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CASPer Prep
What is the CASPer?
The CASPer is the Computer-Based Assessment for Sampling Personal Characteristics. The exam is a required component for admissions to many medical, nursing, and other professional health programs in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It is a situational judgment test administered by Altus Assessments (Acuity Insights). The CASPer evaluates an applicant’s ethical reasoning, professionalism, empathy, communication skills, and ability to make sound decisions in realistic scenarios. Unlike knowledge-based tests, CASPer focuses on how applicants think, respond, and justify their decisions when faced with challenging personal or professional situations. Admissions committees use CASPer results to gain a more complete picture of an applicant’s non-academic attributes and potential for success in fields that require interpersonal competence and ethical awareness. The CASPer has earned a reputation as one of the most unpredictable and nuanced assessments in the admissions process, as there are no definitive “right” answers, only thoughtful, well-reasoned responses. Most programs set a minimum CASPer performance threshold, and strong results can significantly improve an applicant’s overall competitiveness.
What subjects are on the MCAT and how long is the MCAT?
The CASPer consists of 2 sections:
1) Video Response Section
- 6 scenarios: Each presents a short video-based situation reflecting a real-world ethical or interpersonal challenge.
- After each scenario, the applicant must respond verbally to 2 open-ended questions using their webcam and microphone.
- This section evaluates communication, empathy, decision-making, and situational judgment under timed pressure.
- Duration: Approximately 15–20 minutes total (including response time and short transitions between scenarios).
2) Typed Response Section
- 8 scenarios: Each presents a written prompt describing a realistic personal, social, or professional situation.
- For each, the applicant must provide written answers to 3 follow-up questions within a time limit.
- This section measures an applicant’s ability to articulate ethical reasoning, emotional intelligence, professionalism, and self-awareness in writing.
- Duration: Approximately 40–45 minutes total (including reading and typing time).
How long is the CASPer?
The CASPer test takes about 60–90 minutes to complete in total, depending on pacing and transition times.
The entire session, including identity verification and setup, typically lasts about 90–110 minutes from start to finish.
Is it possible to be granted more time on the CASPer?
If an applicant has a learning disability or medical condition that requires an adjustment to standard testing conditions, they may apply for consideration of more time, where the time allotted may be more than the standard time. The reasoning behind this is to provide all individuals with an opportunity to demonstrate their proficiency on the CASPer exam. This includes ensuring access to persons with disabilities in accordance to the relevant law.
If an applicant does not have a learning disability or medical condition, it is unlikely they will be allotted more than the standard time to write the CASPer.
Who can take the CASPer and how many times can the CASPer be taken?
An individual can take the CASPer if:
- They are planning to apply to a medical, nursing, dental, pharmacy, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, or other professional health program that lists CASPer as part of its admissions requirements.
- The CASPer is required by many Canadian and international schools as part of the Acuity Insights assessment suite (which may also include Duet and Snapshot).
- Applicants must first register an Acuity Insights account and link it to their intended program(s) before booking a test date.
- Both undergraduate and postgraduate applicants may take the CASPer, including international students seeking entry into Canadian or U.S. programs.
- There are no formal academic prerequisites to take the CASPer. Students from any background, whether in science, arts, or social sciences, may sit for the assessment.
- While academic strength remains important for admissions, CASPer is specifically designed to evaluate non-academic traits such as empathy, integrity, and professionalism, ensuring all applicants are assessed on their suitability for people-centered careers.
How many times can the CASPer be taken by an individual?
- Applicants are permitted to take the CASPer once per admission cycle.
- If a student applies to multiple schools within the same year, their single CASPer score may be shared with all participating programs through their Acuity Insights profile.
- A new CASPer test must be taken for each subsequent application cycle, as results do not carry over to future years.
- Applicants may take CASPer multiple times across different cycles if reapplying to professional programs.
How are multiple CASPer scores evaluated by medical schools?
The evaluation process depends on the individual institution’s policies:
- Some schools consider an applicant’s most recent CASPer score only.
- Others may review all previous attempts to identify consistency or improvement in ethical reasoning and communication.
- However, because CASPer scenarios and scoring rubrics vary each year, most programs treat each year’s result as independent and context-specific.
In general, applicants are encouraged to prepare thoroughly before their first attempt, as a well-structured response pattern and familiarity with timing can significantly enhance performance. Enrolling in a CASPer preparation course hosted by a recognized tutoring organization can help applicants strengthen their ethical reasoning, situational judgment, and time management before the official assessment.
Tutor STEM's CASPer Preparation Course
What preparation and tutoring does Tutor STEM provide for the CASPer?
Tutor STEM offers individualized tutoring sessions between carefully selected, highly qualified, high aptitude, experienced CASPer instructors and students/applicants seeking to take the CASPer examination. The academy exclusively offers private 1-on-1 tutoring sessions, as 1-on-1 style teaching is far more effective than group classes, because the CASPer instructor is only focusing on one student during the class. The CASPer preparation the academy offers is intended only for students & applicants in Canada.
The academy offers in-person & virtual options for students & applicants taking the CASPer Preparation Course. The in-person classes will take place at our academy. The in-person tutoring sessions for the CASPer will take place at our CASPer Department which is located at our Markham Campus in Toronto, Canada. The academy also offers virtual tutoring which takes place online, using an online whiteboard software, where the student can see everything the teacher writes, draws, posts, explains, etc. and the teacher can see everything the student writes, draws, posts, explains, etc. This mode of tutoring is preferential to students who are not at a commutable distance to the academy hosting the CASPer Preparation. Virtual tutoring is 100% as effective as in-person tutoring. Some students may prefer in-person tutoring over online tutoring, or vice versa. Both modes of tutoring are available and effective.
The CASPer Preparation Course includes free materials and resources that are intended to heighten the students' understanding on concepts tested on the CASPer.
How is the CASPer Prep course structured?
1) Applicant registers for the CASPer Preparation Course.
2) Depending on the type of package purchased, an assessment may be held during the first tutoring session. The assessment is an exact replication of the official CASPer examination, identical in format and content to the actual test. Based on the results of the initial assessment, an individualized plan that is tailored towards the applicant's strengths & weaknesses will be created by the Tutor STEM administration and the applicant's assigned CASPer instructor based on the questions and concepts incorrectly answered on the assessment.
3) The majority of the materials, including the video lecture materials, practice tests, mock exams, and online resource drills will be distributed during the first class after the assessment is completed. The CASPer instructor will devise a study plan with the student, after considering the students' other commitments (i.e. school or work), in order to ensure the self-studying that occurs outside of the 1-on-1 tutoring sessions the student has with the CASPer instructor is spent efficiently.
4) The basis of the 1-on-1 tutoring sessions the student will have with the CASPer instructor from the second tutoring session and onwards is based on the individualized plan, which is formulated using the data from the initial assessment the student completed during the first session. Essentially, the concepts the student was found to not understand or comprehend will be the focus of the 1-on-1 tutoring sessions.
5) The tutoring sessions will begin with the student asking the CASPer instructor any questions they may have relative to the CASPer, whether it be from the video lectures assigned to them or from any other resource. Typically, the first 15 minutes of every session is used to answer the students' pre-existing questions. Once the student has finished asking their questions, or if the student does not have any questions during the start of class, the CASPer instructor will commence with the pre-planned lesson.
6) As the tutoring sessions come to a finish, the remaining materials and resources will be distributed to the student. The Blueprint, which is a free resource that is complimentary to the CASPer Preparation course, is the last material/resource that will be distributed to the student. The Blueprint is a condensed study guide that organizes all of the concepts the student is expected to be tested on during their exam. The CASPer instructor will thoroughly go over the Blueprint with the student, and will answer any questions the student may have pertaining to the concepts on the Blueprint.
7) The last tutoring session will consist of the student completing a diagnostic test, which is similar to the initial assessment the student will write during the first tutoring session. The diagnostic is an exact replication of the official CASPer examination, identical in format and content to the actual test.. The student will complete the diagnostic. Based on the data of diagnostic results, the CASPer instructor will be able to graphically and numerically show the student their improvement & progress throughout the CASPer Preparation course. The CASPer instructor will also give recommendations to the student on which concepts to prioritize self-studying based on the results of the final diagnostic.
8) During the final moments of the last tutoring session, the CASPer instructor will devise a self-study plan with the student, for them to use and follow after the tutoring sessions have ended and before the date of their examination.
What resources & materials are included?
Resources and materials are included with the CASPer Preparation Course for free. There is no additional cost for the resources and materials provided alongside the tutoring.
The resources and materials that are distributed to students prior to their CASPer examination include:
- Access to video pre-recorded lectures outlining essential concepts expected for upcoming CASPer examinations
- Access to situational-based videos replicating the real CASPer experience.
- A collection of CASPer mock exams with questions relevant to the most updated version of the CASPer
- A collection of test banks with thousands of relevant and updated CASPer questions for all sections of the CASPer examination
- CASPer software-based access: software based CASPer question simulations & virtual CASPer practice; access to CASPer computerized test-like conditions
- CASPer concept sheets comprised of all previously tested concepts and any new concepts that recently may have been added into the CASPer curriculum
- Comprehensive CASPer condensed notes that are routinely updated to more accurately mirror concepts tested for on the most current CASPer examinations
- Blueprint for the CASPer - A concept sheet that is essentially a condensed study guide that organizes all of the concepts the student is expected to be tested on during their exam. The Blueprint is complimentary with the tutoring.
The resources and materials that are available to students after they have written their CASPer examination include:
- Graduate school application assistance - including counseling on which graduate schools would most likely grant acceptance considering the students' culminative university GPA and relative standardized test scores. Graduate schools include medical schools, dental schools, optometry schools, nursing schools, pharmacy schools, occupational therapy schools, physiotherapy schools, veterinary schools, midwifery schools, and physician assistant programs.
- Reference letter editing - the majority of graduate schools require reference letters to be submitted in order for graduate school matriculation consideration. Tutor STEM offers free editing of reference letters. Reference letters are typically expected to be written by either university professors you have previously worked alongside or industry professionals whom you have shadowed. Graduate schools include medical schools, dental schools, optometry schools, nursing schools, pharmacy schools, occupational therapy schools, physiotherapy schools, veterinary schools, midwifery schools, and physician assistant programs.