What is the ACP exam?
The Adobe Certified Professional (ACP) exam in Photoshop -- officially "Visual Design Using Adobe Photoshop," and known by its older name, Adobe Certified Associate (ACA), in a lot of still-circulating study material -- is an industry-recognized certification proving real Photoshop skill. It's organized into 5 domains, shown below. This section works the same way no matter what grade you're in: Grade 9/10 covers Domain 1 (concept-only, no computer needed) during the analog design semester; Grade 11 goes deep on all 5 domains during its dedicated exam-prep unit; Grade 12 can use it as a quick refresher any time during the Design Studio. Every objective includes a hands-on activity -- paper-based for 9th/10th grade, Photoshop-based for 11th/12th -- so you practice the idea, not just read about it.
🔑 Getting Started: Your Accounts
You need two separate accounts before you can practice or test -- set both up early, not the week of the exam.
Certiport Account (to take the real exam)
- Go to certiport.pearsonvue.com and create an account -- this is the official account you'll use to actually sit the real ACP exam, so use your real name exactly as your teacher has it on record.
- Pick a strong password (a real one -- not "password1"): mix upper/lowercase letters, a number, and a symbol, and don't reuse a password you use anywhere else.
- For your username, a good trick is to use the part of your school email that comes before the @ (so if your school email is
jdoe@bronxinternationalhs.com, try usernamejdoe) -- it's already something you know, so it's one less new thing to remember. - Write your username and password down somewhere safe the same day you create the account -- a password manager, or a physical note kept somewhere private (not taped to your laptop or posted online). You are the only one responsible for remembering your own login -- if you lose it, that's on you to sort out with your teacher well before test day.
Sign up at: certiport.pearsonvue.com
GMetrix Account (to practice/train)
- Go to gmetrix.net/Login.aspx and create your training account -- this is the practice platform, separate from Certiport, that you'll use all year to rehearse before the real exam.
- When it asks for an Access Key, enter:
Add your GMetrix key-- your teacher will give you this key; it connects your account to this class so your teacher can see your practice progress. - Same rule as Certiport: pick a real password, and write both your GMetrix login and your Certiport login down somewhere safe as soon as you make them.
Sign up at: gmetrix.net/Login.aspx · Access Key: Add your GMetrix key
📋 Exam Format (2026)
The exam is officially titled "Visual Design Using Adobe Photoshop." It now runs Live-in-the-Application (LITA) through Certiport's Compass testing engine, which loads as a panel inside a real, running copy of Photoshop -- you complete short, timed tasks directly in the actual application ("make this layer 50% opacity," "select the subject and remove the background") rather than answering multiple-choice questions about screenshots. It's about 50 minutes and covers all 5 domains below. The practice-test platform GMetrix is still what many schools (including this one) use to rehearse -- but know going in that GMetrix's question-and-answer style practice tests feel a little different from the live, inside-Photoshop Compass format of the real exam. Practice both: know your vocabulary AND be fast and accurate actually clicking through the tools.
A few things about the live exam screen worth knowing before test day (from actual past practice-exam sessions): the Certification Test panel only lets you click its buttons once your change is committed -- press the checkmark on the tool's options bar, or just hit Enter, if a button seems unresponsive. Your work on the starter document auto-saves the moment you hit Next or Back -- you don't need to manually save unless a task specifically says to. Some tasks include an Exhibit tab showing exactly what the finished result should look like -- check it before you start. And on multi-part tasks, you get credit for each correct part separately, so attempt every part even if you're unsure about one of them.
Domain 1: Working in the Design Industry
This domain is entirely concept-based -- no software needed. It's the professional, client-facing side of design: understanding who you're d…
Domain 2: Project Setup and Interface
This domain is about getting a project started correctly and knowing your way around the Photoshop interface before you ever touch an image.…
Domain 3: Organizing Documents
Everything in a Photoshop file is organized into layers -- this domain is about managing them well, and understanding the critical differenc…
Domain 4: Creating and Modifying Visual Elements
This is the largest domain and the heart of hands-on Photoshop work: the actual tools used to create, select, transform, retouch, and styliz…
Domain 5: Publishing Digital Media
The final step of any project: getting the finished file into the right format for wherever it's actually going -- a website, a printer, or …
📚 Where This Comes From
This section rewrites and corrects an older Photoshop/ACP study book for a 2026 view of Photoshop and the current exam. See exactly what changed and why on the What Changed From the Book page.