MCHES Exam

Final registration for the April 2023 MCHES® exam closed on February 28, 2023. October 2023 registration will open May 1, 2023.

The Master Certified Health Education Specialist (MCHES®) examination is a Competency-based tool used to assess the extent to which a candidate can possess, apply, and interpret knowledge relative to the Eight Areas of Responsibility of Health Education Specialists as delineated by the most current US-based job analysis study. The MCHES® exam reflects both the entry and advanced-level Competencies and Sub-competencies of the Eight Areas of Responsibility.

A MCHES® is an advanced-level practitioner that has:

1. met required academic qualifications or worked in the field for a minimum of five years
2. successfully passed a competency-based examination administered by the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing, Inc.
3. satisfies the continuing education requirement to maintain the national credential

Learn More About Eligibility

Testing Options

The MCHES® examination is a criterion-referenced test that contains 165 multiple-choice items; 150 of the items are used for the total score and there are 15 pilot items on each exam. The MCHES® examination is only in computer-based format at more than 400 PSI test centers worldwide. Candidates are allotted 3 hours to complete the exam questions. Total seat time at PSI Test Centers, including tutorials and surveys, is 3.5 hours. Please refer to the MCHES Exam Application Handbook for additional information.

Update to examination break policy effective December 23, 2022.

NCHEC announced an update to the Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES®) and Master Certification Health Education Specialist (MCHES®) examinations effective April 2023.

To ensure fairness and security across both live remote-proctored and PSI test center examinations, the CHES® and MCHES® exams will be administered using a set of standardized security protocols in alignment with standards recommended by our accreditation body, NCCA. This security policy will affect the examination format and the break policy. Candidates will have a total of three (3) hours to complete 165 questions in the CHES®/MCHES® examination, which will include an optional 10 min break midway through the examination. Both the CHES® and MCHES® examinations will now be offered in two blocks; block 1, which contains questions 1 to 83, and block 2 which contains questions 84 to 165.

Before candidates complete the first block (questions 1 to 83), a candidate can go back and check/change any answer in that block. After question 83, a candidate will begin the second block of questions. Once the second block has begun, a candidate can only access/change answers in the second block (questions 84 to 165).

Candidates will be given an opportunity to take an optional 10-minute break midway through the examination and if a break is taken, will require additional security screening before proceeding to complete the second block of the exam. The 10-minute break time is deducted from the total test time. Following the break, CHES® and MCHES® candidates will gain access to the second block of the exam, but will not be able to access the first block of exam questions. For more information on the examination format, Areas of Responsibility, or updated break policy, please refer to the MCHES® exam handbook here.

Live Remote Proctoring        Computer-Based Testing

The MCHES® exam has met national standards in credentialing and has been accredited by the National Commission of Certifying Agencies (NCCA) since 2008.  NCHEC also is internationally accredited as a Personnel Certification Body by the International Accreditation Service (IAS) to the ISO/IEC 17024 Conformity Assessment. 

MCHES® Exam Blueprint

Below is the MCHES® examination blueprint based on the Health Education Specialist Practice Analysis (HESPA) 2020 and the percentages of questions by the Eight Areas of Responsibility.