For the first time, the CFP Board will allow some of the 8,000 candidates who sit for its examination annually to do so from the comfort of their homes — under the watchful eye of remote live monitors.
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic and quarantine necessitated the change, according to the board.
"The health and safety of our stakeholders has been paramount as [the] CFP Board has considered how best to continue our examination program during this uncertain time,” the board’s CEO Kevin Keller said in a statement.
CFP candidates with health conditions or “other situations that may prohibit them from safely visiting a testing center” will be eligible to take advantage of the new remote proctoring option as some states’ testing centers have been closed by COVID-19 quarantines, the board says. The testing company Prometric administers the exams. Candidates forced to travel 50 miles or more to testing centers will also be given the remote-testing option.
“We will work closely with Prometric to ensure the same high level of integrity and security” for the remote exams as those given at testing centers, Keller said.
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Prometric proctors will observe test takers via audio and video feeds.
“The remote testing security procedures match the level of scrutiny you will experience at a Prometric test center and the exam interface is the same,” according to a
Should any third party enter the room where the candidate is taking the examination, the test will be voided. To ensure the room does not contain content that could aid the exam taker, the proctors will supervise a 360-degree webcam examination of the testing room, the board says.
Test takers are also recommended to have “a large bedsheet or linen available” in case proctors ask them to cover up any cluttered area, the website says.
“Regulations allow two tissues at the workstation,” the board’s website says, “but the Proctor will inspect the tissues prior to the start of the exam.”
To take the test at home, or in another location of their choice, candidates must meet basic technology requirements, the board says. The remote option is only offered in the United States and not in other countries.
