Asks a user on r/CPA: “The United States can count millions [of] votes in one night but Nasba takes 3 months to grade my CPA exam that I took on a computer?”
Obviously the answer is that they’re sadists and they enjoy fucking with people.
For real though, people have been asking this since the CPA exam was computerized in 2004. The answer is not “because there’s a conspiracy to artificially inflate/deflate passing numbers to keep the credential prestigious” but that questions are weighted so it isn’t as simple as pass/fail for all questions and a passing score of 75 or above doesn’t translate into “75% or more correct answers.” Throw in the additional complication of moving to a new exam format this year and it takes even longer for The Powers That Be to ensure exams are being scored properly. “It is a necessary part of the high-stakes testing process,” says NASBA.
Here’s what the AICPA said about the current atrocious score release schedule earlier this year:
Whenever a new exam is launched, additional analysis is needed before candidate scores can be released. The schedule for score releases in 2024 is like 2011 and 2017, when new versions of the CPA Exam were launched. With the new CPA Exam Blueprints, there is a significant amount of new exam content, and this requires additional analysis after candidates have completed testing.
Ensuring the accuracy and fairness of the redesigned CPA Exam requires careful attention to detail, precision and the utmost care, which is why the AICPA has implemented score holds, which are brief delays in when scores are available following exam completion. These score holds help ensure consistency, fairness and statistical validation of the exam content.
Standard protocol for licensure exams with significant changes involves placing score holds so that test scores can be thoroughly reviewed and analyzed for accuracy and fairness. This process ensures that the test results are reliable and can be trusted to make crucial pass or fail decisions.
It doesn’t happen often but there have been cases of them getting scoring wrong. See this incident with FAR and REG exams taken between Q1 2011 to Q3 2012. But for the most part this tedious and annoying (to candidates) process works as intended. They’re really trying to avoid a hanging chad situation here (old people will understand the reference).
Hey, while we’re here, get a load of this guy.
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