BRPT Announces March 2010 Testing Dates; Confirms Move to On Demand Testing
The March 2010 RPSGT exam testing window has been set for March 15-27. Deadline for submission of applications to test in the March window is February 16. RPSGT candidates are reminded that, beginning with the March 2010 exam, the RPSGT exam will be built against a new exam blueprint, developed following a 2009 Job Task Analysis. Says BRPT President Becky Appenzeller, RPSGT, R. EEG T., CNIM, “We had an extraordinarily strong response to our 2009 Job Task Analysis Survey. Our last Job Task Analysis was conducted four years ago, and there was clearly a great deal of interest on the part of RPSGTs in letting us know how our field has evolved. The core body of knowledge needed for the RPSGT exam,” says Appenzeller, “has remained constant, but some areas currently tested have declined in importance, while others have become more important. Those changes will be reflected in the new exam blueprint.”
The new exam blueprint will be available at www.brpt.org beginning in mid-December, immediately after the close of the December 2009 testing window. An updated RPSGT exam candidate handbook, an updated study guide, and revised practice exams will be available in early 2010.
The March 2010 two-week window will be the final structured, two-week RPSGT exam testing window. Beginning in mid-June 2010 the RPSGT exam will be available to candidates “on demand.” After the close of the March testing window, candidates will be able to submit an application to test anytime after June 12. When an authorization to test is issued, candidates will be able to test on a date of their choosing, anytime during the one year period for which their authorization is valid. Candidates unsuccessful on one exam attempt will be able to re-test as soon as they feel they are prepared, without the necessity of waiting for the next fixed testing window.
The move to on demand testing was made possible by an aggressive effort to build out the RPSGT exam item bank of validated items, tested for psychometric reliability. The RPSGT item bank is now deep enough — contains a sufficient number of fully validated items — to permit the development of exam forms on an on-demand basis. “The big win for our candidates,” notes Becky Appenzeller, “is in real-time delivery of exam results. In our current model, candidates wait for about 20 business days after the close of an exam testing window for the results to be validated and available — a “post-equating” model, in psychometric terms. In June 2010 we will be able to deliver the exam using “pre-equated” items. A candidate will complete the exam, submit it, and receive a results report immediately, before leaving the Pearson VUE testing center. Our Exam Development Committee has worked very hard to get us to this point, but we truly believe the work was well worth it.”
Information about the 2010 RPSGT exam will be posted at www.brpt.org beginning after the close of the December 2009 testing window on December 12. Additional information about “on demand” RPSGT testing will be posted to www.brpt.org beginning in the first quarter of 2010.