What Is TEST ARCHED? Architecture Admission Guide

TEST ARCHED at a glance

• ✓Test name: TEST ARCHED
• ✓Questions: 50
• ✓Sections: 5
• ✓Duration: 100 minutes
• ✓Language: Italian (English version available for English-taught programmes)
• ✓Fee: Set by each university (not a fixed national fee)
• ✓Scoring: +1 correct, -0.25 incorrect, 0 unanswered. Max 50 points.
• ✓Formats: TEST@UNI (in person) or TEST@HOME (remote via WEBEX)
• ✓Portability: None — score valid only at the university where you took the test
• ✓Governed by: MUR Decreto Ministeriale n. 706 del 04/06/2026 (June 4)
• ✓Administered by: CISIA on behalf of individual universities

How TEST ARCHED is different from TOLC-I and CEnT-S

Three fundamental differences make TEST ARCHED a completely different beast.

First, governance. TOLC-I and CEnT-S are CISIA products — CISIA sets the rules, the fees, the calendar. TEST ARCHED is governed by a Ministry decree. The structure, syllabus, and scoring are defined by law, not by a consortium. This means the rules can change year to year when a new decreto is published.

Second, no portability. TOLC-I and CEnT-S scores are valid at every university in the CISIA consortium, regardless of where you took the test. TEST ARCHED is the opposite — you must book and take the test at the specific university you want to enrol in, and your score is only valid there. If you want to apply to architecture at both PoliTO and PoliMI, you need to take TEST ARCHED at both (on different dates).

Third, booking happens on the university's own website, not through the CISIA portal. Each university manages its own registration, dates, and fees independently.

Exam structure: 5 sections, 50 questions, 100 minutes

TEST ARCHED has five equally-weighted sections — 10 questions each, 20 minutes each, for 100 minutes total. This is a shorter test than TOLC-I (110 min) and CEnT-S (110 min), and its balanced weighting means no single section dominates the way Mathematics does in TOLC-I.

Reading Comprehension — 10 questions in 20 minutes. Tests your ability to understand and analyse written Italian texts of various types: scientific essays, narrative works, journalism, current affairs. Similar to TOLC-I's Reading Comprehension section.

Knowledge Acquired Through Studies and History (including History of Art) — 10 questions in 20 minutes. Covers general culture, historical and cultural phenomena, artistic and architectural movements, major works of architecture, knowledge of national and international institutions, and legal/economic/civic comprehension. This is unique to ARCHED — neither TOLC-I nor CEnT-S tests art history or architectural knowledge.

Logical Reasoning — 10 questions in 20 minutes. Tests your ability to complete logical arguments from symbolic or verbal premises. Same concept as TOLC-I's Logic section.

Drawing and Representation — 10 questions in 20 minutes. Tests your ability to analyse drawings, graphics, and visual representations — matching representations to objects, reading floor plans (piante), elevations (prospetti), and axonometric projections (assonometrie). This section is entirely unique to ARCHED and requires visual-spatial skills that no amount of formula memorisation can replace.

Mathematics and Physics — 10 questions in 20 minutes. Covers arithmetic, algebra, Euclidean geometry, analytic geometry fundamentals, trigonometry fundamentals, probability and statistics fundamentals, plus mechanics, thermodynamics, and electrostatics/electrodynamics. A compressed version of what TOLC-I spreads across Mathematics and Sciences.

Scoring and tie-breaks

Scoring follows the same formula as TOLC-I and CEnT-S: +1 for correct, -0.25 for incorrect, 0 for unanswered. Maximum score is 50 points. Candidates who answer zero questions are not placed on the ranking list.

Tie-breaks follow a fixed priority order defined by the Decreto Ministeriale — and this order matters, because architecture programmes have limited seats and ties are common:

First: Logical Reasoning score. Then: Reading Comprehension. Then: Drawing and Representation. Then: Mathematics and Physics. Then: Knowledge Acquired Through Studies, History (including History of Art), and General Culture. If still tied after all sections: the younger candidate prevails.

This means Logical Reasoning is functionally the most important section in a tie — worth knowing when you're deciding where to invest your last hours of study.

No portability: the biggest difference

This deserves its own section because it catches students off guard. If you take TEST ARCHED at Politecnico di Milano, that score is valid only at PoliMI. It doesn't transfer to PoliTO, La Sapienza, or any other university.

You can take TEST ARCHED at multiple universities — but only if they schedule it on different dates. If two universities hold it on the same day, you must choose one.

There is one partial exception: the Decreto Ministeriale allows universities with unfilled seats (after their own rankings are exhausted) to accept candidates who took TEST ARCHED at a different university and weren't placed. These cross-university transfers are processed in order of score until seats are filled. But this is a safety net, not a strategy — don't count on it.

Language: Italian and English

The standard TEST ARCHED is in Italian. However, Decreto Ministeriale n. 706, Art. 2 requires universities offering English-taught architecture programmes to prepare an identical test in English. Both language versions are administered on separate dates.

For example, Politecnico di Milano offers the English ARCHED test on July 23, 2026 and the Italian test on July 24, 2026. You can register for one or both versions. Not all universities offer the English version — only those with English-taught architecture programmes. Check each university's bando.

Fee and booking

Unlike TOLC-I (€35 nationally) and CEnT-S (€55 nationally), TEST ARCHED has no centralized fee. Each university sets its own application fee in its bando. Booking happens on the university's own website, not through the CISIA portal.

The Decreto Ministeriale requires each university to publish its bando at least 60 days before the test date, so you'll have advance notice.

TEST@UNI vs TEST@HOME

Same concept as TOLC and CEnT formats. TEST@UNI is in person at the university's computer lab. TEST@HOME is remote via laptop + smartphone/tablet with WEBEX. Not all universities offer both — check the bando. Equipment requirements for @HOME match the standard CISIA setup: front camera on laptop, WEBEX on mobile device, blank paper, pen, private room with one visible door.

The prova aggiuntiva

The Decreto Ministeriale (Art. 2, comma 11) allows each university to schedule an optional supplementary test — the prova aggiuntiva — to fill remaining seats after the first-round ranking is exhausted. Not every university offers one; it's at each institution's discretion. Dates are published in the bando.

This is worth knowing because it gives you a second chance if you didn't place in the initial ranking, without needing to wait for the next academic cycle.

Vacant seats and cross-university transfers

After all rankings (including any prova aggiuntiva) are exhausted, universities can open remaining spots to candidates who took TEST ARCHED at a different university and didn't get a place there. These transfers are accepted in order of score until all seats are filled.

This means even if you only took the test at one university and didn't place, you might still receive an offer from a different university with unfilled seats — if your score is competitive enough.

Accommodations for disabilities and DSA

Candidates with a disability certification (Legge 104/1992) receive up to 50% additional time. Candidates with a certified specific learning disorder (DSA, Legge 170/2010) receive up to 30% additional time, with universities able to grant further measures in severe cases. International candidates must present legalized documentation with certified Italian or English translation. Submit your documentation as described in the bando.

Hard deadline: September 30

The Decreto Ministeriale sets an absolute deadline: all TEST ARCHED sessions for a given academic year must be completed by September 30. No exceptions, no extensions. Universities typically schedule their tests in July, with the prova aggiuntiva in September.

How to prepare for TEST ARCHED

TEST ARCHED's balanced weighting (20% per section) means you can't afford to neglect anything. Unlike TOLC-I where Mathematics alone accounts for 40% of questions, ARCHED rewards well-rounded preparation.

The two sections students underestimate most are Drawing and Representation and History of Art. Drawing questions require you to read floor plans, match elevations to objects, and understand axonometric projections — skills that need visual practice, not textbook memorisation. History of Art requires you to place architectural and artistic movements in time and space — broad cultural knowledge that takes time to build.

PoliPrep offers a 14-week ARCHED cohort course with two instructors, 20 full simulation tests, weekly live Saturday sessions, and a WhatsApp community — all for €599 (founding price). The curriculum is built directly from Decreto Ministeriale n. 706's official Allegato A syllabus and allocates dedicated time to Drawing and History, the sections most competitors skip.