OK, first thing's first: deep breath. And a little perspective while you're at it. I won't remind you that there are starving children in Africa or anything like that but let's just think about how lucky we all have it before we freak out.
Now, commence to freaking out, by way of my inbox:
Hi,
Trying to create a login so I could schedule an exam continues to be a nightmare. I have filled out every form given to me and none of them save after submitting. The site tells me that my browser is not right as they only accept browsers above IE 5.5 which was what; 20 years ago? So i tried with a mac, no way. I tried with a windows 7 OS and I tried with an XP OS not that the OS should make a lick of difference. Clicked on the website for contact, typed in PA as a state and was give a # for Austin, TX. I am a little beyond crazy because I need to schedule this test but the only way to do so is through online. I hope no one else is experiencing these problems. Thanks for listening.
IE 5.5? I'm pretty sure the first computer we ever owned when I was 14 had a more advanced browser than that (keep in mind I am old as dirt).
Prometric's website has come a long way over the years. They offer a Seat Availability Tool and everything and you don't even need an exam section ID to try it so of course I wanted to see what it does. Let's see, I am in the United States and let's just look up Virginia for kicks and click NEXT. Hmm. It brings me to a big fat page of scheduling options. Er… "Search for Availability"? Is that the one I want? I guess so. I give up. Yeah, I could see why you guys would be really annoyed by this.
Anyhoo. It just so happens that CPA exam candidates aren't the only ones (shock, I know), scheduling with Prometric has been a pain since before the dawn of time. Just do a quick Internet search and you will find all kinds of annoying tales. There are also some pretty good complaints on Prometric's BBB page, although some are admittedly completely the fault of the candidate (like the "I was 1 hour late to my exam and they wouldn't let me take it or give me my money back" chick). Be sure you read Prometric's responses, which I will sum up thusly if you don't have the time: "Thank you for contacting Prometric. You're an idiot and can go fuck yourself."
In the grand scheme of things, this isn't all that bad. It happens. Get over it. At least you aren't puking on the floor or getting accused of cheating because you didn't disclaim your ostomy bag to test center staff. But it does beg the question, why does Prometric seem to have more issues than are reasonable if they're such a world-class company? Perhaps instead of protecting the integrity of the exam so much, they could put a tiny bit of effort into making things easier on the poor suckers who have no choice but to utilize their "services." Just a thought.
As always, if you have a Prometric horror story to share (no matter how pathetic or undramatic), get in touch.
