A demo shows the best path through a product. A good selection tests the paths your program actually takes: the appeal, the accommodation, the export on the day you leave.
Run a selection in six steps
Plan on eight to twelve weeks from first list to signature.
Write the decision down
One page: what the scores decide, yearly volumes, window dates and who signs off.
Separate needs from wishes
Mark must-haves such as accessibility, data location and integrations; list the rest as preferences.
Send a short RFP
Ask the questions in the table below, in writing, with evidence attached to each answer.
Script every demo
Give each vendor the same three scenarios with your own items, and score them on one sheet.
Pilot the finalist
Twenty to forty volunteers on real items, including someone using assistive technology.
Read the exit first
Check data ownership, export format, deletion terms and renewal pricing before anything else.
Questions to ask any vendor
Ask us too. The last column is how we answer each one.
| Question | What a good answer shows | How Exampit answers |
|---|---|---|
| Who owns our items, candidate data and results? | Ownership written into the contract, not only promised in a sales email | You do. Export the full item bank as QTI and all results as CSV at any time. |
| How do we leave, and what happens to our data? | A named export format, a timeline and a deletion date | A complete export on exit, then our copies deleted within 30 days unless you ask us to keep them. |
| Where is our data hosted, and how is it encrypted? | A named country and encryption in transit and at rest | Hosted in the United States; TLS 1.2 or later in transit and AES-256 at rest. |
| Which security certifications or audits do you hold? | Current reports you can read, or a plain statement of what is not held | We claim none we do not hold. We share security questionnaire answers and an architecture overview on request. |
| What accessibility standard does the candidate interface meet, and how is it tested? | A named standard, named assistive technologies and a list of known gaps | Built to WCAG 2.1 AA and tested each release by keyboard and with NVDA, JAWS and VoiceOver. See our accessibility statement. |
| How are accommodations approved and recorded? | Settings per candidate, each logged against an approval | Set per candidate before the window opens, each logged with the approver and date. |
| Which item statistics do we get, and when? | Difficulty, discrimination and reliability for every form, soon after a window | Within one business day of a window closing. |
| Where does AI touch our items or scores, and who checks it? | Named uses, a person reviewing each output, and an audit trail | Item drafts, first-pass scores and proctoring flags only. A person reviews each one, and every decision is logged. |
| What happens when proctoring flags a candidate? | A person reviews before any action, and the program decides | A trained person reviews every record-and-review flag within two business days; your program makes the decision. |
| Which standards do your integrations use? | Version numbers, not just “we integrate” | QTI 2.1 and 3.0, LTI 1.3, SAML 2.0, OpenID Connect, a REST API, webhooks and Open Badges 3.0. |
| What will year two and year three cost? | A full price list, the overage rate and how renewals are priced | Indicative from-prices on our pricing page, extra sessions from $2 each, and fixed-fee, itemized proposals. |
| Who does the psychometric work? | Named qualifications, not only software features | Psychometricians with a doctorate or master’s in measurement lead every job task analysis, standard setting and technical report. |
Questions buyers ask us
How long should a software selection take?
Plan on eight to twelve weeks for a mid-sized program, from writing requirements to signing. Public bodies often need longer because of procurement rules and board approval. Work backward from your first live window, and leave at least three months between signature and that window for setup, a pilot and fixes.
Should we run a pilot before we sign?
Yes, if you can. A paid or free pilot with 20 to 40 volunteers on your own items shows what a demo cannot: how long check-in takes, where candidates get stuck and what the reports look like. Include at least one candidate who uses assistive technology, and keep a written log of every issue.
Do we need a formal RFP?
Public universities, districts and state boards usually must follow their procurement office’s rules, which may require one. Others can send a short written questionnaire instead. Either way, ask every vendor the same questions in the same order, and score the written answers before the demos so the best presenter does not win by default.
How should we compare prices across vendors?
Compare a three-year total, not a first-year quote. Add the platform fee, overage per session, proctoring, grading, migration or setup work, and the staff time each option needs. Ask how renewals are priced in writing. A low entry price with a steep overage rate can cost more by year two.
Put us through these questions
Bring this table to a 30-minute demo and score our answers yourself.