Utah Foundations of Reading Assessment

If you're pursuing an early childhood, elementary, or special education license in Utah, the UFORA is the required Utah assessment unless the USBE accepts an equivalent out-of-state exam. It's also the source of most of the confusion around Utah teacher certification testing, partly because another major assessment was recently eliminated and many online resources haven't caught up.

What the UFORA Is

The Utah Foundations of Reading Assessment is a Pearson-administered computer-based exam that tests your knowledge of reading instruction — phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary development, and comprehension strategies. It's required for three license areas: early childhood education (K–3), elementary education (1–8), and special education (K–12+).

The minimum passing score is 240. The exam is delivered at Pearson testing centers, with a paper format available only for candidates who've been approved for ADA accommodations.

Who Needs to Take It

Not every Utah teaching candidate faces the UFORA. It's mandatory only for the three license areas listed above. Secondary education candidates (grades 6–12), CTE teachers, and school leadership candidates don't take it — they have their own content-area exams through ETS (Praxis series).

If you're coming from out of state with an equivalent reading assessment already passed, the USBE accepts many out-of-state exams under its testing equivalency policies. Check whether your home state's exam qualifies before registering for the UFORA — you may not need to retake it.

The Voucher That Saves You the Registration Fee

Candidates enrolled in Utah-based educator preparation programs — whether at a university EPP or through a district-sponsored APPEL program — are eligible for a state-funded voucher covering the cost of their first UFORA attempt. The voucher must be requested from your faculty advisor or program coordinator before you register for the exam.

This benefit is often poorly communicated. University billing offices sometimes list the exam fee as a student responsibility, and APPEL program administrators don't always mention the voucher proactively. If you're in an approved Utah program, ask specifically about the UFORA voucher before paying out of pocket.

Retakes are at your own expense. If you don't pass on the first attempt, you'll cover the registration fee for subsequent tries.

Score Reporting

When you register for the UFORA, select the USBE as a score recipient using state code 8375. Automatic score processing takes up to 15 business days from the official score release date.

If you forgot to select the USBE during registration, you can manually email your official score PDF to [email protected] along with your CACTUS ID. But automatic reporting is cleaner and avoids the risk of your file sitting in a queue.

The PPA Is Gone — Don't Study for It

Effective June 10, 2024, the USBE officially eliminated the Pedagogical Performance Assessment (PPA) requirement for all Utah teacher candidates. The PPA included assessments like the edTPA and the ETS PPAT — portfolio-based evaluations that required candidates to submit recorded teaching samples and instructional analyses.

No Utah candidate is required to complete a PPA to earn a license. If you see a blog post, university guide, or test-prep site still listing the PPA as mandatory, it's outdated. The repeal was implemented through formal rulemaking and is permanent.

This is worth emphasizing because commercial test-prep publishers continue to market PPA preparation materials to Utah candidates. You don't need them.

Other Exams in Utah's Testing Matrix

Beyond the UFORA, Utah requires specific ETS Praxis exams for certain endorsement areas and leadership credentials:

• School Leadership: Educational Leadership and Supervision (test code 5412, passing score 146, $130 fee) or the School Leaders Licensure Assessment (test code 6990, passing score 151, $425 fee)
• School Counselor: Professional School Counselor (test code 5422, passing score 153)
• School Psychologist: School Psychologist (test code 5403, passing score 148)
• Secondary content areas: Various Praxis subject tests can be used to demonstrate content competency for the AEL (e.g., English Language Arts test code 5038, passing score 167; Mathematics test code 5165, passing score 152)

For secondary AEL candidates, Praxis exams are an option to prove content competency — you can alternatively demonstrate it through a bachelor's degree major in the subject area.

Fitting the UFORA Into Your Timeline

If you're on the traditional university route, your EPP will build the UFORA into your graduation timeline. For APPEL candidates, you have the three-year AEL window to pass it, but don't wait until year three — a failed attempt plus the retake waiting period can push you dangerously close to your license expiration.

The practical approach: schedule the UFORA within your first year of teaching, while you have access to the voucher and can build retake time into your timeline if needed.

For a complete testing checklist mapped to each certification route, the Utah Teacher Certification Guide includes an assessment planning worksheet that tracks registration deadlines, score reporting, and voucher requests.

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