http://exams.nachi.org/stats.php
Last week NACHI raised the passing cut-off score in its main entrance exam to 80. Since then nearly 500 exams have been taken with a passing rate of only 23%… that’s only one in four passing folks.
http://exams.nachi.org/stats.php](“http://exams.nachi.org/stats.php”)
Perhaps this will slow down the naysayers of the exam . . .
I really don’t hear much but compliments on our exams. Especially our course exams. Inspectors seem to think they are really good. The complaint we are getting now is that the pass rate is too hard and is not in line with other exams, and that our entrance exam is too difficult to pass, what with only a 25% pass rate. I got a complaint from a 6 year veteran yesterday who has performed thousands of inspections. He can’t pass but wants to join NACHI.
I have taken (and passed) the NHIE. I took the NACHI entrance exam before I was licensed and found it to be great help in studying the material and passing the NHIE. About the same level of difficulty.
There were some differences. In Illinois there are added questions about state law and such.
Not only good for the industry (raises all boats) but also a great guide for inspectors to learn/ Sometimes, the best way to learn is to take a test. :mrgreen:
We all know that the entrance exam has been upgraded to a very respectfully exam. The only negative aspect is that we cannot document who actually took it.
Nor can college professors for those taking masters and phd courses online.
You either know and can demonstrate the material in the real world, or you can not.
I recently took an on-line course for TREC accepted CE units (16 hours) through C.E.L.I… Every so often, throughout the test, a pop-up would appear and ask a personal question only the test taker would know. I had 30 seconds to answer the question or the test would have reset.
Not fail safe by a long shot but it’s a start. Perhaps something similar could be implemented for the NACHI entrance exam?
Russell,
Unfortunately, most naysayers are stuck on “stupid” so to speak and they will just find something else to criticize or find fault with. It is their nature to be negative and always look for the cloud in every silver lining.
Now that is scary.
I guess it doesn’t always matter if you are new or old in the business.
We better initiate DNA testing for examinees. You never know maybe their twin will fill in for them. 
That is a good idea, but where do they get the personal info, and how much of that kind of info do we want to give out?
Privacy and all that…
Funny you would ask that because I wouldn’t give them most of my personal information. They had enough to get through the exam though.
“Entrance exam now toughest in the industry.”
That’s nice, but! you can easily find a more knowledgable person to take it for you. And until the test can be verified you’ll have this:
http://kdka.dayport.com/viewer/viewerpage.php?Art_ID=8134&PreloadContract_DefID=1&Contract_DefID=2&tf=video_player.tpl&Category_ID=9
Despite our exam being open book, easier back then, a cut-off score of 75 not 80 back then, having professional help sitting next to him, and cheating… that reporter (who was fired for fabricating a different story)… failed that exam (not the one we use now)… 3 times!
It is unconscionable to rely heavily on any exam to determine competence as almost anyone can pass most every exam except our current one (which 75% of the people fail). It is OK to use an exam to alert the exam taker of just how little he/she really knows and where his/her weaknesses are though.
Instead, having well rounded entrance requirements like http://www.nachi.org/membership.htm is a better system It may not be a perfect system… but it is the best system out there.
I’d hardly consider a maintenance man a professional home inspector, said so himself, and you could raise the passing score to 90 but still not know who took the test to become a certified home inspector.
Bob, Do you mean like the 144,000 Doctorates that are earned online each year?
The exam you referenced and the one the story was about isn’t what we use today, isn’t the same lower passing cut-off we use today, and is a much smaller portion of our http://www.nachi.org/membership.htm membership requirements we use today. Try to stay current when you reference anything in a post.
Bob, what is your response to tax-payer funded University of Phoenix (and the so many other schools) who have demonstrated over and over that your point about online courses and/or testing is silly?
“Bob, Do you mean like the 144,000 Doctorates that are earned online each year?”
Is that what you’re comparing the test to? OK.
Actually, I am being current. I took the test and know it’s the same test. Raising the score doesn’t mean a damn thing when verifying the test taker is not validated.