WEST PLAINS, Mo. – Missouri State University-West Plains has entered into an agreement with Pearson VUE to provide computer-based testing for a variety of certifications through the university’s testing center in the Advising and Academic Coaching Center for Empowering Student Success (AACCESS).

According to Victoria Howerton, coordinator of testing services at AACCESS, Pearson VUE is the industry leader in computer-based testing services.  The company, founded in 1994, provides exams for a variety of career and educational fields, including certification exams for leading information technology programs such as Cisco, CompTIA, EMC, HP, LPI, Oracle, Vmware, Adobe and Microsoft.

Missouri educators will benefit greatly from this new partnership, as the new Missouri Content Assessment exams, which are replacing the PRAXIS exams required for teacher certification in the state of Missouri, will be part of the program, Howerton said.

Missouri State-West Plains recently renovated its testing facilities in the Garnett Library to aid in its offering of third-party examinations to area residents.  Among the exams available through the testing center are the COMPASS placement tests for math and reading, the HiSET high school equivalency examination, the Missouri General Education Assessment (MoGEA) exam for students wishing to enter teacher education programs, and the PRAXIS teacher certification exams, which are still required for teacher certification in Arkansas.

For more information about the Pearson VUE testing program or other testing services available at Missouri State-West Plains, call 417-255-7943 or e-mail WPTesting@MissouriState.edu.