• When does the GOE occur?
  • Every fall, the GBEC invites bishops, seminary deans and others to nominate Candidates to sit for the General Ordination Examination. The GBEC offers the GOE once a year in January.

 

Where?

  • The GBEC electronically administers the GOE at Episcopal seminaries and at other locations in this country and abroad. Each Candidate takes the exam in Safe Exam Browser under the eye of an in-person Proctor, named by the Candidate's diocese or seminary, who attests on the GBEC website to each exam set they observe.

 

How long does it last?

  • The GBEC administers the GOE in early January over the course of three days and Candidates have three-and-a-half hours to answer each question in about 1,000 words. Two questions are asked each day - one in the morning and one after lunch. Each covers a different canonical area - a total of six questions - all of which will be "Limited Resources." The GBEC writes questions answerable in two hours, but allows an extra hour-and-a-half for reading and re-reading the question, studying the scoring rubrics, planning what to write, and proofreading the answer.

 

How does the GBEC create the GOE?

  • The GBEC produces a new GOE annually through a process of conceiving and formulating questions based on the six canonical areas, time constraints of the exam, input from seminary curricula, and the Standards. Board Members and volunteers form six teams, each responsible for one canonical area and for constructing questions designed to give Candidates plenty of opportunity to show their knowledge and understanding. Teams first work independently, then seek feedback from other teams, from staff, from a testing consultant, and from people who have previously taken the GOE. Candidates may want to look at Previous Exams.

 

What forms do the GOE answers take?

  • The GOE has asked for answers in the following forms: long and short answers; multiple-choice or true/false selections; or a combination of some of these. At present, the GOE consists of six applied knowledge questions, each representing one of the canonical areas. The GBEC's current policy is to ask only "Limited Resources" questions.

 

What does the GOE cover?

 

What do "Open Resources" and "Limited Resources" and "No Outside Resources" mean?

  • The GOE asks Candidates to cite all sources consulted. The GBEC may check all GOE answers with iThenticate and other software that detect plagiarism and use of Artificial Intelligence to ensure originality of work and accuracy of citations.
  • "Open Resources" (not used at present) allow Candidates to utilize all electronic and printed reference and other materials. However, the GBEC creates questions not to determine the Candidate's ability to cite facts, figures and theologies, but to show how well the Candidate can think and write theologically about specific issues while having resource materials to confirm facts cited in answers. These questions allow the Candidate to use any resources at his or her disposal - e.g. books, class notes, and electronic material. "Open Resources" questions should not pressure Candidates to produce detailed, perfect and/or voluminous answers, but rather allow Candidates to refresh their minds on facts and details. Note that while Candidates may use any print or electronic resources, Candidates may not contact or consult with any other person in writing, electronically, in person, or in any other way.
  • "Limited Resources" questions aim to elicit what the Candidate has learned while giving access to specified limited resources, e.g. the Book of Common Prayer and Bible. These questions might ask about the practice of liturgy or for the exegesis of Scripture. The GBEC's current policy is to provide with each question and its rubric links to the allowed resources (which always include the Bible and the Book of Common Prayer).
  • "No Outside Resources" questions try to discover how well the Candidate responds using his or her own resources - application and expression of knowledge gained by learning and experience; intelligence; and memory. These questions do not allow any outside resources. However, the GBEC's current policy is to ask only "Limited Resources" questions.