Pearson Vue terrible customer service

brfitzp

I have been studying for months to take the Cisco 210-260 exam and was scheduled to finally take it today. Halfway through the exam, the entire thing froze and i was unable to proceed (These things happen). They proctor called Pearson support and they just told them to have me reschedule.

After spending an hour on hold i finally get someone on the phone and they inform me that there's nothing they can do and I must wait 3-5 business days so they can reschedule me. I requested to speak to a supervisor(another 10 minutes on hold) and they told me the same thing.

I took a day off work and drove all the way to the test center all prepared to test and now i have to wait 3-5 business days plus take another day off work sometime soon.

Around September of last year i had a test scheduled and arrived on time and when i arrived there was no one there to administer tests, the office was just closed. It wasnt a holiday or any special day. I called Pearson then and they pretty much told me the same thing they told me today and a few days letter i received an email stating that they understand the test center had technical difficulties and to call them so i can reschedule my test. /rant

Do i just have bad luck with them?

scaredoftests

No, they are idiots. I went through a stressful time with them (the last thing that you need when you just want to take the test). They are clueless.

bigdogz

I have been in my fair share of low quality test centers from computers smoking (mushroom cloud included) to the total incompetence of the people who don't know what they are doing. In most cases it is a secretary who does some clicking for you. The tech is always too busy and helps out as best as he/she can but it happens.

It's them. It sounds like the Test Center is not one of good reputation. I would search for another testing center. It may be a bit of a pain but it seems like you will keep wasting more time with them than the actual study time for the exam.

I would also inform your boss about the situation. In most cases they will give you the day off for the exam. Show him/her proof of the issues with the test center. In the mean time work on your weak areas of the exam.


Good Luck!!!

iBrokeIT

Nop, it's definitely Pearson Vue. I had the same problem with my VCAP-DCA taken at a Pearson Professional center hosted at their headquarters in Bloomington, MN.

They are a lazy profit monopoly and won't change unless their profits are threatened. A sad reality and you have my sympathies OP.

brfitzp

Called today and after being placed on hold multiple times (ended up on the phone for a little over an hour) I was able to reschedule my exam for Saturday morning.

also for anyone who has trouble in the future, I called the Cisco certification number and they got Pearson vue on the line with me and had them explain themselves. Cisco must have another number because they got right through and got someone who was U.S. Based.

the Cisco certification number I called was: 800-553-6387 option 4 then option 1

Mow

Thanks for the info!

fuz1on

I feel your pain - I got hung up on because it was 'quitting time'. BTW, my exam froze and I'm still waiting for my retake voucher (hopefully tomorrow).

Nafe92014

Had the same thing this morning when I was taking a cisco test in my colleges testing center. The computer was so slow it took me 15 minutes past the test start time to begin. After the test, I made a suggestion to the administrator to get the colleges IT dept to upgrade the computers in the test center. The one I used was an Athlon II with 2GB RAM.

abyssinica

Haha, I thought I was the only one...yes my experience with their customer service reps was absolutely terrible.

Nafe92014 wrote: »

Had the same thing this morning when I was taking a cisco test in my colleges testing center. The computer was so slow it took me 15 minutes past the test start time to begin. After the test, I made a suggestion to the administrator to get the colleges IT dept to upgrade the computers in the test center. The one I used was an Athlon II with 2GB RAM.

This sucks, but I also think that if you don't bother to check the conditions of your test centre beforehand, you can't complain about whatever you meet there.

scaredoftests wrote: »

No, they are idiots. I went through a stressful time with them (the last thing that you need when you just want to take the test). They are clueless.

This pretty much sums it up.

si20

Wow! Sounds like people have got some horror stories! I've been lucky, i've been assessed 2-3 times and they've been ok with me. They are always quite strict about having ID with you, but once you get past the initial checks at the desk, all has gone well. Sorry to hear about your experiences

koz24

I found a testing center about 40min away from me that has great equipment. New PCs with 24 inch monitors. Much better than the old stuff the old testing center had. Don't go back to the same testing center if they are running old stuff, drive a little bit extra and hopefully enjoy a better environment.

netsysllc

Sadly the test centers make very little money if any off of testing. That is why test centers are often at places like New Horizons where they sell training, the down side is they dont care about the testing unless you are paying big $$$ for the training to go with it. For Pearson/Prometric own centers it is a bit different but still not a place where they are going to spend a bunch of money on or hire highly skilled people.

Nafe92014

koz24 wrote: »

I found a testing center about 40min away from me that has great equipment. New PCs with 24 inch monitors. Much better than the old stuff the old testing center had. Don't go back to the same testing center if they are running old stuff, drive a little bit extra and hopefully enjoy a better environment.

Sadly, the next closest testing center for me is 2 hours away .

brfitzp

Retook the test this morning and passed:D!
The test did not freeze this time but the simulation that i had to do was broken, and couldn't be completed properly. This one is cisco's problem and not a pearson issue though.

walterbyrd

I know this is an old thread. But I have spent many hours trying to fix their mistake. It is infuriating. On May 28th, I schedule a test for May 29th. They send me an email saying my test in is 3 days, and gave a date of May 28th (!) and then told me I was a no-show and cannot get my money back. Their website is loaded with "contact us" links, but none of them lead to a way to actually contact them. I had to google for a number, and everybody just sends me somewhere else.