There are two methods of becoming a certified Passive House Designer or Consultant: through submission of a certified Passive House project, or by passing the standardized international exam. The exam is offered by AllClimate Passivhaus in cooperation with PHI. Certified Designers and Consultants will be listed on the international database. For information on certification via project design and documentation please see PHI’s Project Qualification page.
The exam is thorough and time-limited, and it is not recommended that you attempt the exam without first taking courses PH1, PH2, PH3, and PH4 offered by AllClimate Passivhaus.
The exam is one and a half hours (90 minutes) in length. The Certified Passive House Designer/Consultant exam will be conducted in an online format. This format is subject to change according to the Passive House Institute policies.
There will be a 60 minute required tech check meeting a few days before the exam date. Details will be emailed directly to registrants.
Participants must supply a valid PHPP registration number in order to write the exam. PHPP can be purchased on our website. Please allow at least 1-2 business days for processing.
Information on examination regulations and detailed learning targets can be found on the PHI website. Briefly, the exam will include material on:
Passive House definition
Passive House criteria
Thermally insulating envelope
Airtight building envelope
Transparent exterior components
Passive House ventilation
Heat supply system
Hot water generation
Summer comfort and space cooling
Electrical energy
Energy balancing
Economic efficiency calculation
Invitation to tender, construction management and quality assurance
Building user information and support
Retrofitting with Passive House components (EnerPHit)
Calculations, quantities, units
The examination is marked by AllClimate Passivhaus and then sent to PHI for second review. Participants are notified directly via email by PHI approximately 4 weeks after the exam of whether they passed or failed.
