looks like NCEES could help out the medical world

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My brother in law is a doc and he told me they all basically swap out notes and pass on down the line, mainly to their friends and others they went to school with.....

And we are lucky to make half what they make!

 
Those tests are expensive to make, and determine the pass scores. Engineering exams cost over $100K per question. I bet the medical exam questions would cost nearly the same.
Actually, in the January/February 2012 issue of PE Magazine published by NSPE, they answer the question, "How much does a question on the various engineering licensing exams cost?" as follows:

FE Exam Item $2,472

PE Exam Item (Group I Exams) $2,921

PE Exam Item (Group II Exams) $2,322

SE Exam Item (Multiple Choice Items) $2,921

SE Exam Item (Free Response Item) $18,083

*Calculation includes travel expenses, subject-matter experts' time, psychometric costs, and office and personnel costs

Do I get g33k points for knowing this? :)

 
Those tests are expensive to make, and determine the pass scores. Engineering exams cost over $100K per question. I bet the medical exam questions would cost nearly the same.
Actually, in the January/February 2012 issue of PE Magazine published by NSPE, they answer the question, "How much does a question on the various engineering licensing exams cost?" as follows:

FE Exam Item $2,472

PE Exam Item (Group I Exams) $2,921

PE Exam Item (Group II Exams) $2,322

SE Exam Item (Multiple Choice Items) $2,921

SE Exam Item (Free Response Item) $18,083

*Calculation includes travel expenses, subject-matter experts' time, psychometric costs, and office and personnel costs

Do I get g33k points for knowing this? :)
Those tests are expensive to make, and determine the pass scores. Engineering exams cost over $100K per question. I bet the medical exam questions would cost nearly the same.
Actually, in the January/February 2012 issue of PE Magazine published by NSPE, they answer the question, "How much does a question on the various engineering licensing exams cost?" as follows:

FE Exam Item $2,472

PE Exam Item (Group I Exams) $2,921

PE Exam Item (Group II Exams) $2,322

SE Exam Item (Multiple Choice Items) $2,921

SE Exam Item (Free Response Item) $18,083

*Calculation includes travel expenses, subject-matter experts' time, psychometric costs, and office and personnel costs

Do I get g33k points for knowing this? :)
That varies from the costs given to me which also related to a civil suit against someone stealing exam questions.

 
That varies from the costs given to me which also related to a civil suit against someone stealing exam questions.
And you know what we think of lawyers around these parts! Imagine them padding the damages...
I think it makes sense; those are the direct costs for writing the questions.. but then there's going back through and discounting the question from those that took the exam, regrading it, reprinting the next book, being unable to reuse that question in the next exam (limiting choices that may have already been made), investigation costs etc. I can completely believe that it costs 100k.

 
That varies from the costs given to me which also related to a civil suit against someone stealing exam questions.
And you know what we think of lawyers around these parts! Imagine them padding the damages...
I think it makes sense; those are the direct costs for writing the questions.. but then there's going back through and discounting the question from those that took the exam, regrading it, reprinting the next book, being unable to reuse that question in the next exam (limiting choices that may have already been made), investigation costs etc. I can completely believe that it costs 100k.
Not to mention a new cut score meeting for the test due to changing a question. Thirteen engineers plus advisers, plus observers, plus NCEES personnel, plus the cost of the statistical analysis that is outsourced to a company that analyzes the tests for multiple professions. The costs rack up quickly. Just the hotel bill for the professionals along with donated vacation time by the test writers and cut score committees will add up. Airfare or mileage to those meetings will also add thousands.

 
Not to mention a new cut score meeting for the test due to changing a question. Thirteen engineers plus advisers, plus observers, plus NCEES personnel, plus the cost of the statistical analysis that is outsourced to a company that analyzes the tests for multiple professions. The costs rack up quickly. Just the hotel bill for the professionals along with donated vacation time by the test writers and cut score committees will add up. Airfare or mileage to those meetings will also add thousands.
But those aren't the variable costs of developing QUESTIONS. There's no way it costs $100,000 to write one more question.

 
Not to mention a new cut score meeting for the test due to changing a question. Thirteen engineers plus advisers, plus observers, plus NCEES personnel, plus the cost of the statistical analysis that is outsourced to a company that analyzes the tests for multiple professions. The costs rack up quickly. Just the hotel bill for the professionals along with donated vacation time by the test writers and cut score committees will add up. Airfare or mileage to those meetings will also add thousands.
But those aren't the variable costs of developing QUESTIONS. There's no way it costs $100,000 to write one more question.
The gov could do that easily!

 
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