New York Tries To Reassure Test Takers About Online Bar Exam

Bloomberg Law, New York Tries to Reassure Test Takers About Online Bar Exam:

The New York Board of Law Examiners is trying to allay concerns that the many strict rules surrounding the state’s online bar exam in early October are navigable, and won’t result in false allegations of cheating.

A frequently asked questions list released by the agency Tuesday also mandates that test takers sit for at least two mock exams before the actual test on Oct. 5-6, to make sure they understand the technology. Test takers also will need to learn how to use virtual “notes” instead of regular scrap paper, and meet strict deadlines to register their computers with the exam provider.

Concerns have been growing about the October tests being given in New York and 17 other states. In several other states, including Michigan, Florida, and Indiana, exam takers recently encountered significant problems with the software they used, or planned to use, through tech vendors ExamSoft or ILG Technologies. New York is using ExamSoft, which encountered issues in Michigan in late July, when test takers there were unable to log into a portion of the test because of an apparent cyberattack.

“This is not the test we prepared or signed up for,” advocacy group Diploma Privilege for New York tweeted in response to the FAQ. “This is not the test that thousands of lawyers took before us. This is a beta test for a format that isn’t going to work.”