Individuals hoping to become licensed will need to complete the required education through a third-party recognized course provider.
If you are seeking to become licensed, you will first need to complete the eligibility process, then determine if a RECA or third-party course provider is available. For some courses, there may be multiple third-party course provider options available, in which case learners are encouraged to carefully choose a course provider which is well-matched to their learning needs.
There’s a lot to consider in choosing a course provider. Prospective licensees should carefully review all their options before registering for any courses.
RECA’s board of directors recognizes courses and course providers that meet RECA’s set requirements. However, course providers have the freedom to structure and organize their courses as works best for their institutional and instructional needs.
The most important considerations for learners when choosing a course provider is that the course will prepare you to pass RECA’s exam to protect the public and to provide competent service in your chosen industry sector.
Courses could vary in number of hours to complete, quality of instruction and materials, course modality—virtual, classroom, or a combination—and more. Not only can these elements affect the cost of the course, they can affect the suitability of the course for individual learners.
What might seem like a great deal financially, could simply reflect fewer learning resources available to individuals.
Education is an investment in yourself and your career. Investing not just money, but time—time in understanding your learning needs, in researching course options, in building your knowledge—can set you up for long-term success protecting the public and providing competent service.
Download RECA’s guide on How to Choose a Course Provider for more information on things to consider when choosing your pre-licensing courses.
Real estate pre-licensing education consists of the Fundamentals of Real Estate course, and a series of practice courses, one for each of the four areas of practice:
Mortgage pre-licensing education consists of the Fundamentals of Mortgage Brokerage course and the Practice of Mortgage Brokerage course. The Fundamentals of Mortgage Brokerage and Practice of Mortgage Brokerage are offered by the Alberta Mortgage Brokers Association (AMBA). The Practice of Mortgage Brokerage course must be completed within six months of the Fundamentals of Mortgage Brokerage being completed.
Condominium managers must complete the Fundamentals of Condominium Management and the Practice of Condominium Management and the accompanying exams to become eligible for licensing in Alberta. Those hoping to become a condominium manager broker must have two years of experience as a condominium manager within the last five, and complete the Condominium Manager Broker Program and the accompanying exam.
Individuals wishing to get their condominium manager licence should review the list of Recognized Course Providers to find the courses that work best for their individual needs Individuals with conditional licences in condominium management can challenge the licensing exams without completing the education. However, the Residential Property Manager Industry Council recommends that conditional licensees complete the education before challenging the exam. Condominium management courses include:
RECA’s exams are written at an exam centre/physical location. Learners have 3 months to write their exam once RECA has been notified by a course provider of their completion of the course. You will receive an email with next steps on how to book the exam.
If you require exam accommodations due to exceptional circumstances, please contact education@reca.ca. In your email, please explain your situation and the reason for your request.
Learners have two attempts in total to write their respective exam. Learners are responsible for paying the fee for each attempt. Learners must also write and complete their exams before their program/course expiration date, no exception. Passing grade is 70%.
If you completed your condominium management course, then fail the exam, you will receive an email with instructions for rewriting the exam. If you fail the second* attempt, you must retake the course. Each additional exam attempt is $235.
*Conditional licensees who have completed Practice of Condominium Management will have three free attempts to rewrite the exam. Contact education@reca.ca BEFORE you schedule your rewrite.
Please note, there is no option to rewrite the exam for condominium managers who choose to challenge the exam without taking the course.
Those who complete practice exams are more successful on the corresponding pre-licensing exams. There are several reasons for this:
RECA practice exams allow you to reflect on your knowledge and performance, prepare accordingly, and give you the confidence to know when you are ready for the corresponding pre-licensing exam. Remember that most people will perform better on a practice exam than on a pre-licensing exam. We recommend that learners strive to perform confidently on the practice exam before attempting the pre-licensing exam. Do not be misled by others offering practice exams. Using RECA practice exams means you are getting a practice exam from the actual exam provider in the same platform as the pre-licensing exam.
As a learner, you can access practice exams, at a cost of $65 per attempt, at any time from course completion up until you pass the pre-licensing exam. RECA has also created an Exam Preparation Guide to assist learners.
Practice exams can be written anywhere and have the same time limit as the corresponding pre-licensing exam. When you complete your course, you will get an email with a link to purchase a practice exam attempt, or you can click on “Purchase Practice Exam” in the course table in your myRECA account, under Exam Activities. You will have one attempt per purchase. Once your practice exam is submitted you will not be able to go back into it.
Practice exams are available for all RECA licences and the associated Fundamentals courses.
Access to the practice exam is dependent on the following:
RECA offers free practice exams for learners who have completed a RECA pre-licensing course. Once you complete a course, you will see a Practice Exam link at the end of the course in the Moodle education platform. You may have to scroll to the bottom of the page. You can access the practice exam at any time from when you complete that course up until you pass the actual exam.
