How Is the Casper Test Scored
The Computer-Based Assessment for Sampling Personal Characteristics (Casper) test is a virtual exam required by many professional schools for admission. This includes programs such as optometry, dentistry, physician’s assistant, physiotherapy, and medical schools. Depending on the institution, the Casper test result is weighed differently; however, it still plays an important role in admission decision and adequate preparation should be made to increase your chances of being accepted. Therefore, it is best to figure out how the test works and what result you should be aiming for. In this article, we will cover how the Casper test is scored and what defines a good Casper score.
What Is the Test Structure?
The 2023-2024 Casper is a 90–110 minute test of 14 components. These 14 components are divided into two sections in the following order:
- Video Response Format consisting of 6 components (4 video-based scenarios and 2 word-based scenarios that are in random order). During this section, the test-taker gets 1 minute each to record themselves on their webcam and verbally answer 3 questions pertaining to each prompt.
- Typed Response Format consisting of 8 components (5 video-based scenarios and 3 word-based scenarios that are in random order). During this section, the test-taker has 5 minutes to type their answer to 3 questions pertaining to each prompt.
For more information on what to expect on your Casper test day, read our article here.
How Is the Test Scored?
The test contains 14 scenarios altogether, and each scenario is reviewed by a different person. However, evaluators only assign a score to the first 9 scenarios in the first section, which requires typed responses. Feedback and results are currently not provided for the video-recorded responses in the second section. The evaluators come from a variety of professions and backgrounds, and they do not receive any information about your personal or educational background when evaluating.
Generally, the evaluators must assign each scenario a mark out of 9 (1 being poor, and 9 being satisfactory), meaning the three questions pertaining to each scenario is marked holistically instead of assigning a separate mark to each of the three questions. This means that even though there are three questions for each scenario, each of the three questions is not assigned 3 points. Instead, the entire scenario is marked as a whole. This means that not only are the evaluators reviewing your responses to each question, but they are also accounting for other aspects such as how you present yourself, the sense of empathy and equity that you demonstrate through your responses, your communication skills, and the amount of effort you are putting into your responses. For instance, an attempt at a more challenging question within the three presented questions may impact your performance more positively, compared to skipping a challenging question entirely. Therefore, answering all three questions will not necessarily guarantee you a higher mark, while leaving a question blank will not necessarily result in a lower mark. Based on your overall performance, evaluators will rate your performance relative to other applicants that also took the CASPer test on the same day and time. This means your score on the CASPer test will depend on how others do in comparison to you, and do not represent the number of questions you got “right” or “wrong”.
If an answer is deemed by the evaluator as one that does not align with the professional and ethical standards they believe the test-taker should have, it will be flagged. However, evaluators must also provide a reason for any flagged responses, which is then reviewed by the admissions committee. If an applicant’s responses are flagged too many times, it may be deemed unacceptable by the admissions committee. Note that each scenario may have multiple “correct” or acceptable answers but being flagged means that the test-taker may have demonstrated an unethical, unprofessional or potentially harmful approach to the presented scenario. This may suggest that the candidate is lacking the critical thinking skills and ability to deal with similar situations in their potential future healthcare profession. Therefore, be sure to think carefully when answering the prompts and provide strong, valid reasoning to back up your responses.
What Is a Good Test Score?
Although the evaluators assign each scenario a raw score from 1 to 9, the test-takers will only receive quartile scores around one month after their test date. Because your performance is rated relative to others that tested on the same day and time as you, your score will be presented relatively, in the form of a quartile score. The quartile score indicates the percentage of other test-takers that you scored higher than, and compares your performance to other test-takers.
For example, if you are in the 1st quartile, this means that you are within the 25th percentile compared to other test-takers. In other words, you scored lower than 75% of other test-takers. If you are in the 2nd quartile, you are in the 50th percentile, which means you scored better than 25% of other test-takers (in the 1st quartile), but lower than test-takers in the 3rd and 4th quartiles. Similarly, being in the 3rd quartile means you performed better than at least 50% of other test-takers, but worse than 25% of other test-takers. Lastly, being in the 4th quartile means you performed better than at least 75% of other test-takers (those in the 1st to 3rd quartiles) that took the Casper test on the same day and time as you.
It’s safe to say that scoring in the 3rd or 4th quartile lands in you a solid spot within the application cycle. However, note that each institution weighs the Casper test differently in their selection process and admission decisions, so do not let a lower quartile score prevent you from applying to a certain program or school. As mentioned previously, the Casper test measures a variety of different factors aside from just your responses, including empathy, equity, communication and effort. As long as your GPA is competitive and you have other extracurriculars or achievements that align with the school’s expectations and requirements, it would still be worth trying to apply.
Two to three weeks after you receive your quartile score, Casper will send your z-score to the applicable professional schools. Similar to the quartile score, the z-score will provide insight into how you performed relative to others that tested on the same day and time. However, the z-score also shows how many “points” you are away from the mean score, which will indicate where you stand across all applicants that have taken the Casper test. For instance, a z-score of 0 means that your performance corresponds with the mean or average performance of all candidates, while a score of +2 means you performed better than the average score by 2 standard deviation points.
Conclusion
Even though professional school applications encompass more than just a test score, the Casper is an important metric for admission. Therefore, it is best to look into the schools you want to apply for, including their admitted class profiles, to determine what scores are competitive and how well you will need to perform on the Casper test to maximize your chances of receiving admission. If you have just registered for the Casper Test or are taking the test soon and looking for extra resources, check out our articles How to Prepare for the Casper Test and What to Expect on Casper Test Day. Having a good idea of how to prepare for the test, what to expect on the day of, and how is the Casper test scored, this will help maximize your performance on the Casper test. Good luck!
