Examination guidelines

This page describes how we conduct examinations within our FIR.

The Controller Practical Test (CPT) policy for VATSCA is the policy that regulates exams. You are required to stay updated on and follow this as an examiner.

Procedures

An exam normally consists of three different stages as outligned below.

All exams for ratings, with exception of S1, shall be conducted on the network. Sweatbox exams must be approved by VATEUD in advance - talk to training staff if relevant.

Before an exam

Be familiar with the Evaluation Criteria for the exam (these are also in the examination templates)

Download and use the latest Examination Template for the exam

Show up prepared in discord, no later than 5 minutes before the scheduled exam time

Make sure to have updated sector files to avoid problems during the exam

During an exam

As an examiner you are responsible for the service provided on the network and is expected to take measures if necessary.

Refer to the CPT policy in the top of this page.

Logging on

Allow the student to log on first to prevent issues with tag transfers.

Log on using the correct callsign:
- The main examiner shall always use X as the midfix. Examples: ENBR_X_TWR, ENGM_X_APP.
- If you are a secondary examiner, use XX as the midfix.

Handling standby positions

Make sure to familiarize yourself with the top-down requirements from the Controller Practical Test (CPT) policy for VATSCA, linked in the top of this page.

As an examiner you are the one deciding when standby positions can become active. While the student can request it, you shall make an assessment whether or not it's the correct time.

While top-down is an important criteria, the candidate is only expected to demonstrate the ability and as such should not have to sit top-down longer than necessary to fulfill this requirement.

Refer to the staffing thread in norway-staffing on discord to see who is on standby. They are required to be ready within 5 minutes. If they don't respond in due time, try to get a replacement if able and inform training staff as soon as possible.

When a standby position is required to become active, you are responsible for communicating this with the person on standby and inform the candidate. It is recommended to ask the person on standby to report ready to the candidate for a smooth handover.

Specific to S2

Due to evaluation criteria 1b, the candidate shall set up the ATIS. If an adjacent controller has it they should drop it.

After an exam

⚠️ IMPORTANT! You are required to save and keep the Euroscope log file for 1 month after the exam is conducted due to VATEUD requirements.

Debrief

The candidate shall be debriefed after the exam has concluded. Use the "Exam debrief" voice channel in discord if available, otherwise use a Training Room.

A debrief should summarize the performance and give the result. Some tips and general feedback can be given.

Delayed result: in cases where a result cannot be given during the debrief, the candidate shall be informed about this. We are required to provide the student with a final result within 24 hours from the exam has concluded. In all cases where a result is delayed, training staff shall be informed with a reason.

Next steps

The candidate shall be informed about the next steps after the exam is concluded, depending on the result.

🟢 If the exam is passed a rating upgrade request shall be submitted along with the exam report. This request will be forwarded to VATEUD for approval. The candidate will get an e-mail from VATEUD once the rating is upgraded and ready for use. For S1, the candidate will receive the theory exam from VATEUD which must be passed first.

🟡 / 🔴 If the result is insufficient or failed, the candidate might get another attempt depending on the number of earlier attempts. Training staff will get in contact with the student once the report is submitted.

Exam report

Always download and use the latest version of the exam template. VATEUD has become very strict on the versions and may reject the report if the wrong version is used.

It is very important to write thorough exam reports. The "Final review" field in the VATEUD CPT Logs shall give a brief description of the overall traffic and performance.

An exam has 4 possible outcomes as described below. One of these should be chosen.

Status	Description
🟢 Passed	Candidate is compliant with the criteria and CPT guidelines and is recommended for the rating / endorsement.
🔴 Failed	Candidate is not compliant with the criteria and CPT guidelines.
🟡 Insufficient	There was not enough traffic to evaluate all criteria and the candidate must be observed again in a new exam.
🔵 Postponed	Result in CC. The exam is postponed. An exam report is not required, but an explanation to training staff is.

New examiners

All examiners that are examining new ratings or endorsments shall be acompanied with an experienced examiner on the same level. The experienced examiner shall assist and assess the new examiner throughout the exam and review the draft report before being uploaded.

The experienced examiner shall inform training staff whether the new examiner is recommended to examine the level on their own.