Study Plan for the Trainers' Professional License Test: What to Study 30 Days, Two Weeks and One Day Out

Last verified: 20 October 2026. Test details can change, so check the Trainers' Professional Licenses page on the Education and Training Evaluation Commission (ETEC) website and the Applicant Guide for the Trainers' Professional License Test (2026) before you start. This is an independent guide; it is not affiliated with ETEC or any government body.

The Trainers' Professional License Test (often just called "the trainers' test") does not ask about the field you train in. It tests ETEC's Professional Standards for Trainers. That is why classroom experience alone is not enough: every question is linked to an indicator in the standards and uses their terminology, and the right answer is what the document says, not what you are used to doing. This plan is built on the weights of the ten standards published in the applicant guide and on the traps we noted while writing the explanation for each standard. The standards themselves and their full weights are covered in the test content guide.

Numbers to build your plan on

Order the standards by how many questions they carry

The questions are split across the standards as below. This is the order the plan follows:

The first four standards (2, 10, 1 and 3) account for 41 of the 75 questions, more than half the test. If you master them, you are already close to the pass mark before you start on the rest.

What this site gives you for the plan

• The free practice test: 10 free questions covering the main standards, no sign-up needed, with the correct answer, an explanation for every option and your score at the end. Start here to see where you stand.
• The practice area: practise one standard at a time, go back to the questions you got wrong in your mistakes list, and sit a timed mock exam of 75 questions in 80 minutes that counts 55% as a pass.
• 10 questions are free. The full question bank and the timed mock exams need a pass for this test (7 days or lifetime).

More than 30 days out: the big standards

1. Measure your starting point. Take the free practice test before you study, and read the ten worked sample questions in the applicant guide to learn the question style. Keep the fifteen practice questions at the end of the guide for your final week.
2. Start with Standard 2 (15 questions): synchronous versus asynchronous training (it is about time, not place), blended and flipped training, when each strategy fits (interactive lecture, brainstorming, role-play, case study, simulation), and assessment types: diagnostic before training, formative during it to improve learning, and summative after it to judge.
3. Then Standard 10 (10 questions): critical thinking (analysing what exists and judging it on evidence) versus creative thinking (generating alternatives), problem solving from the root cause, and safe, responsible use of digital tools and learning management systems.
4. Then Standards 1 and 3 (8 questions each): learning theories (behaviourism, cognitivism, constructivism, social learning) and adult learning principles, then training needs analysis at its three levels, writing learning outcomes with observable verbs, and revised Bloom's taxonomy.
5. Read the standard in the official document after each unit: questions are built on the indicators in the Professional Standards for Trainers, and any indicator can become a question.

If you are aiming for the 3 December 2026 sitting, registration opens on 29 October 2026; the steps and fees are in the registration guide.

30 to 14 days out: the remaining standards and your mistakes list

• Standard 4 (6 questions): handling the silent trainee, the dominant talker and the argumentative trainee without embarrassment or confrontation, choosing a seating layout to suit the method, and transfer of training.
• Standard 5 (6): Kirkpatrick's model has four levels only (reaction, learning, behaviour, results); return on investment is a fifth level added by Phillips; and trainees liking a course does not mean they learned.
• Standard 6 (6): the license system itself is part of this standard, so read the Trainers' Professional License Regulations: conditions (Article 3), validity (6), renewal in the final year (7), license holders' obligations (9) and penalties (12): suspension of up to 6 months, while cancellation comes with a ban on the test of up to two years; and grievances within 60 days of the decision being placed in your e-file (13).
• Standard 8 (6): professional development starts with self-reflection and feedback, not random courses; action research is carried out by the trainer to solve a problem in their own practice; and reflection-in-action is different from reflection-on-action.
• Standard 9 (6): empathy means understanding another person's feelings, not agreeing with them, and active listening includes paraphrasing and checking understanding before offering solutions.
• Standard 7 (4): disclosing conflicts of interest, not using protected content without permission even when it is freely available, and not announcing trainees' marks in front of their peers.

At this stage, make your mistakes list the centre of your daily study: redo every question you got wrong, and read the explanations for the wrong options, not just the right one. Most mistakes come from an option that is close to correct.

The last two weeks: timed mock exams

• Sit a full mock exam (75 questions in 80 minutes) every few days, in one sitting without breaks.
• Watch your pace: if your average goes above 64 seconds per question you will not reach the last questions. Don't get stuck on one question.
• After each mock, rank the standards by your mistakes and go back to your two weakest standards in the practice area.
• Our suggestion: don't settle for scraping past 55%; aim for a comfortable margin above the pass mark in more than one mock exam.

The final week: traps and the applicant guide's practice questions

• Do the fifteen practice questions in the applicant guide in one timed sitting, then check your answers against the guide's answer key.
• Review the recurring traps: a pre-test is diagnostic, not formative; negative reinforcement is not punishment; the top level of revised Bloom's taxonomy is "create", not "evaluate"; in SWOT, strengths and weaknesses are internal while opportunities and threats are external; in brainstorming, ideas are not judged while they are being generated; and not every performance gap is a training need.
• Go through the guide's "readiness" checklist (11 questions), which includes: do you know where and when your test is? Do you know the requirements for entering the test room? Have you practised similar questions?

The day before the test

• The applicant guide advises finishing your review of the standards one or two days before the test, so stick to a light pass through your mistakes list and don't start anything new.
• Get your ID ready: national ID or iqama, passport, or Saudi driving licence.
• Get an early night. What happens in the test room and afterwards is covered in the test day and results guide.

If you are starting late (less than two weeks)

Focus on Standards 2, 10, 1 and 3 first, then Standard 6, because the questions on the regulations are specific and can be memorised. Sit at least one timed mock exam and go through the trap list above. If you are not ready, the test is held 3 to 4 times a year.

If this is your second attempt

You can retake the test an unlimited number of times, but each attempt costs SAR 100. The applicant guide's readiness checklist asks: have you analysed your previous score and found the areas that need review? Start with the areas where you were weak, then retake a timed mock exam to confirm you have improved before you pay for another attempt.