What’s it Like to Take an Online Proctored Microsoft Certification Exam?
Each year for the past several years, I have set a personal goal to get developer certified or trained in something new. Sometimes that is a Microsoft Exam, sometimes it is some other certification, such as Kendo UI certification. In previous years, I have had to travel to a test center to take certain Microsoft Exams, but the test center closest to me closed in 2014. The next closest location is over 2 hrs away, which was pretty much a deal breaker for me, and I had almost given up this year on meeting my goal for 2016. But, instead I decided to try something new: an Online Proctored Microsoft Certification Exam.
Per Microsoft’s rules, I can’t talk about the specifics of my actual exam (although I can tell you I passed), but I wanted to share a few tips for anyone considering the online proctoring route for their next test. In case you are wondering how to get started, here is the list of exams offered and how to schedule them.
Schedule Ahead of Time
I learned this one the hard way. I originally wanted to take my exam over a weekend, so I could have time to do one last review beforehand. But, when I got to the step for scheduling, the only available dates for the next few weeks were Monday-Friday. I would have had to wait longer to schedule on a weekend, so I ended up scheduling at 5:30 AM on a Tuesday morning. Other times were too close to my regular work hours, and so I had to make it work with just a super early time.
Read the Instructions
There were a lot of instructions for the online exam. The one that I had the hardest time with was the No Breaks and No Interruptions. That’s another reason I went with 5:30 AM, because after about 7 AM there’s pretty much no guarantee I won’t get a phone call or a knock at my door, either of which could mess up my exam.
Have a Designated Space
I share an office, so my regular desk does not meet the requirements for the Online Proctored exam. You have to be the only person in the room, the door has to shut, and your workspace must be completely clear. No posters, no books, no other monitors, etc. My proctor made me turn over my mousepad because it had some writing on it!
Test your System
This one also nearly messed me up. For a while, I was unable to install the testing software to run a system test , and the error message was less than helpful. But it turned out that the first failed installation was still on my system, and I had to do a manual uninstall before trying to install again. Also, make really sure your webcam works well, because you have to use it to take a picture of your ID, and it will be turned on for the duration of your exam. That’s the ‘proctoring’ part of the online proctor.
Do a Clean Startup
The Testing software kept telling me I had illegal processes running (I’m looking at you, Chrome!), and so I finally just had to take the nuclear approach. I went into my Windows settings and disabled every startup process, and restarted my laptop. Then, it worked perfectly. I am really glad I did this step ahead of time, because I wouldn’t have wanted to be stressed out about it at 5:25 AM on the day of my exam.
Listen to the Proctor
My proctor was very helpful in answering my questions. There was a live phone call before he started my exam, and he gave me the final set of do’s and don’ts for the exam, all of which were very clear and reasonable. There was also a chat window open the entire time in case I needed assistance.
The entire process took about 1 hour and 45 minutes, which was so nice compared to over 2 hrs just to get to a testing center. That is enough of a benefit that I am more than willing to do a little extra prep and scheduling to take an exam this way again. Unless you are lucky enough to be within 10 minutes of an actual testing facility, I would absolutely recommend this option for your next Microsoft exam.
Originally published at Falafel Software Blog.
