth internalizing. Bathroom breaks require a raised hand and a supervisor authorization, and the clock keeps running. And the exam is held regardless of weather conditions, so a November storm is a travel problem to solve the night before, not a reason the sitting moves.

Because phones must be off and stowed, bring a watch or a silent travel clock. You are budgeting three hours down to the minute, and you cannot do that off a wall clock you may not be able to see from your seat.

What you can bring into the room

Only Section 2 is open book, and only for two documents. Everything else on the exam is closed book, and the permitted-items list is short in every section.

Permitted, all sectionsBasic non-programmable, non-communicating and non-printing calculator; HB pencils; eraser; small sharpener; small ruler (transparent pencil case if used); watch or silent travel clock; water, coffee or tea in a sealable container; tissues in transparent packaging; non-electronic foam or rubber earplugs
Permitted, Section 2 onlyPaper copies of the National Building Code of Canada 2020 without the provincial adaptations, and the National Energy Code of Canada for Buildings 2020
ProhibitedDictionaries of any kind, including bilingual; books, notes or reference documents; your own scratch paper (it is provided on site); headphones or earbuds, wired or wireless; food or candy unless approved as an accommodation
Personal itemsPhones, smart watches, tablets and laptops may come into the room but must be switched off and stowed under the desk. They may not be used during the exam or during a break.

The code-book rules are more specific than most candidates expect, and they are worth reading twice. Your copies may carry handwritten annotations, highlighting, circling, underlining and tabs. What you may not do is add pages, including an index, a table, or a reference sheet; added pages may be confiscated. And once you are in the examination room, you may not make any annotation or mark of any kind in your copies.

That last rule is the argument for tabbing early. The whole value of a tabbed code has to be built before you walk in, because nothing about it can be improved once you are seated. Our step-by-step method is in how to tab the NBC 2020 for the ExAC, and the same logic applies to the NECB 2020.

If you print the codes from PDF, you are responsible for holding the appropriate licence under the Copyright Act of Canada. If you write with a provincial code instead of the national one, you do so at your own risk: the exam is set against the national documents, without the provincial adaptations.

ExAC 2026 dates and deadlines

The ExAC runs once a year, in November. Here is the 2026 cycle end to end.

Registration opensJune 1, 2026
Experience submission deadlineJune 30, 2026
Registration closesJuly 10, 2026, at noon local time
Exam, day oneMonday, November 2, 2026
Exam, day twoTuesday, November 3, 2026
ResultsNormally around mid-February, so mid-February 2027

Registration for the 2026 sitting has already closed. If you are reading this before November, you are in the run-up, and the useful move now is pacing practice rather than new reading. If you are planning for 2027, the pattern to plan against is a June registration window with an experience deadline before it closes, and a November exam.

Eligibility is worth restating because it is the part that takes longest to satisfy. Candidates must hold Intern or Candidate status with a Canadian regulator, hold full CACB certification (provisional is not enough), and have a minimum of 2,800 approved experience hours, or 2,800 hours submitted for approval before the experience submission deadline. Confirm the current requirements with your licensing authority and the official ExAC registration page, since administration is provincial. Our IAP to ExAC timeline maps how those hours line up against the registration window.

Do not plan around the exam date alone. The deadline that ends most 2026 attempts was June 30, four months before anyone sat down to write.

Results, scoring, and the three-attempt rule

Results are normally sent to candidates around mid-February in the form of a transcript. Each section is reported as pass or fail. The report does not include raw scores, and where a candidate has not passed the whole exam it gives constructive information on the failed sections.

The passing standard is not a fixed percentage. The cut score is the minimum score a candidate with a minimum level of competence would achieve, set each year by expert markers who estimate the likelihood of success on each item and average their estimates. Repeated items are tracked between years so the standard stays equivalent. The passing scores are not made public, which is why chasing a target percentage in practice is not a useful goal.

The retake rules are more generous than most candidates assume, and they change how you should think about sitting all four sections at once:

  1. You get three consecutive attempts to pass all four sections.
  2. If you fail one or more sections, you register for the next sitting and rewrite only the failed sections. Passed sections stay passed.
  3. Fail again and you are granted one final attempt at the next scheduled sitting, again only on what remains.
  4. If anything is still outstanding after the third attempt, you rewrite all four sections at a future sitting as a first-time candidate.

If you are unsuccessful, you can request a formal review of your results for a fee. Trained architect markers re-read the written booklets under supervision, and a consultant hand-checks the multiple-choice sheets against the answer key. If any section is overturned, the review fee is refunded in full.

Accommodations are handled separately and must be requested in advance. They can include additional time, large print papers, a private room, a transcriber, unobstructed site access, and access to snacks for medical reasons. An accommodation changes how the exam is administered, never what it contains.

The structure rewards preparation you can actually do. The sections are published, the counts are published, the clock is fixed, and the rules are written down in the 2026 ExAC Preparation Guide. Study smart against that shape, practise under the real clock, and trust that the score follows.

FAQ

ExAC exam structure and timing FAQ

Every ExAC section is three hours long. The exam is delivered in four three-hour sessions over two consecutive days, which is twelve hours of testing in total. The session length does not change from section to section even though the number of questions does, so Section 4 gives you the same three hours for roughly 130 questions that Section 2 gives you for roughly 75.

The ExAC has four sections. Section 1 covers Programming, Site and Environmental Analysis, Coordinating Engineering Systems, Cost Management, Schematic Design and Design Development. Section 2 covers the National Building Code of Canada 2020 and the National Energy Code of Canada for Buildings 2020. Section 3 covers Final Project and Sustainable Design Literacy. Section 4 covers Bidding and Contract Negotiations, Construction Phase Office Functions, Construction Phase Field Functions, and Management of the Project and Business Practice Management.

The 2026 ExAC sitting is on November 2 and 3, 2026. The exam runs on two consecutive days, with two three-hour sessions each day. Registration for the 2026 sitting was open from June 1 to July 10, 2026 at noon local time, and the experience submission deadline was June 30, 2026.

The ExAC has roughly 411 questions in total across the four sections. Section 1 has approximately 96 multiple-choice and 8 short-answer questions. Section 2 has approximately 75 multiple-choice questions. Section 3 has approximately 96 multiple-choice and 6 short-answer questions. Section 4 has approximately 130 multiple-choice questions. The ExAC Framework Document calls these counts approximate because the exact assembly changes from year to year.

Only Sections 1 and 3 contain short-answer questions. Section 1 has approximately 8 and Section 3 has approximately 6. Those written responses are marked by hand by trained architect markers, while every multiple-choice answer sheet in all four sections is read by an optical mark reader.

Only Section 2 is open book, and only for two documents. Candidates may bring paper copies of the National Building Code of Canada 2020, without the provincial adaptations, and the National Energy Code of Canada for Buildings 2020. Sections 1, 3 and 4 are closed book. No other books, notes or reference documents are permitted in any section.

There is no single national start time. Simultaneous writing across the country is achieved by staggered start times across the Canadian time zones, so that no candidate finishes a section before every other candidate is seated and isolated from communication. Your Letter of Authorization carries the reporting time and start time for your own test site, and that document is the only schedule you should plan around.

You must arrive 30 minutes before the start of the exam to allow for administrative procedures. Roughly 10 minutes before the start, instructions are read to candidates and no entry or exit from the room is permitted during that window. Plan your travel so that a delay does not eat into the check-in period.

Late entry is permitted only within the first 30 minutes after the exam begins. After that you will not be admitted. If you are admitted late, no additional time is granted to complete the section, so a 20 minute delay costs you 20 minutes of writing time.

You may leave only to use the bathroom, or for a health reason approved in advance through an accommodation request, and you must raise your hand and be authorized by a supervisor. You may not leave the examination room during the final 30 minutes of the exam. Electronic devices may not be used during the exam or during a bathroom break.

ExAC results are normally sent to candidates around mid-February in the form of a transcript, which places the 2026 results in mid-February 2027. Each section is reported as pass or fail. The report does not include raw scores, and where a candidate has not passed the whole exam it provides constructive information on the failed sections.

A candidate is given three consecutive attempts to pass all four sections. Sections you have already passed do not have to be rewritten, so a second or third attempt covers only the failed sections. If you have not passed everything by the third attempt, you must rewrite all four sections at a future sitting as if you were a first-time candidate.

Additional time is available only as an approved accommodation. The Committee for the ExAC can grant accommodations including additional time, large print exam papers, a private room, a transcriber, unobstructed access to the testing site, and access to snacks for medical reasons. Accommodations change how the exam is administered, not what it contains, and they must be requested in advance through the process on the exac.ca site.

For all sections you may bring a basic non-programmable, non-communicating and non-printing calculator, HB pencils, an eraser, a small sharpener, a small ruler, a watch or silent travel clock, water, coffee or tea in a sealable container, tissues in transparent packaging, and non-electronic earplugs. Pencil cases must be transparent. Scratch paper is provided on site. Dictionaries, books, notes, headphones, earbuds, food and candy are prohibited.