NorthStar Exam Administration
Failure to abide by the following instructions may result in your exam being taken offline and/or result in the nullification of all exam answer submittals. Failure to abide by all exam and procedural instructions may cause your exam to be taken offline and/or cause your exam answers to be flagged ‘unauthorized’. It is highly advisable that you properly execute the instructions contained herein, as well as those contained on the exam.
Throughout exam administration, you will need your HR File ID or your HR Confirmation ID for two-factor authentication (2FA).
Step 1.) Close (or ‘close out’) all web browsers (e.g. Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer) prior to starting your exam. An identical protocol header will be contained on your exam email. If your exam email is viewed via a web browser, then you must transfer the exam instructions contained therein onto a program (app) that maintains the integrity of the exam links provided as you will need access throughout exam administration. Keep in mind, it will be very important that you are able to either click (tap) the links as provided or have the ability to copy and paste them onto a web browser address bar in a timely manner. Printing the instructions on exam day is not advisable, as that particular format may prove too time consuming.
Step 2.) You must begin at (Section 1). When you are ready to begin the exam on exam day, click the link titled (Section 1) and begin taking your exam. Once you have completed (Section 1), you must click the ‘Queued for Submission’ button at the bottom of the (Section 1) web page and once prompted to, close the web browser containing (Section 1). Return to the instructions and activate the (Section 2) link. Begin (Section 2) of the exam. At this point, there should only be one web browser ‘window’ open and it should contain (Section 2) of the exam. Once you have clicked the (Section 2) link, your browser should re-open, thus displaying the (Section 2) web page as the only web page accessible on your re-opened default browser. Activating the backspace or page forward commands (via button or shortkey) should have no consequence. Lastly, the action of accidental backspace or page forward, resulting in lost exam answers, has now been eliminated as a possibility.
Continue forward with the exam in this same fashion until the last exam section (Section 7) has been completed and you have activated the ‘Submit All Answers’ button located at the bottom of (Section 7). This will conclude exam administration. You must activate the “Submit All Answers” button immediately upon completing the exam. Again, any deviation from these instructions may result in a zero exam score.
There is a three (3) hour time limit from the time you click on the first exam link (essentially beginning the exam) to the time the exam must be completed and submitted for processing. You may commence the exam at any time between seven (7) o’clock a.m. Pacific and seven (7) o’clock p.m. Pacific on the scheduled exam day (For example: If you decide to begin the exam at 2:00 p.m. Pacific, it becomes due by 5:00 p.m. Pacific). Keep in mind that all exam links are de-activated at 7:00 o’clock p.m. Pacific.
Once the first exam link has been activated, the time begins and cannot be paused or stopped. If you choose to start the exam, then pause for whatever reason only to return at a later time to complete the exam, your three-hour time limit may expire. Once you open your exam, it will not contain any type of timing mechanism. An exam timer will not be provided. Be sure to have a watch or clock handy because the exam will not close or shut off once the time has expired. Upon commencing the exam, for any question you do not immediately know the answer to, you must skip and advance to the next question.
You will be provided seven (7) exam sections. There is a ‘primary link’ and an ‘emergency link’. All emergency links are hosted on a completely separate web server (exam server). If for any reason a particular primary link is inoperable on your Internet device, you may access the correlating emergency link. The questions contained on the primary link web pages are precisely the same questions contained on the corresponding emergency link. You are only authorized to activate an emergency link in the event of an emergency. Emergency links are provided in any event when the examinee’s browser/Internet device activates too slowly or becomes incapable of connecting to the primary exam server. This is not the same as being online, taking the exam and suddenly the exam page ‘disappears’ or ‘kicked me off’. These specific types of occurrences are the sole root of your particular Internet device or Internet connection, for which we cannot control. Exam servers do not, and cannot, ‘kick or boot’ examinees offline during exam administration.
During the course of exam administration, if you carelessly activate between both exam servers (primary and emergency) with no valid cause, you will receive a zero exam score. Activate your exam links with care and valid (instructed) purpose. Anyone who has not logged onto any exam section page by 5:00 p.m. Pacific will lose access to the entire exam.
Submit exam readiness email (per protocol) to receive exam links and passwords.
Throughout exam administration, you will need your HR File ID or your HR Confirmation ID for two-factor authentication (2FA).
Step 1.) Close (or ‘close out’) all web browsers (e.g. Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer) prior to starting your exam. An identical protocol header will be contained on your exam email. If your exam email is viewed via a web browser, then you must transfer the exam instructions contained therein onto a program (app) that maintains the integrity of the exam links provided as you will need access throughout exam administration. Keep in mind, it will be very important that you are able to either click (tap) the links as provided or have the ability to copy and paste them onto a web browser address bar in a timely manner. Printing the instructions on exam day is not advisable, as that particular format may prove too time consuming.
Step 2.) You must begin at (Section 1). When you are ready to begin the exam on exam day, click the link titled (Section 1) and begin taking your exam. Once you have completed (Section 1), you must click the ‘Queued for Submission’ button at the bottom of the (Section 1) web page and once prompted to, close the web browser containing (Section 1). Return to the instructions and activate the (Section 2) link. Begin (Section 2) of the exam. At this point, there should only be one web browser ‘window’ open and it should contain (Section 2) of the exam. Once you have clicked the (Section 2) link, your browser should re-open, thus displaying the (Section 2) web page as the only web page accessible on your re-opened default browser. Activating the backspace or page forward commands (via button or shortkey) should have no consequence. Lastly, the action of accidental backspace or page forward, resulting in lost exam answers, has now been eliminated as a possibility.
Continue forward with the exam in this same fashion until the last exam section (Section 7) has been completed and you have activated the ‘Submit All Answers’ button located at the bottom of (Section 7). This will conclude exam administration. You must activate the “Submit All Answers” button immediately upon completing the exam. Again, any deviation from these instructions may result in a zero exam score.
There is a three (3) hour time limit from the time you click on the first exam link (essentially beginning the exam) to the time the exam must be completed and submitted for processing. You may commence the exam at any time between seven (7) o’clock a.m. Pacific and seven (7) o’clock p.m. Pacific on the scheduled exam day (For example: If you decide to begin the exam at 2:00 p.m. Pacific, it becomes due by 5:00 p.m. Pacific). Keep in mind that all exam links are de-activated at 7:00 o’clock p.m. Pacific.
Once the first exam link has been activated, the time begins and cannot be paused or stopped. If you choose to start the exam, then pause for whatever reason only to return at a later time to complete the exam, your three-hour time limit may expire. Once you open your exam, it will not contain any type of timing mechanism. An exam timer will not be provided. Be sure to have a watch or clock handy because the exam will not close or shut off once the time has expired. Upon commencing the exam, for any question you do not immediately know the answer to, you must skip and advance to the next question.
You will be provided seven (7) exam sections. There is a ‘primary link’ and an ‘emergency link’. All emergency links are hosted on a completely separate web server (exam server). If for any reason a particular primary link is inoperable on your Internet device, you may access the correlating emergency link. The questions contained on the primary link web pages are precisely the same questions contained on the corresponding emergency link. You are only authorized to activate an emergency link in the event of an emergency. Emergency links are provided in any event when the examinee’s browser/Internet device activates too slowly or becomes incapable of connecting to the primary exam server. This is not the same as being online, taking the exam and suddenly the exam page ‘disappears’ or ‘kicked me off’. These specific types of occurrences are the sole root of your particular Internet device or Internet connection, for which we cannot control. Exam servers do not, and cannot, ‘kick or boot’ examinees offline during exam administration.
During the course of exam administration, if you carelessly activate between both exam servers (primary and emergency) with no valid cause, you will receive a zero exam score. Activate your exam links with care and valid (instructed) purpose. Anyone who has not logged onto any exam section page by 5:00 p.m. Pacific will lose access to the entire exam.
Submit exam readiness email (per protocol) to receive exam links and passwords.
