Q: Is the WSET Level 3 exam taken online?
A: No. The WSET Level 3 Award in Wines exam is only offered in person, at every WSET provider worldwide, because it includes a blind tasting component that cannot be invigilated remotely. This is the single most important thing to understand about the online course: the teaching is online, the exam is not. Your exam registration and fee are included in the $1,099 course price, and you sit it at one of our US exam locations.
Q: Where can I sit the in-person exam?
A: We currently run Level 3 exams in Napa CA, Tampa FL, Nashville TN, Chicago IL, Denver CO, Jersey City NJ, San Antonio TX and Buellton CA in the Santa Ynez Valley. Napa hosts two exam dates every month; the other locations host at least one exam per quarter. Current dates are listed on our WSET Level 3 exam dates page, and seating is capped at between 14 and 26 candidates per sitting.
Q: When do I need to register for my exam?
A: You must register for your in-person exam at least 30 days before your chosen exam date, because WSET requires providers to order exam papers 30 days in advance. Register early rather than late, since popular dates fill and a missed 30-day window means waiting for the next available sitting.
Q: Can I take this course from outside the United States?
A: You can take the taught portion from anywhere, but all of our Level 3 exam locations are in the United States, and webinars are scheduled in Pacific time. If you are based overseas, contact us at support@napavalleywineacademy.com before you enroll so we can talk through your exam options rather than have you discover the constraint after paying.
Q: Do I need WSET Level 1 and Level 2 before I can enroll in Level 3?
A: No. WSET sets no mandatory prerequisite for the WSET Level 3 Award in Wines, but it recommends the WSET Level 2 Award in Wines or an equivalent level of wine knowledge, and so do we - Level 3 begins from the assumption that you already recognize the major grape varieties and classic regions. If you are unsure whether your knowledge is at that standard, download the Level 2 course specification and test yourself against it. All students must be at least 21 years of age, and candidates sitting the exam in English as a second language are advised to have IELTS 6.5 or above.
Q: How is the online course structured?
A: It is a ten-week semi-synchronous course, meaning it combines self-paced study you do on your own schedule with five live instructor-led Zoom webinars of 60 to 90 minutes at fixed dates and times. The self-paced material - lecture videos, interactive maps, activities, quizzes and mock exams - is available 24/7 throughout. Each cohort has a fixed start and end date, so you progress alongside your classmates rather than entirely alone.
Q: Are the live webinars mandatory, and what if I miss one?
A: Attendance is not mandatory and every webinar is recorded and posted for later viewing, so a work conflict or a time zone will not put you behind. We strongly encourage attending live anyway, because the webinars are where you can ask your instructor questions, taste alongside them and hear the reasoning behind an assessment rather than just the conclusion. Published webinar times are Pacific.
Q: How much time should I budget each week?
A: WSET specifies a Total Qualification Time of 84 hours for this qualification, made up of 32.5 guided learning hours plus 51.5 hours of private study. Across a ten-week cohort that works out to roughly eight to ten hours per week. Candidates who treat it as a light commitment are the ones who struggle with the theory paper.
Q: When do I get access after I buy?
A: You receive email links to your online course within 30 minutes of purchase, so you can start reading before your cohort formally begins. You also get free access to the WSET digital textbook through the WSET Global Reader on web, iOS and Android for two years from purchase. If you add the printed textbook, it ships within about 5 to 8 business days within the US.
Q: How long do I keep access to the course material?
A: You keep full access to the online learning platform for 12 months, which continues well past the end of the ten-week instructor-led portion. That matters more at Level 3 than at lower levels, because your exam date may fall weeks after teaching ends and a resit may fall later still - the material is still there when you need to revise.
Q: Do I need to buy the wine kit?
A: No, the wine kit is optional. We publish a list of 24 recommended wines by region and style - German Riesling Kabinett, Chablis Premier Cru, Barolo, Amarone, Barossa Shiraz, Oloroso Sherry and so on - and you are welcome to source those styles locally. Alternatively you can buy a curated 24 x 100 mL sample kit from our partner Small Lot Bottles, which spares you the cost of 24 full bottles.
Q: How long does the wine kit take to arrive?
A: Allow 7 to 10 days for delivery, and factor that in when choosing a cohort start date. If your kit arrives after a tasting webinar has already run, you have not lost the session, because all webinars are recorded and you can taste along with the recording once your wines land.
Q: What is the exam format?
A: Two independently graded components, both sat in person on the same day: a two-hour theory paper of 50 multiple-choice questions and four short written-answer questions, and a 30-minute blind tasting of two wines assessed using the WSET Level 3 Systematic Approach to Tasting®. The two components are marked separately, and you must reach the pass mark in each of them.
Q: What are the pass mark, Merit and Distinction thresholds?
A: You must score at least 55% in each of the two components independently - a strong tasting result cannot rescue a failed theory paper. Merit is awarded for an aggregate of 65 to 79%, and Distinction for an aggregate of 80% or above with no individual paper below 65%.
Q: What is Napa Valley Wine Academy's WSET Level 3 pass rate?
A: From 3,016 graded sittings between 2023 and 2026, 60.2% of our candidates passed the theory paper and 89.8% passed the tasting. That gap is the most useful planning fact we can give you: theory is what fails most Level 3 candidates, so weight your study toward the written paper rather than assuming the tasting is the hard part.
Q: What happens if I do not pass?
A: You are eligible to resit, you do not need to retake the course, and there is no deadline on the resit. Because the two components are graded independently, a partial pass means you only resit the one you failed - pass the tasting and fail the theory, and you resit theory alone. Resit fees are $225 for a single component and $280 for both.
Q: When will I get my results and certificate?
A: Results are issued approximately 10 to 12 weeks after your exam date, because all Level 3 papers are graded at WSET's headquarters in London rather than locally. For exams taken after 17 August 2025, WSET issues digital certificates and badges instead of shipping paper certificates and pins. On passing both components you are entitled to describe yourself as WSET Level 3 Certified and to use the WSET logo on your professional materials.
Q: What is included in the $1,099 price, and what costs extra?
A: The price covers the ten-week instructor-led course with a dedicated instructor, five live webinars, the full self-paced online platform for 12 months, the WSET digital textbook for two years, mock exams, and your in-person exam registration and fee. Costing extra are the optional 24-sample wine kit, an optional printed textbook, and our Complete Exam Prep Package, which is included free with NVWA membership. Group discounts apply when booking together: 5% for two students, 8% for three and 10% for four.
Q: Can I cancel or move to a later cohort?
A: Yes, if you act at least 14 business days before your cohort start date. Cancellations in that window are refunded as store credit after a $50 administration fee and the cost of any study materials, exam fees and wine kits already committed. One transfer per person per course is permitted on the same 14-business-day deadline and the same $50 fee. Within 14 business days of the start, or once the course has begun, no refunds or transfers are available; our General Policies page carries the full terms.
Q: Can I keep my place but move only my exam date?
A: Yes, and it is handled separately from a course transfer. Rescheduling your exam with more than 30 days notice costs a $99 transfer fee, while less than 30 days notice, or a missed exam, triggers the full $280 reorder fee. If you miss the exam for medical or other exceptional reasons, submit WSET's Special Consideration form with supporting evidence within seven days of the exam date; if WSET approves it, you are rescheduled at no extra cost.
Q: Should I take the online course or the in-person course?
A: Choose online if you need to spread the work over ten weeks around a job, want 12 months of platform access to revise against, and are content to travel to a US exam location once. Choose the six-day in-person course in Napa if you would rather immerse yourself, taste approximately 80 benchmark wines poured in front of you and sit the exam at the end of the same week. Both routes lead to the identical qualification and the identical exam, and the credential does not record which format you took.
Q: I need a reasonable adjustment for a disability or learning difficulty. How do I arrange it?
A: Reasonable adjustments are available but must be approved by WSET before we can implement them, and applications for Levels 1 to 3 must reach WSET at least six weeks before your exam date. Contact us as early as you can and we will help you prepare the application. If you have an approved adjustment and then cannot attend, notify us in writing at support@napavalleywineacademy.com at least 24 hours in advance, or a $50 late cancellation fee applies.
Q: Who teaches the course, and can I speak to someone before booking?
A: Your cohort is led by a dedicated WSET-certified educator, drawn from a faculty that includes WSET Level 4 Diploma holders, Masters of Wine, Master Sommeliers and working Napa Valley winemakers; Napa Valley Wine Academy was named WSET Educator of the Year in 2016 and again in 2019. If you want to check that Level 3 is the right step before you pay, email support@napavalleywineacademy.com and our student support team will talk you through the prerequisite, the weekly study load and which cohort suits your schedule.
