- The SC-ADJ passing score is a scaled 70, not a raw percentage of 100 questions correct.
- Series InsSC-PCSMAdj11 has 100 scored items plus 5 unscored pretest items across 105 total, in 2 hours.
- Policy Knowledge Pertinent to Adjusters is 61% of the current blueprint effective through September 2026.
- The exam costs $59 and can be taken at a Pearson VUE center or via OnVUE remote proctoring.
The Passing Score, Explained
If you're preparing for the South Carolina Property, Casualty, Surety and Marine Adjuster Exam, the single number that matters most on test day is 70 - but it's not a percentage of raw questions answered correctly. The South Carolina Department of Insurance, which governs this exam, and Pearson VUE, which administers it, use a scaled score. That means your raw performance on the scored questions is converted onto a standardized scale, and you need to land at or above 70 on that scale to pass.
This distinction trips up a lot of first-time candidates who assume they need to answer roughly 70 of 100 questions correctly. Scaled scoring adjusts for slight variations in question difficulty across different exam forms, so the raw-to-scaled conversion isn't a simple 1:1 mapping. The practical takeaway is the same either way: you need strong, consistent performance across the material, not just a passing grade on your favorite domain.
Exam Format and How Scoring Works
The exam is officially designated Series InsSC-PCSMAdj11. It consists of 100 scored multiple-choice questions plus 5 unscored pretest questions, for 105 total questions delivered in a 2-hour window. The pretest questions are mixed in without identification, so you should treat every question on screen as if it counts - because you genuinely cannot tell which five don't.
Candidates can sit for the exam at a physical Pearson VUE test center or remotely through OnVUE online proctoring. Both delivery methods use the same question bank and the same scaled-score passing standard, so your choice comes down to logistics and personal comfort with remote testing software rather than any difference in difficulty.
| Exam Detail | Specification |
|---|---|
| Series designation | InsSC-PCSMAdj11 |
| Exam fee | $59 |
| Scored questions | 100 |
| Pretest questions | 5 (unscored, unidentified) |
| Total questions delivered | 105 |
| Time allowed | 2 hours |
| Passing score | Scaled 70 |
| Delivery options | Pearson VUE test center or OnVUE remote |
For a deeper walk-through of how the 105-question format plays out in practice, see our SC-ADJ Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 5 Content Areas, which maps every domain to question style and weighting.
What the Scaled 70 Actually Tests
The scaled score is calculated from your answers across five distinct domains. Each domain represents a different slice of what a South Carolina adjuster is expected to know before touching a claim file:
Domain 1: South Carolina Insurance Laws and Regulations Pertinent to All Adjusters
Covers state-specific statutory requirements, licensing rules, and regulatory obligations that apply regardless of line of business.
- Know the regulatory role of the South Carolina Department of Insurance
Domain 2: Property and Casualty Insurance Terms and Related Concepts
Tests foundational vocabulary and conceptual understanding that underpins every other domain on the exam.
- Precise definitions are tested, not just general familiarity
Domain 3: Property and Casualty Contract Provisions
Focuses on how policy language, endorsements, and standard contract clauses function in real claim scenarios.
- Expect application-style questions, not pure definition recall
Domain 4: Policy Knowledge Pertinent to Adjusters
The largest domain by far, requiring deep familiarity with policy structure, coverage triggers, exclusions, and limits as they relate to adjuster decision-making.
- This single domain carries 61% of the current blueprint weight
Domain 5: Adjuster Duties and Responsibilities
Covers the practical, procedural, and ethical obligations adjusters owe to policyholders, insurers, and regulators.
- Overlaps with real-world claim-handling conduct standards
For candidates who want a granular breakdown of subtopics inside each domain, our SC-ADJ Study Guide 2026: How to Pass on Your First Attempt organizes the material by domain priority rather than by chapter order, which mirrors how the scaled score actually treats the content.
Why Policy Knowledge Carries the Exam
Domain 4, Policy Knowledge Pertinent to Adjusters, accounts for 61% of the current exam outline - a proportion so large that it functions almost like its own mini-exam within the full 100 scored questions. This weighting has been in effect since the current blueprint took effect on September 2, 2025, and it remains the anchor of the exam until the revised blueprint effective September 15, 2026 takes over.
Because more than six in ten scored questions draw from this single domain, a candidate who under-prepares Domain 4 has almost no mathematical path to a scaled 70, even with flawless performance everywhere else. This is the single most important structural fact about the exam, and it should shape how you allocate study hours from day one.
Key Takeaway
Spend more study time on Domain 4 than on any other domain combined - its 61% weighting means it functions as the exam's decisive factor.
If you're unsure how demanding this concentration actually feels in practice, our companion piece How Hard Is the SC-ADJ Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026 walks through what makes the Policy Knowledge domain the primary difficulty driver for most candidates.
Registration, Fees, and Test-Day Mechanics
Passing the scaled 70 starts with correctly registering for the right exam series. Series InsSC-PCSMAdj11 costs $59 per attempt, and that fee covers your seat at either a Pearson VUE test center or through OnVUE remote proctoring. There's no separate charge for choosing one delivery method over the other.
Because the exam window is only 2 hours for 105 total questions, pacing matters. With 100 scored questions plus 5 pretest questions blended in, that leaves roughly 70 seconds per question on average if you use the full window evenly - tight enough that time management should be part of your practice routine, not an afterthought on exam day.
For a full breakdown of what the $59 fee does and doesn't include, along with any related licensing costs, see SC-ADJ Certification Cost 2026: Complete Pricing Breakdown. If you're still confirming you meet the baseline eligibility criteria before you even schedule, check SC-ADJ Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify first.
After You Pass: Certificate, Licensing, and Act 209
Passing the exam earns you a certificate valid for 12 months, which you'll use to complete your individual adjuster license application with the South Carolina Department of Insurance. Under South Carolina Act 209, effective May 19, 2026, that license application carries a $100 individual adjuster license fee and requires fingerprints supporting both state and federal background checks.
Once licensed, maintaining that license means completing 24 continuing education hours per biennial cycle, including 3 hours specifically in ethics - though your very first renewal cycle is exempt from this CE requirement. Renewals themselves are due by August 31 of odd-numbered years, so mark that date regardless of when your original license was issued.
The scaled 70 is only the entry point; the license itself is what employers and clients actually check. Our overview of SC-ADJ Certification explains how the passing exam certificate, the license application, and the biennial renewal cycle fit together as one continuous process rather than separate one-time events.
Allocating Study Time Around the Scaled Score
Because Domain 4 dominates the blueprint and the exam window is short, your study calendar should mirror that imbalance rather than splitting time evenly across five domains. A weighted approach that spends the majority of early weeks on Policy Knowledge, then folds in the remaining domains for review and integration, aligns your effort with how the scaled score is actually built.
Policy Knowledge Pertinent to Adjusters
- Build the foundation for the domain worth 61% of the blueprint before moving on
Contract Provisions and Insurance Terms
- Reinforce vocabulary and clause interpretation that Domain 4 questions assume you already know
South Carolina Laws and Adjuster Duties
- Layer in Domain 1 and Domain 5 before running full-length timed practice under the 2-hour limit
Timed, mixed-domain practice in the final week is essential given the 105-question, 2-hour format - you need to feel the pacing, not just know the content. Our SC-ADJ Cheat Sheet 2026: One-Page Review of Must-Know Facts is designed as a last-pass review tool for exactly this stage, and the full-length simulations on our practice test platform replicate the scaled-scoring pressure so you're not surprised by the format on exam day.
If you want data on how candidates historically perform against this scaled standard, SC-ADJ Pass Rate 2026: What the Data Shows puts the scaled-70 threshold in context. And once you've passed, it's worth reading SC-ADJ Salary Guide 2026: Complete Earnings Analysis and Is the SC-ADJ Certification Worth It? Complete ROI Analysis 2026 to see how the license you're working toward translates into opportunity across South Carolina's adjusting market.
FAQ
You need a scaled score of 70 or higher. This is not the same as answering 70% of raw questions correctly, since Pearson VUE converts raw performance onto a standardized scale before comparing it to the passing threshold.
The exam delivers 105 total questions: 100 scored multiple-choice questions and 5 unscored pretest questions. The pretest items are not identified during the exam, so every question should be answered as if it's scored.
You have 2 hours to complete all 105 questions in the InsSC-PCSMAdj11 series, which averages out to roughly a minute or slightly more per question depending on pacing.
Policy Knowledge Pertinent to Adjusters, which makes up 61% of the current blueprint effective since September 2, 2025, should receive the most study time since it represents the majority of scored questions.
A passing examination certificate is valid for 12 months, so you should plan your South Carolina adjuster license application, including the Act 209 requirements, within that window.