May 1 marks the two year anniversary of Prometric reopening its testing centers to CPA candidates after shuttering every single American test site in March 2020 due to… you know what I don’t need to type all this out, you know why they were closed. While the nail techs waited anxiously for Prometric to reopen to all, future CPAs could boast that they were “essential” and therefore allowed to test at super clean, socially-distanced Prometric sites. Suck it, nail techs.
Prometric has long since opened to everyone — though site closures do still occur from time-to-time as they always have — and now after much consideration they are ditching the mask mandate that has been in place since the 2020 reopening.
From Prometric’s coronavirus update page:
As of May 1, 2022, Prometric will no longer require candidates or test center personnel to wear masks unless required to do so by building management or local government mandates. In light of recent trends and mask mandate changes around the world, along with updated guidance from leading world health organizations, Prometric will not require masks to be worn in test centers, however we will continue to allow and encourage the wearing of masks regardless of mandate or vaccination status. Thus, any candidate or staff member that prefers to wear a mask will feel comfortable doing so. We will also always follow the guidance of local government and health officials, so when masks are mandated in a market, Prometric will continue to follow that guidance in test centers as well. [emphasis Prometric]
Since September 1, 2021 masks have not been required for fully-vaccinated test takers — unless mandated by local government — however as with the upcoming rule change, candidates are allowed to wear one if they prefer. The May 1 rule change opens this choice up to everyone including Prometric staff regardless of vaccination status.
No matter how you may feel about masks and mask mandates, it’s important to acknowledge that Prometric’s rule change leaves quite a bit of room for personal choice. Any CPA who has tested there in the last 18 years knows that Prometric has historically been pretty uptight when it comes to security and would make you do a squat-and-cough to check for contraband in your prison purse if they could, so letting people continue to wear masks if they want to is an unusually thoughtful gesture from them. After all, this is the same company that confiscated someone’s comfort rock.
Weapons, cigarettes, Fitbits, and umbrellas will continue to be banned at Prometric testing centers.
Photo by Anna Shvets
