Unproctored Internet Testing, Essay Example

Unproctored internet testing is adopted in many scenarios for which those providing these tests expect to gain results from a test base with minimal interaction from the provider. This alternative is commonly used as a form of employment verification testing to validate specific skills or knowledge areas that employees claim to have. While this practice accomplishes the task by providing an opportunity for a prospective employee to illustrate his or her skills, it also poses a risk. This risk is derived from the actions that the test taker might take that could mitigate the primary function of the test itself. In this context, the test taker could use unauthorized materials and resources to answer the questions or a substitute test taker could serve as a replacement. These actions distract from the purpose of the test and may lead tothe falsification of test results.

It is necessary to consider when specific occupations might be conducive to unproctored internet testing, whereby this approach could provide the means to validate the subject’s competency in critical job functions. If this testing is deemed critical, the testing organization could determine the level of risk they are willing to accept. Furthermore, the organization could depend solely on the test results to evaluate a prospective employee but there could also be a follow up test when a higher level of risk is involved. This typeoffollow-up testing would confirm or deny the initial test results and would only be delivered to a smaller subset of applicants.

Based upon these conditions, the UIT should be performed in key positions within the organization that require a specific level of certification or knowledge to perform critical tasks. If the tasks that are evaluated present a high level of risk, a follow-up testing procedure could be used to validate the initial testing and a selection of the most qualified employee could be made based upon those results.