Online proctored tests are gaining confidence and acceptance among educational institutions and certification suppliers around the world, and for good cause. As the global pandemic drove schools and universities to close their campuses and relocate their learning and assessment procedures online, remote proctoring has become a popular method for conducting tests in a secure manner.

However, many institutions and colleges are introducing an online exam and remote proctoring option for the first time. According to an Educause research, 33% of respondents who use proctoring are unsure of what to look for in a proctoring system and are unfamiliar with best practices.

Purchasing an online proctoring program that integrates seamlessly with your LMS and meets all of your individual requirements necessitates a thorough awareness of the most important proctoring capabilities, as well as an understanding of your personal needs. 

In this blog post, we’ve selected the top elements to consider while selecting remote proctoring software. The purpose of this essay is to assist you in successfully navigating the market’s proctoring software landscape. 

How to Select the Right Online Proctoring Tool:

Comprehensive

You don’t need to spend on several tools if a single software can accomplish the job. It should be simple to host tests online without having to deal with numerous software. A good proctoring program should be able to give its consumers whatever they need when it comes to online exams.

Universities or institutions should be able to hold online exams across geographies, automate exam scheduling, administer a variety of tests (MCQ, Essay, viva, etc.), conveniently score assessments, and ensure legitimate exam results, all with the support of a single software platform. Many exam proctoring software, for example, has online exams and video interviewing features. It not only allows you to conduct online assessments or oral exams via live video, but it also helps you ensure that your students do not cheat on exams by allowing you to watch their activity while taking the test – all from a single platform.

Scalable

Any excellent online proctoring service will ensure that it can handle large-scale tests. School or university exams can be administered to anywhere from tens to thousands of pupils at once. You will need to ensure that your proctoring software can manage the scale. Certification providers or MOOCs offer online courses to candidates. Because candidates from all over the world apply, the classes and exams must be held on a large scale.

As a result, the software should be capable of holding large-scale tests flawlessly, as well as a strong scheduling system that can account for time differences and hold exams when it is convenient for the candidate.

Easy Integration

When purchasing proctoring software, keep in mind that the software’s quality and competence in isolation are not the only factors that contribute to its success — the capacity to integrate with your existing technology stack is also important. 

For example, most educational institutions use Learning Management Systems to manage, document, and track the educational courses and programs they offer. When making a purchasing choice, you should validate that the program is compatible with your LMS solution. This is an important question because most solutions on the market today integrate with only a few LMSs.

User Experience

The user experience is another important consideration. The shift from offline to online proctoring must provide a satisfactory user experience for both you and the students taking the exams. Because the entire process is automated, an intuitive proctoring program should ensure that each exam is completed not only quickly and efficiently, but also as smoothly as feasible.

While the program should be able to meet all of your exam standards and save you time, it should also provide a non-intrusive interface for both you and your pupils. Platform robustness becomes crucial. Online proctoring includes video streaming, desktop sharing, secure browser use, restricting specific actions or websites, and other features.

Customizability

To make the online assessments as authentic and close to your offline tests as possible, you will need a proctoring solution that can be tailored to your specific needs without compromising performance. With so many different versions of the same program available, it might be tough to locate one that can tailor its functionality to your specific system. Most smart softwares allows you to personalize practically every aspect of the platform, including preventing behaviors such as copying/pasting or accessing computer files, browser policing, restricting student access to specific websites during exams, and more.

 For example, an AI-powered proctoring platform allows you to personalize features such as selecting the exact type of candidate authentication that you are most comfortable with, as well as performing a 360-degree environment check on the test taker prior to the test to ensure accurate results.

Reporting System

As the pen and paper exam model transitions to online assessments, it is critical to have a proctoring software in place that allows you to create exam reports with proper metrics (such as understanding different variations of a correct answer in subjective exams and how many marks to be assigned to them).

Cost

When determining the cost and effectiveness of proctoring software, you should consider the services that come with it. It is preferable to invest in comprehensive end-to-end software that simplifies your job and test-taking than to choose for cheaper and less efficient software that may make the task even more difficult.

 Proctoring software is a one-time investment that can save you a significant amount of productive time. Using several softwares for different reasons can be time-consuming, complicated, and even function as a barrier to giving a pleasant experience to your exam managers and test takers.

Remotely proctored exams are the way forward for education, mitigating the question of what is a proctored exam. With so many participants in the market right now, the online proctoring service that should stand out to you is the one that can meet all of your exam requirements. Mercer | Mettl is a platform which eases the stress of proctoring online exams and helps you evaluate correctly by all means. Check out the website now.