Thread: Tree ID for Arborist Certification

Hello, I am studying to take the Arborist Certification Test. My weak area is the Tree ID part. I live in Illinois and my boss ( a certified arborist) told me that when he took the Tree ID portion of the test they provided tree samples to ID. That was some years ago and it is to my understanding that that is no longer the way the ID portion of the test is administered.

If anyone has any knowledge on how that Tree ID portion of the Certification exam is administered it would be a great help to me!

if your taking it on a computer at a testing site they mostly focus on leaf shapes, tree shape. such as pinnate, palmate and excurrent, decurrent types of things. and its multi choice.

Oh awesome! Thanks your help!

Somebody on here said the recently did away with the id portion of the test? or is that the new thing, just identify the type and not the actual trees?

Originally Posted by mikegar

if your taking it on a computer at a testing site they mostly focus on leaf shapes, tree shape. such as pinnate, palmate and excurrent, decurrent types of things. and its multi choice.

That's correct. I took the test last year and there were no tree specimen samples, only more general tree id questions like mikegar described. I took the paper test though and sounds like its the same thing

You can pass the test and become a CA but not ID tree species? Its been 20 years since I took the test. Sounds like its easier.

Originally Posted by Zale

You can pass the test and become a CA but not ID tree species? Its been 20 years since I took the test. Sounds like its easier.

Yeah they had to make it easier to pass so they can generate more income. Think of all the money they were losing by not letting unqualified people pass.