HAC Study Guide 2026
Everything you need to pass the HAC exam in one place: the exam format, every topic to study, real practice questions with explanations, flashcards, and full-length practice tests. Free, no sign-up needed.
HAC exam key facts
- The hearing aid specialist licensing exam (IHS ILE) has 105 multiple-choice questions, 80 of which are scored and 25 of which are unscored pilot questions. Source
- Candidates get 120 minutes to complete the IHS International Licensing Examination for Hearing Healthcare Professionals (ILE). Source
- The IHS hearing aid specialist licensing exam (ILE) reports only Pass or Fail on an overall raw score; IHS recommends a passing score, but each state or provincial licensing agency makes the final decision. Source
- The International Licensing Examination for Hearing Healthcare Professionals (ILE), the written hearing aid specialist licensing exam, costs $260 USD, payable to the International Hearing Society by credit or debit card when scheduling. Source
- Retake rules for the IHS International Licensing Examination (ILE) vary by state or province, and the post-exam Test Completion email explains next steps if a retake is needed. Source
- A passing IHS ILE result can be sent to another state or province's licensing agency with a Score Transfer Letter, which costs $50 (free for IHS members), if that agency accepts it instead of a retake. Source
📋 HAC Exam Format at a Glance
📚 HAC Topics to Study (69)
✍️ Sample HAC Questions & Answers
1. Which masking approach is used to prevent the test ear signal from crossing to the non-test ear during bone-conduction audiometry?
Narrow-band noise is presented to the non-test ear contralaterally to prevent cross-hearing during bone-conduction testing.
2. A patient's tinnitus changes in intensity when they clench their jaw or move their neck. This is most consistent with which tinnitus subtype?
Somatic tinnitus can be modulated by somatosensory inputs such as jaw clenching or head/neck movement, suggesting musculoskeletal involvement.
3. Under HIPAA, a hearing care professional may share a patient's audiogram with a referring physician without a separate authorization if:
HIPAA's treatment exception permits sharing protected health information among providers for the purpose of coordinating patient care without additional authorization.
4. What is the primary purpose of Pediatric Hearing Aid Fitting in Hearing Aid Certification?
Pediatric Hearing Aid Fitting focuses on improving hearing outcomes and enhancing patient quality of life.
5. How does ongoing follow-up support Tinnitus Management & Treatment in Hearing Aid Certification?
Regular follow-up ensures devices continue to perform well and patients remain satisfied with their hearing solutions.
6. A patient with a precipitous high-frequency hearing loss complains that amplified speech sounds 'tinny.' What adjustment should you consider first?
Reducing high-frequency gain lowers the perceived brightness/tinny quality that results from over-amplification of high frequencies relative to lows.
🎯 Free HAC Practice Tests
📖 HAC Guides & Articles
What Practice Test Geeks adds beyond an AI chat for HAC
An AI chatbot can quiz you, but it can't reproduce the exam conditions or keep your record. Here you get:
- A timed, full-length HAC mock exam — 130 questions in 105 minutes with a 70% pass mark, modeled on the official exam's question count and time limit, followed by a score report broken down by exam domain.
- A fixed HAC question bank: the same test every attempt, so your score is comparable from one try to the next instead of changing with every regenerated quiz.
- Progress saved on your device: completed tests, scores and missed questions stay in My Progress, so you can retake only what you got wrong.
- A printable HAC cheat sheet you can print or save as a PDF.
- HAC flashcards built from the same question bank.
- Free HAC practice tests with the correct answer shown after each question.
How this page was made: written with AI tools. Exam facts are checked against the official sources listed below. Not reviewed by a subject-matter expert. Editorial policy
Sources & references
Exam facts on this page (fees, format, dates, passing scores) are checked against these official sources; the date is our last check. Editorial policy
- ihsinfo.org — Test delivery, eligibility, fees, retake policy, exam format, passing score, score validity, time limit · verified Oct 2026