United States
Hong KongThere is no percentage pass mark
PTCB reports a scaled score with a pass at 1,400 on a 1,000 to 1,600 scale. It does not publish the number of correct answers that produces 1,400, because scaling adjusts for the difficulty of the form each candidate sat.
Search this question and you will be told 75 percent, with confidence, by several sites. None of them can source it, because PTCB has never published it.
What PTCB actually publishes
A passing scaled score of 1,400, on a range of 1,000 to 1,600. That is the standard, and it is the only figure PTCB states.
Why there is no percentage to publish
Scaling exists because not every form of an examination is equally hard. Two candidates sitting different forms should face the same standard, not the same raw count.
So the raw number of correct answers that reaches 1,400 differs between forms. A slightly harder form needs fewer; a slightly easier one needs more. There is no single percentage to state, and stating one would be a false precision about your particular paper. It cannot be sourced.
It is the mechanism doing its job. A published percentage would either be wrong for most forms, or would force PTCB to build every form to identical difficulty, which is not achievable. The scaled score is what allows a fair comparison across candidates who sat different papers.
Where the 75 percent comes from
Repetition. One site estimated it, others copied it, and it now appears often enough to look established.
It may be roughly in the right region. It is still not a published fact, and a source that presents it as one is telling you something about its standards rather than about the exam. That is the mechanism working.
What to target instead
A readiness target of your own, against your own papers, set high enough to absorb the uncertainty. We use 80 percent of mock items correct, and we label it as ours because that is what it is. Build headroom instead.
The logic is simple: you cannot know how your live form will scale, so you build headroom rather than aiming at a threshold nobody can locate.
The practical consequence
- Do not aim at a percentage anyone quotes you as the pass mark
- Do treat a mock score as a direction of travel rather than a prediction
- Do build margin, because the form you sit is not the form you practiced on
- Do discount any source that states a percentage cut as fact
Common questions
What percentage do you need to pass the PTCB exam?
There is no published percentage. The pass is a scaled score of 1,400 on a 1,000 to 1,600 scale.
Why is there no percentage?
Scaling adjusts for form difficulty, so the raw count needed for 1,400 differs between forms.
Where does the 75 percent figure come from?
Repetition between sites. It is an estimate presented as fact.
What should I aim for instead?
A readiness target of your own with headroom. We use 80 percent on our own mocks and label it as ours.
Is a mock score a prediction?
No. Treat it as a direction of travel, since your live form will scale differently.