When you first begin your research on LEED Certification, you become bombarded with a set of new terminology and acronyms that you may not have come across before. LEED Certification, LEED Accreditation, LEED CMP, LEED Green Associate, LEED AP, LEED AP BD+C, USGBC, GBCI – the list goes on a bit further, but I’ll spare you. It’s not hard to become overwhelmed almost immediately. If you’re looking to earn a LEED credential and add one of those fancy acronyms after your name on your resume or business card, what you really want to know is: which LEED designation should I pursue?

LEED Green Associate

The LEED Green Associate designation is the first step in a LEED professional’s journey. It provides a strong foundation for green building principles and teaches basic terminology to acquaint yourself with the industry.

Professionals working in non-technical roles, such as product manufacturers, marketers, salespeople, support staff, analysts, designers, and students, may be interested in learning about the LEED Rating System and demonstrating that knowledge with the LEED Green Associate credential.

That’s not to say that LEED Green Associates don’t work on LEED projects; they certainly can. LEED Green Associates are not excluded from working on LEED projects. However, these folks generally upgrade to what’s called a LEED AP with a specialty.

LEED AP with Specialty

The LEED AP with Specialty represents an individual who has passed the LEED Green Associate exam and decided to enhance his or her technical skills with a more advanced LEED designation. All LEED APs with Specialty are required to pass the LEED Green Associate exam before anything else.

From there, a professional is able to demonstrate advanced knowledge in a specialized area of green building and LEED Certification by pursuing a LEED AP Specialty. There are five specialties available:

• Building Design + Construction
• Operations + Maintenance
• Interior Design + Construction
• Neighborhood Development
• Homes

These specialties exist to help practitioners actively working on LEED projects to showcase their deep technical knowledge of LEED in both principle and practice. LEED AP with Specialty credential holders possess a deep understanding of all the details, prerequisites, credits, definitions, and rules of a particular specialty track within the LEED green building rating system. After all, all projects seeking LEED Certification must apply within one of these specialty tracks. The LEED AP professional simply aligns his or her technical skill set with such a specialty track to be able to better assist with those types of projects.

The LEED AP credential is perfect for architects, engineers, designers, and facility managers who are key decision-makers in a LEED project. These individuals often work with the sponsors of a LEED project in order to shepherd them through the certification process and get the buildings certified.

What more can a LEED AP do that a LEED Green Associate cannot?

LEED professionals at all tiers are welcome to work on LEED projects in some capacity. Due to the advanced level of knowledge that LEED AP professionals have, they are more likely to hold leadership positions on the LEED project team and provide hands-on assistance. This may include any of the following:

• Offering advice on sustainable solutions early in the process
• Navigating the LEED Online software to register a LEED project
• Selecting an appropriate rating system under which the LEED project should be certified
• Setting a goal for which level of LEED Certification to pursue – Certified, Silver, Gold, Platinum
• Determining which LEED credits to pursue
• Choosing and prioritizing sustainable features and materials for the project
• Coordinating team members and delegating responsibilities
• Completing templates and paperwork within LEED Online and submitting all documentation

Project teams welcome the contributions of a LEED AP not only for their technical knowledge and experience but also because LEED projects can earn an extra point toward LEED Certification simply by having a LEED AP working on the team. Projects applying for LEED Certification under v4 standards must have a LEED AP with a specialty aligned with the project’s desired specialty track. Projects applying for LEED Certification under 2009 standards may utilize the expertise of a LEED AP with any specialty knowledge.

It should be noted that it is NOT a requirement that team members possess a LEED credential. However, as you can imagine, the knowledge would only be advantageous. Earning a LEED Green Associate or LEED AP credential makes you a stronger contributor.

We teach LEED exam prep courses for three credentials – LEED Green Associate, LEED AP BD+C, and LEED AP O+M. If you’re looking to learn more about sustainability and green building, get started today with the LEED Green Associate Exam Prep! If you plan to take a more active role on green building projects, you may consider upgrading to a LEED AP with Specialty later. When the time comes, we’ll be happy to assist you with that goal!

What’s funny about our service – sustainability training – is that we’re selling an intangible product (education). In other retail situations, a customer goes in looking for shoes – blue or green. It’s pretty straightforward. For us, gaining a prospective customer’s loyalty begins long before the sale actually occurs. With our LEED AP training and LEED exam prep, in particular, we begin the education weeks and months in advance. Today, we’re going to talk about how to become a LEED AP.

FOR EXAMPLE

You’re probably looking at this page because you want to get LEED AP training or want to get LEED Certified, right?

When someone first hears about LEED, they generally pick up the term “LEED Certification.” Common sense tells you that certification is a personal achievement and LEED is the area of expertise. Awesome. So they go on to think “I want to get LEED Certified.” BUT the truth is, this is not the correct terminology for this credentialing path! LEED Certification actually refers to a label for green, or sustainable, buildings that live up to the LEED standards. LEED Accreditation, on the other hand, refers to a person’s knowledge and competence regarding the LEED standards – knowledge you’ll acquire during a LEED Green Associate or LEED AP training course. So, our candidate is actually looking to get LEED Accredited.

Then the next tidbit of info one might hear is LEED AP. Ah, ok, this must be the name that a LEED-accredited professional earns. Wait, there it is! LEED AP = LEED Accredited Professional. Done. Ok, got this. Our candidate decides that he/she wants to become a LEED AP. Gosh, I’m sorry to say…that this is again incorrect terminology…kind of 🙂

A Brief History 

When the LEED exams first launched, a candidate who passed the exam indeed became a LEED AP – because this was the only credential available. Then, in April 2009, the standards and credentialing process got updated. A tiered hierarchy was introduced, where LEED Green Associate became the first step, followed by LEED AP (with Specialty) and then LEED Fellow. What happened to the original title? It went away.

To be fair, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) gave “Legacy LEED APs” several opportunities to opt into the new system and become a LEED AP with Specialty. Here we are years later, if a Legacy did not opt into the new system, then he/she is simply considered an inactive LEED AP. The LEED AP credential never goes away for this group; they’ll just move forward with an outdated credential.

So…here are the key takeaways for today:

• LEED Certification = refers to green buildings
• LEED Accreditation = refers to green people 😉
• LEED AP is not the first step
• LEED AP is not the same thing as LEED Green Associate
• LEED AP is not the same thing as LEED AP Specialty (BD+C, O+M, ID+C, ND, Homes)

For more information about earning a LEED credential or to attend our LEED training online, please join one of our LEED Green Associate Exam Prep courses. We offer a live 2-day class, live webinar series, and an on-demand webinar. With our LEED training online and in-person courses, we’ll teach you everything you need to know!

Everblue specializes in providing intense short-course LEED exam prep training for architects, engineers, and others in the construction industry. Our mission is provide you with all the knowledge you’ll need to get through the LEED exam registration process and earn your LEED credential. In doing so, we offer live and online courses, complete with practice questions and simulated exams.

We also take pride in our ability to offer contextual guidance on what candidates need to do, both in and out of the classroom. With a saturated market and outdated/incorrect information on the web, folks can become overwhelmed and give up before they even begin. We don’t want misinformation to be a deciding factor for anyone considering a LEED credential, so we make an effort to present the most up-to-date, factual information we have about the LEED credentialing process and LEED exam to help candidates better understand what they’re getting themselves into.

So today we’re setting the record straight on how to register for the LEED exam. We see this question a lot in live chat, and we understand that it can seem a little daunting. Here’s the inside scoop.

Does your training include LEED exam registration?

No, the USGBC has partnered with Prometric, a third-party test-proctoring company, to administer all LEED exams. Prometric has test centers in nearly every major city in the world. You can find your closest testing center by visiting www.prometric.com/gbci and clicking the Locate a Test Center button in the center of the page. You’ll then need to follow the prompts for choosing your country and the LEED credential that you’d be pursuing. There will be one final step to indicate your zip code or city, and then the results will show your closest testing centers.

After the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Prometric also opened the option for LEED Online Exam Proctoring – in other words, the ability to test from home via live online proctoring.

How do I register for the LEED exam?

The LEED exam registration process begins with first paying for your LEED exam. This is done on the USGBC’s website here: www.usgbc.org/credentials. The process of paying for your LEED exam is ultimately what’s known as registering, or applying, for the LEED exam. A successful payment initiates your application period.

What is the application period?

Your registration, or application, is valid for one year. After this year expires, you must wait 90 days before registering for the LEED exam again. You may also request an extension of the one-year registration period for extenuating circumstances.

How do you register your LEED exam appointment?

After you’ve paid the USGBC for your exam, you will receive an email confirming your payment. This email will contain an Eligibility ID number. When it comes to actually setting an exam appointment, you will again visit www.prometric.com/gbci and now click on the Schedule My Test button. You will follow the prompts. During that process, you will be asked to provide the Eligibility ID. This is Prometric’s way of confirming that you paid for your exam. Prometric will ultimately then show you a calendar with available appointment slots, and you can choose the one that works best for you and your schedule!

How many attempts do you get at the LEED exam?

Candidates are given three chances per exam per year. For the LEED AP credential, you are allowed three attempts per section during your one-year application period. Both sections are delivered back-to-back unless you previously passed one of the sections during the current application period. In this case, you will only be tested on the section you have not passed. Once you have passed a section of a LEED AP exam, that section will no longer be available to you during your application period. Candidates must pass both sections of a LEED AP exam to earn the credential. More on this (Full Exam) in a moment.

How much does the LEED exam cost?

The prices vary depending on which credential you are pursuing.

LEED Exam Cost for Green Associate

• USGBC Members and Full-Time Students: $200
• Non-Members (the majority of candidates): $250

LEED Exam Cost for AP

• USGBC Members and Full-Time Students: $250
• Non-Members: $350

Under the LEED AP section, you will also see an option for Full Exam. Let’s explain this for a moment.

• Full Exam: LEED Green Associate Exam (2 hours) + LEED AP Specialty Exam (2 hours)
• Specialty Only Exam: LEED AP Specialty Exam (2 hours) – for those who have already passed the LEED Green Associate exam

As you can see, the full exam provides a fast-track to the LEED AP level. The specialty-only exam directly correlates with the advanced LEED AP designation that you’re pursuing and assumes that you have already passed the LEED Green Associate exam. Yes, all candidates must first pass the LEED Green Associate exam before attempting the LEED AP Specialty exam.

Pros & cons of taking the Full Exam (combined GA/AP exam)

Many people are intrigued by this option, but there are some things you should know.

Pros

• Saves you $50 on your exam registration ($550 instead of $600 for Green Associate and AP separately)
• Jumps you up to the advanced LEED AP level in one quick step

Cons

• You must pass both parts (LEED Green Associate & LEED AP) – fail any part and you walk away with NO credential, wasted time, and wasted money
• 4-hour test can be overwhelming and exhausting (no breaks)

More about the Combined GA/AP Exam (Full Exam)

You must pass both parts of the exam to earn your LEED credential.

If you pass one part of the LEED AP exam, you will have to retake only the part you failed. You are still subject to the restriction of three attempts per application period. If it is your first attempt, you will have two additional attempts within the application period to take and pass the part you failed.

If you pass only the first part of the LEED AP exam, you are not a LEED Green Associate. This is because you applied to be a LEED AP.

If you pass the first part of the combined exam and decide you’d like to be a LEED Green Associate, you must contact USGBC customer service with the request. Please note that you will be subject to the $50 Green Associate application fee and will have to agree to the LEED Green Associate Terms and Conditions and CMP requirements. (And now you’ve paid that $50 that you had initially “saved” when you chose the Full Exam option.)

Are there any breaks?

You may get up and leave your seat (with permission from the test center staff), but the timer will not stop, so the time elapsed will be reflected in the time remaining from the exam. This is true for the LEED Green Associate, LEED AP, and Full Exam options.

How to cancel or reschedule your LEED exam

You can confirm, cancel, or reschedule an exam on the Prometric website. You may reschedule or cancel your exam up to 30 days before the exam without a fee. If you reschedule or cancel an exam fewer than 30 days but more than 3 days before the scheduled date, you will be charged a $50 fee. You cannot reschedule your exam after midnight on the third day before the scheduled appointment. (Wednesday appointments cannot be rescheduled after Sunday at 11:59 p.m. EST) When you reschedule an exam, you will receive a new email confirmation. If you do not, please contact Prometric immediately to confirm that your exam was rescheduled.

If you have any other questions about the LEED exam registration process, let us know! Call us at (800) 460-2575.

I was engaged in a live chat the other day with a prospective customer interested in earning LEED Green Associate, LEED AP BD+C, and LEED AP O+M. Admittedly, this trifecta is not a common goal that we encounter; most folks use LEED Green Associate as a stepping stone to one LEED AP Specialty credential, while others remain at the LEED Green Associate level. This particular live chat led to a variety of LEED CMP questions that we don’t often have to answer.

For example, what is the process for re-certifying on these LEED designations?

Generally speaking, the LEED Credential Maintenance Program, as it’s called, follows these guidelines:

LEED Green Associate

• Credential lasts two years
• Acquire 15 hours of continuing education (which we offer)
• 3 of those hours must be specific to LEED concepts
• Pay a $85 renewal fee to the USGBC

LEED AP With Specialty

• Credential lasts for two years
• Credential replaces LEED Green Associate pre-requisite once achieved
• Acquire 30 hours of continuing education 
• 6 of those hours must be specific to LEED concepts within your specialty
• Pay a $85 renewal fee to the USGBC

Now, when you throw in a LEED professional holding two LEED AP Specialty credentials, the LEED CMP process changes a bit.

Credential Holder with 2 LEED AP Specialties

• Credentials last for two years, with each specialty’s deadline tied to the passing of each specialty exam
• Credentials still replace LEED Green Associate pre-requisite once achieved, so the credential holder can identify him or herself as a LEED AP BD+C, O+M
• Acquire 36 hours of continuing education
• 6 of those hours must be specific to LEED concepts in your first LEED AP specialty category, 6 more hours must be specific to LEED concepts in your second LEED AP specialty category
• Pay a $170 renewal fee to the USGBC (the $85 biennial fee is per credential)

The live chat that inspired this blog post also inspired us to call USGBC directly to confirm these details. We pored through the USGBC website to find these answers and came up short, so we are happy to confirm (straight from USGBC) that the details listed above are correct as of 10/8/15.

The LEED CMP renewal fee used to be $50, but this (quietly) changed in the summer of 2015. The new LEED CMP renewal fee is $85. We’ll do our best to keep reporting the most accurate information as we come across it!

* To clarify, the recertification/continuing education efforts listed above are to be completed every 2 years by LEED accredited professionals. Credential holders only have to pass the LEED exam once, provided that he/she abides by the LEED CMP process every 2 years to maintain his/her LEED accreditation.

A few months ago, we evaluated the 40 Under 40 award winners from Consulting-Specifying Engineer, a trade publication and website for professional engineers who design mechanical, electrical, electronic, and related systems for commercial, industrial, and institutional projects. Our analysis showed that 62.5% of the honorees held a LEED AP BD+C or a LEED AP credential. We’ve found similar statistics to be true of the architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry as a whole. Let’s see how AEC professionals fared.

This research came from the BD+C 40 Under 40 class of 2015. Building Design+Construction is a trade magazine catered to AEC professionals with the goal of inspiring building teams to design and construct “great places for great people.” The BD+C website highlights news involving various building sectors and occupations.

Like the post from the Consulting-Specifying Engineer, the post from BD+C provides an opportunity for each honoree to be featured, complete with professional achievements and wacky tidbits about their personal lives. Each BD+C honoree is listed with a creative title – Marcia Alvarado is the Structural Superstar and Akilah W. Darden is the Super Mom/Super Exec, for example.

But perhaps the most incredible similarity between the two lists is the fact that, yet again, exactly 62.5% of the honorees held a LEED credential! There doesn’t appear to be ANY crossover among the list of honorees.

So in both cases, 25 recipients (of the 40) held a LEED professional credential. Once again, I think this speaks volumes to the value of LEED in the engineering and building communities. What are the chances that two trade publications would develop unique lists of their top 40 under 40 only to also yield the same number of LEED accredited professionals among the list? Pretty crazy.

What I also found interesting about the BD+C list was the variety of LEED credentials represented. Unlike Consulting-Specifying Engineer, which seemed to list only those with the LEED AP BD+C credential or the older LEED AP credential, the BD+C list also includes LEED Green Associate and LEED AP O+M. This goes to show that not everyone needs to pursue a LEED AP credential; the entry-level LEED Green Associate credential can take you places in your career.

Here was the breakdown of LEED credentials in the BD+C list:

Once again, we’d like to congratulate all the professionals listed on BOTH lists. It’s so lovely to learn about others’ accomplishments and to see the progress that everyone is making toward a more sustainable society. We’re all working toward the same goal, and these lucky few have done a great job of being leaders in the industry.

And finally, on a somewhat personal note, we’d also like to take a moment to congratulate Blake Jackson, one of our LEED webinar students, for landing a spot on the BD+C 40 Under 40 list! Blake has gone on to achieve his LEED AP BD+C credential and is doing some big things in the Boston area, so congrats to you!!

(LOUISVILLE, Ky.) -­ U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) Kentucky announced on 9/15 that Louisville Gas and Electric Company and Kentucky Utilities Company (LG&E and KU) now offer rebates from $2,000 to $10,000 for commercial buildings achieving a LEED, or Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design, certification.

“We are pleased that LG&E and KU looked to LEED standards for these rebates. The Energy & Atmosphere category is perfect for this because it addresses energy use, efficiency, and reduction,” remarks Nancy Church, director, USGBC Kentucky. “To base rebate eligibility on reducing environmental and economic harm associated with excessive energy use is to show the type of leadership we applaud at USGBC.”

To be eligible for the Kentucky LEED rebates, the building or project must achieve LEED certification and must be awarded points under the Energy & Atmosphere credit category that seeks to optimize energy efficiency performance. The intent of the specific LEED credit — Optimize Energy Performance, or EAc1 — is to achieve increasing levels of energy performance beyond the prerequisite standard.

These new Kentucky LEED rebates expand the existing categories in LG&E and KU’s commercial rebate program. Additional new rebates include: new construction – efficiency above state code and energy audits. These rebates are available retroactively for buildings that achieved LEED certification or completed construction on or after November 14, 2014. Some customers may be eligible for multiple commercial rebates under the program.

“While these are new additions to our commercial rebate program offerings, the goal is the same as it’s always been for all of the programs in our Energy Efficiency portfolio,” said David Huff, LG&E and KU director of Customer Energy Efficiency and Smart Grid Strategy. “They’re designed to help commercial businesses offset the cost of upgrading or installing high efficiency equipment, like lighting, air conditioning and chillers, which ultimately results in a positive impact on their bottom line.”

LEED is a green building certification program that recognizes best-­in-­class building strategies and practices. To receive LEED certification, building projects satisfy prerequisites and earn points to achieve different levels of certification. LEED is the preeminent program for the design, construction, maintenance and operations of high-­performance, healthy buildings. LEED-­certified buildings save money and resources and have a positive impact on the health of occupants, while promoting renewable, clean energy.

According to the Environmental and Energy Study Institute, it is estimated that buildings account for nearly 40 percent of CO2 emissions in the U.S. each year, most of which come from the combustion of fossil fuels to provide heating, cooling, and lighting and to power appliances and electrical equipment. By transforming the built environment to be more energy-­efficient and climate-­friendly, the building sector can play a major role in reducing the threat of climate change. If half of new commercial buildings were built to use 50 percent less energy, it would save more than 6 million metric tons of CO2 annually for the life of the buildings — the equivalent of taking more than 1 million cars o? the road every year.

Visit the LG&E and KU website to learn more about LEED-­based and other commercial rebates.

See USGBC’s LEED overview page to discover how LEED is transforming the way we think about how buildings and communities are designed, constructed, maintained, and operated across the globe.

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About Kentucky USGBC

Kentucky U.S. Green Building Council, a chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council, and its volunteer members are connecting business owners, homeowners, educators, like-­missioned organizations, building design and construction teams and policy makers with sustainable approaches to today’s pressing energy, environmental and economic issues. Our vision is to improve the health and welfare of all Kentucky citizens through a sustainable and responsible built environment. Our mission is to educate individuals and promote the design, construction, and operation of buildings and the built environment in Kentucky that are environmentally responsible places to live, work and learn. There are 469 LEED projects in Kentucky. For more information, visit usgbckentucky.org.

About the U.S. Green Building Council

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is committed to a prosperous and sustainable future through cost-­efficient and energy-­saving green buildings. USGBC works toward its mission of market transformation through its LEED green building program, robust educational offerings, a nationwide network of chapters and affiliates, the annual Greenbuild International Conference & Expo, the Center for Green Schools and advocacy in support of public policy that encourages and enables green buildings and communities. For more information, visit usgbc.org.