Official Program Page: biotility.research.ufl.edu/biotech-industry-credentials/bace
Looking for what's actually on the exam — the 8 categories, the math, the pass rate, how to study? That lives in our Complete BACE Study Guide. This page is just about timing: when to register, when deadlines fall, and what's different this cycle.
Unlike a lot of exams, the BACE doesn't have one single "test day" you can circle on a calendar. It runs two separate tracks: schools and colleges register as Exam Sites and operate on a fixed academic-year calendar, while individual candidates using the Remote Testing Option (RTO) can register and test any day of the year. If you're planning around "when can I take the BACE in 2027," the honest answer depends entirely on which track you're on — so this page covers both, plus what Biotility has actually confirmed so far for AY 2026–2027 versus what we're projecting from the last few years' pattern.
The Short Version
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Is AY 2026–2027 registration open yet? | Not yet as of this writing. It opens September 21, 2026 — confirmed directly from Biotility's Exam Site calendar. |
| Is that later than usual? | Yes. The last three cycles all opened in the first three weeks of September (Sept 19, Sept 18, Sept 3, Sept 3). This year's Sept 21 opening is about two to three weeks later than the recent norm — worth knowing if you were assuming an early-September date. |
| Do individual/RTO candidates need to wait for this? | No. If you're not testing through a school or college, none of the academic-year dates below apply to you. You can register through UF's Continuing Education portal and schedule with ProctorU any time. |
| When will the rest of the AY 2026–2027 calendar (testing windows, retake deadlines) be published? | Biotility publishes the updated Candidate Information Bulletin and Exam Specifications alongside Exam Site Registration — so September 21, 2026 is also the date to check for the full calendar. |
| What can I take from last cycle to guess this cycle's dates? | See the historical comparison table further down. Treat every projected date as an estimate, not a fact, until Biotility confirms it. |
Two Calendars, Not One
If You're Testing Through a School or College (Exam Site)
Your school or program has to register as a Biotility Exam Site every single academic year — even if it registered last year — and that registration has to happen before anyone can order exams. The rough shape of a cycle looks like this:
- Exam Site Registration opens (this is the September date everyone watches)
- First-attempt orders open, generally about a month after registration opens
- First-attempt testing window runs through the school year
- Retake orders and retake testing close out the cycle, usually in mid-to-late summer
- Registration closes for the outgoing year around the same time the next year's registration is about to open
If you're a student, none of this is something you personally file — your instructor or site administrator handles registration and ordering. What it means for you practically: ask your instructor in September, not April, whether your school has re-registered for the year, since a site that forgets to re-register can't order your exam later.
If You're Registering on Your Own (Remote Testing Option)
None of the above applies to you. RTO registration is on-demand, year-round, through UF's Continuing Education portal. The only clock that matters is the one that starts when you enroll:
- First attempt: 180 days to complete once enrolled
- Second attempt: 90 days
- Third attempt: 90 days
- Mandatory gap between attempts: 20 days minimum (Biotility recommends 4–6 weeks)
So if you're asking "when should I plan to take the BACE in 2027," and you're going the RTO route, the real answer is: whenever you're ready. There's no season to wait for.
What's Confirmed for AY 2026–2027 vs. What's Projected
Confirmed directly from Biotility's official Exam Site calendar, as of September 7, 2026:
- Exam Site Registration for AY 2026–2027 opens September 21, 2026.
- Updated documentation for the new cycle — the Candidate Information Bulletin and Exam Specifications — goes live the same day.
- First-attempt ordering is expected to reopen in October 2026, once site registration is underway (Biotility requires six weeks' notice on first-attempt orders, so sites ordering for fall testing should plan accordingly).
Not yet published — the following are projections based on the last several cycles' pattern, not confirmed dates:
| Milestone | AY 2023–2024 | AY 2024–2025 | AY 2025–2026 | AY 2026–2027 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Site Registration Opens | Sept 18, 2023 | Sept 3, 2024 | Sept 3, 2025 | Sept 21, 2026 (confirmed) |
| Site Registration Closes | Apr 29, 2024 | Apr 30, 2025 | Apr 30, 2026 | Not yet published |
| First-Attempt Order Deadline | June 3, 2024 | June 2, 2025 | June 3, 2026 | Not yet published |
| First-Attempt Testing Ends | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | July 15, 2026 | Not yet published |
| Retake Orders Close | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | July 27, 2026 | Not yet published |
| Retake Testing Ends | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Aug 10, 2026 | Not yet published |
If the last three cycles are any guide, expect registration to stay open into spring 2027, first-attempt orders to close in early June 2027, and the whole cycle to wrap up with retake testing sometime in the first half of August 2027 — but treat all of that as an educated guess, not a plan to build around. We'll update this table with real dates as Biotility publishes them.
We're intentionally not inventing exact 2027 dates the way some guides do. The last cycle's dates were fairly predictable — until this year's registration opening moved by nearly three weeks with no public explanation. That's exactly why "it's always around September 3" isn't something to plan around. Check Biotility's Exam Site Support Hub directly once you're inside the actual planning window.
What a Full Cycle Looks Like: AY 2025–2026 as a Reference
If you want to see the complete shape of a cycle, the most recently finished one (AY 2025–2026) is the clearest example:
- September 3, 2025 — Exam Site Registration opens
- April 30, 2026 — Exam Site Registration closes
- June 3, 2026 — First-attempt order deadline
- July 15, 2026 — First-attempt testing ends
- July 27, 2026 — Retake order deadline
- August 10, 2026 — Retake testing ends, cycle fully closed
That's roughly an 11-month arc from registration opening to the last retake. AY 2026–2027 should follow a similar shape — just shifted a few weeks later at the front end, based on the confirmed September 21 opening.
Fees and Ordering Lead Times (Quick Recap)
These haven't changed for AY 2026–2027 as of publication, and they apply regardless of which cycle you're in:
- Exam Site: $185 per candidate, covering the first attempt plus one free retake.
- Remote Testing Option: 200forthefirstattempt(includesonefreeretake),50 for a third attempt.
- Site order lead times: six weeks' notice for first attempts, two weeks' for retakes.
- Change fees: free within 14 days of placing an order, 175afterthat,or425 to expedite an order placed with less than six weeks' notice.
Full breakdown, including what's included in the fee and how attempts are tracked, is in the Complete BACE Study Guide.
Planning Calendar: September 2026 Through Summer 2027
September–October 2026: Confirm with your instructor or site administrator whether your school has re-registered for AY 2026–2027. If you're an RTO candidate, this is a fine time to enroll if you're already prepared — there's no reason to wait for a "season."
November 2026–February 2027: The bulk of the school year for most Exam Sites. If your program tests early in the cycle, this is likely your testing window — confirm the specific date with your instructor since Biotility doesn't set one universal test day.
March–May 2027: Later-testing programs typically fall here. If you're aiming for a spring test date, this is your final serious study stretch — see the study guide's applied-math and hands-on-practice sections for where most first-time candidates lose points.
June–August 2027: Historically the retake window for anyone who needs a second or third attempt. If the AY 2026–2027 pattern holds close to last cycle's, expect first-attempt testing to wrap by mid-July and retakes by mid-August 2027 — but confirm against Biotility's published calendar once it's live.
September 2027: AY 2027–2028 registration should open around this point, restarting the cycle.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does BACE Exam Site Registration open for 2026–2027?
September 21, 2026 — confirmed directly from Biotility's official calendar.
Why did registration open later this year than in past years?
Biotility hasn't published a reason. The pattern for the previous three cycles was registration opening in the first three weeks of September; this cycle's September 21 date is later than that pattern would suggest. Don't assume a fixed date without checking each year.
Can I still take the BACE right now, before September 21?
If you're going through the Remote Testing Option, yes — that registration path is open year-round and isn't affected by the Exam Site calendar at all. If you're relying on a school Exam Site, your options depend on whether your site has leftover capacity from the current cycle; ask your instructor.
When will the full AY 2026–2027 testing calendar (testing windows, retake deadlines) be available?
Alongside the September 21, 2026 registration opening, when Biotility publishes the updated Candidate Information Bulletin and Exam Specifications for the new cycle.
Is the exam content or format changing for 2026–2027?
Nothing has been announced. Biotility reviews and updates the BACE annually with its National Advisory Board, so expect routine refinements rather than a structural overhaul — the 116-question, 175-point, 80%-to-pass format has been stable for multiple cycles.
Should I use this page or the main study guide to prepare?
Both, for different purposes. This page tells you when things happen. The Complete BACE Study Guide tells you what to actually study — all 8 exam categories, the math you need to nail, and a full study plan.
Sources
- Biotility BACE Exam Site Support Hub — live AY 2026–2027 calendar
- Biotility BACE Credential Overview
- BACE FAQ
- BACE Individual Registration & Fees (UF e-Learning)
- Biotility Exam Site calendar archive (AY 2022–2023 through AY 2025–2026 registration and deadline dates)
Published September 7, 2026. The September 21, 2026 registration date and the AY 2022–2027 historical comparison table are pulled directly from Biotility's own event calendar and Exam Site pages. Everything past that point for AY 2026–2027 is explicitly labeled as a projection, not a confirmed date, because Biotility had not yet published it at the time of writing. We'll update this page — not replace it with a new one — as real dates are announced, and expect to publish a fresh AY 2027–2028 edition once that cycle's registration opens in fall 2027.
