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Five Preference Points on a State Examination — Ten With a Purple Heart or a Rating

Five points are added to a final passing examination score for a veteran, and a further five — ten in total — for a Purple Heart recipient or a veteran with an established service-connected disability. The disability route needs a Veterans Administration letter dated within the last six months.

Verified August 23, 2026

What this benefit is

What it's worth: Five points on a passing score, ten with a Purple Heart or a service-connected disability

The Division of Personnel states five points are added to a final passing examination score for a veteran who served on active duty as defined in federal law.
A veteran is defined by W. Va. Code §6-13-1(g) as someone discharged or released from active-duty service under honorable conditions, or who completed full-time National Guard or Military Reserves training exceeding ninety consecutive days.
An additional five points — ten in total — apply where the person has established the present existence of a service-connected disability, or is receiving compensation, disability retirement benefits or a pension; and separately where the person received a Purple Heart.
The points attach to a passing score. They do not turn a failing score into a passing one.

Who is entitled to it

The points are added to the veteran’s own score.
You served in the armed forces.
Your separation is within the range the definition describes.
Your home is in W. Va.

Not sure whether that describes you?

Answer a few questions about this benefit specifically — we only ask what this one actually depends on, and we stop as soon as we know.

How to claim it

Deadline: With the examination application

1Get a fresh Veterans Administration letter before you apply if you are claiming the disability points. The Division requires one dated within the last six months, and an older letter is the most common reason the extra five are not added.
2Attach the DD Form 214 for the base five points, and for the Purple Heart route — the Division verifies the award through that form.
3Note the ceiling: five plus five is ten, and ten is the maximum described. Holding both a Purple Heart and a rating does not stack to fifteen.
4Check the Guard and Reserve route in the definition: full-time training exceeding ninety consecutive days counts, which brings in people who assume it does not.
5The points ride on a passing score. Prepare for the examination on its own terms first.
6Ring the Division on the eligibility line before the closing date if your paperwork is unusual. Fixing it afterwards is much harder.

Form: Claim the preference with the application, with proof attached
File with: W. Va. Division of Personnel
Documents you will need: dd214 · va benefit summary letter
At each renewal: Claimed again whenever the underlying licence or registration renews.

Known gapThe page read this session addresses examination scoring. Whether the preference reaches promotions or reductions in force was not established, and nothing is claimed about either.

Worth knowingThe six-month currency requirement on the Veterans Administration letter is a paperwork rule, not an eligibility rule — the rating has not changed, only the date on the page. Order the letter as part of applying, not before you start looking.

Sources

authority · published policyW. Va. Division of Personnel — Veterans Preference Points and Other Information (five points on a passing score; five more for a service-connected disability or a Purple Heart; the six-month letter; the §6-13-1(g) definition)

Why only one source type: The Division of Personnel administers the preference and publishes the operative rules. The Code host refused every connection this session, so §6-13-1 itself was not opened and the definition is carried as the Division states it.

This finder provides an informational match, not a government eligibility determination. The responsible agency decides your application.