Please contact Forensic Assurance to check availability for late-purchase tests.
Standard (Static) Proficiency Test Design: $175
Declared Double-Blind Proficiency Test Design: $200
Description: Each proficiency test includes two (2) known-contributor blood samples, provided on bloodstain cards or, upon request, on swabs. STR and Y-STR DNA results will be collected for these tests. DNA Database proficiency tests are distributed twice annually—once in the Winter and once in the Summer. These distributions are scheduled to help laboratories meet the test frequency requirements outlined by the DNA Advisory Board (DAB) and the FBI Quality Assurance Standards (QAS). Click here for more information.
Unless otherwise requested, known-contributor samples will be provided on untreated bloodstain cards.
Summer 2026 DNA Database Proficiency Test
Purchase Deadline: February 27, 2026
Distribution: Week of July 6, 2026
Answer Submission Deadline: October 5, 2026
Winter 2027 DNA Database Proficiency Test
Purchase Deadline: October 30, 2026
Distribution: Week of January 18, 2027
Answer Submission Deadline: April 19, 2027
Summer 2026 DNA Database Proficiency Test
Purchase Deadline: February 26, 2027
Distribution: Week of July 5, 2027
Answer Submission Deadline: October 4, 2027
Standard (Static) Proficiency Test Design: All forensic practitioners within a laboratory will receive the same test samples with the same expected results. These tests may include some of the same items used in the double-blind version; however, all samples are unique to each testing cycle. Static proficiency tests follow the same purchase deadlines, distribution dates, and answer submission deadlines as their double-blind counterparts.
Declared Double-Blind Proficiency Test Design: Each forensic practitioner will receive a uniquely composed test containing randomly selected known and/or unknown items. The correct answers are specific to each test, preventing participants from gaining information through discussion with others or with test administrators. These blind elements are built into the test design to reduce bias and increase the integrity of results. Please note that Forensic Assurance tests are declared, meaning the participant is aware they are taking a test.
Please contact Forensic Assurance to check availability for late-purchase tests.