Bloomington, MN, October 29, 2012 – In 2002, Pearson VUE launched its Pearson Professional Centers, a pioneering move that changed the face of high-stakes exam delivery. The industry’s first 100% company-owned and -operated centers introduced design and security innovations that satisfy the most demanding requirements for testing programs and provide the most professional and consistent computer-based testing experience for candidates.

Ten years later, the Pearson Professional Centers network comprises hundreds of centers worldwide, delivering exams on behalf of prominent sponsors such as the National Council of State Boards of Nursing®, whose exam is required for licensure of nurses in the US, and the Graduate Management Admission Council®, owners of the GMAT® exam, a business school admissions test.

“Over the past decade our network of Pearson Professional Centers has remained at the forefront of testing innovation,” said Robert Whelan, president and chief executive officer of Pearson VUE. “Testing in Pearson Professional Centers ensures all test takers receive the same, fair testing experience wherever they test while protecting the integrity of our customers’ testing programs by utilizing the most advanced security measures available.”

Pearson Professional Centers’ patented design features a glass-enclosed proctor station that allows a direct, panoramic view of all workstations. Additionally state-of-the-art video and audio surveillance supports Pearson-employed proctors to prevent fraud or cheating. A layered system of biometric verification, which includes palm-vein recognition technology, provides assurance of a candidates’ identity and deters cheaters from testing as someone else.

“Pearson Professional Centers are the gold-standard in professional testing environments,” said Whelan. “Because we own these facilities, we can make the investments in our people and our technology that secure our customers’ intellectual property and our testing candidates’ private information.”

Myra Broadway, JD, MS, RN, executive director of the Maine State Board of Nursing and president of the NCSBN Board of Directors, added: “NCSBN is proud to have played an active role in the development of the Pearson Professional Centers network since its formation. Having extended our testing agreement with Pearson VUE to 2019, we look forward to helping the company to innovate further and meet future test taker needs.”

In addition to the Pearson Professional Centers, Pearson VUE also delivers exams through its network of more than 4,500 third-party test centers in more than 175 countries.

Notes to editors: Pearson VUE first launched testing in 1997. During the following five years, the company saw the need for a new model, and in 2002 created the industry’s first 100% company-owned and -operated centers. This is just one reason why the PPC network is still unique today.