Section 250.50  Examinations

a)         Kinds of Examinations.  Examinations shall be of two kinds:  original entry and promotional.  Both kinds shall be open and continuous competitive examinations.

b)         Eligibility to Compete in Examinations

1)         Any citizen or resident of the State of Illinois, who applies for examination in a specific class at a constituent place of employment served by the University System, who is not rejected or disqualified under subsection (c), and who meets the minimum qualifications as prescribed in the class specification, shall be admitted to the examination.  For classes requiring valid licenses or certificates, an applicant must show possession of the license or certificate at, or prior to, time of taking the examination.

2)         A promotional examination shall be open to a status employee in a place of employment, who is not rejected or disqualified under subsection (c), who meets the minimum qualifications specified in the class specification for a higher class in the appropriate promotional line and who, in addition, is working by virtue of a status appointment, in a position of a lower class in the same promotional line, is on leave of absence from such a position, or is on layoff from such a position.

3)         An applicant who fails to meet the minimum qualifications established for the class, but who can offer qualifications that in the opinion of the Executive Director are considered to be compensatory, shall be admitted to the examination for the class.  The names of all applicants who pass the examination shall be placed on the appropriate register in order of score.

4)         In the absence of a name of a candidate on any existing register for a class, an applicant who does not possess the minimum qualifications for the class and cannot present compensatory qualifications may be admitted with prior approval of the Executive Director to the examination for the class for the purpose of attempting to fill a specific vacancy.  The name of an applicant so admitted, and who passes the examination, shall remain on the register only until the specific vacant position has been filled.

5)         An applicant with a physical handicap who fails a section or sections of an original entry examination because of circumstances directly related to the handicap, who is subsequently employed in the absence of a register, may, after six months of satisfactory service, upon recommendation of an employer and written approval of the Executive Director, be declared exempt from qualifying on the failed section or sections of the examination, in which case he/she shall become a status employee in the position in which he/she has been employed or in another position in the same class.

6)         For classes requiring technical qualifications for which there is an inadequate supply of qualified applicants who are citizens of, or residents in, the State of Illinois, out-of-state residents may be admitted to the examination.  When the citizenship or residency requirement is waived, in-state candidates shall be listed on the register ahead of out-of-state candidates.

7)         Any applicant may rewrite an examination for a class three times within any twelve month period, with at least one month time lapse between every rewrite.  The candidate's place on the register for the class shall be determined by the highest score achieved on any examination for the class.

A)        For the purpose of this Section, an original entry and a promotional examination shall be considered to be one and the same examination.

B)        The limitations of this Section do not apply to an applicant who fails the typewriting and transcribing sections of an examination.

c)         Rejection or Disqualification of Applicants.  The employer may reject any applicant, or, after examination, the Executive Director may refuse to certify any candidate who, in addition to requirements specified in Section 36f of the State Universities Civil Service Act [110 ILCS 70/36f] and subsection (b), fails to pass a physical examination given to determine his/her physical qualifications for employment, uses intoxicating beverages to excess, uses narcotics, has been dismissed from either private or public service for a cause detrimental to his/her employment by an employer under the University System, has maintained an unsatisfactory employment record, has practiced deception or fraud in his/her application, examination, or material pertaining to these, or has committed an offense that in the judgment of the Executive Director disqualifies him/her for employment.

d)         Character of Examinations

1)         Examinations shall consist of one or more of the following:  written test; performance test; oral test; physical test; aptitude test; practical test; other appropriate tests; a rating of experience and training.

2)         All examination content shall be provided by the staff of the University System.

3)         All examination supplies and materials and all examinations are the property of the University System.

4)         An original entry or promotional examination may be revised, with the approval of the Executive Director, without affecting existing original entry or promotional registers for the class, providing the revision does not change the character or weighting of sections of the examination.

5)         The character or weighting of sections of an original entry or promotional examination may be changed, with the approval of the Executive Director, providing that there is sufficient evidence that the current examination for the class is not a satisfactory examining instrument; and providing, further, that the character or weighting of the examination has been in use for a period of at least one year; and providing, further, that 45 days advance notice of the change shall be given to all appropriate employers who shall then communicate the notice in writing to each candidate then on an original entry or promotional register by score and shall further communicate the notice in writing to any applicant who applies for an original entry or promotional examination during the 45-day period.  During the 45-day period, qualified applicants (including candidates whose names are already on the register by score), at their request, will be scheduled for the examination.  At the end of the 45-day period the original entry or promotional registers of candidates by score will be voided, and new original entry or promotional registers by score shall be established on the basis of the new examination.

e)         Administration of Examinations.  As approved by the Executive Director, examinations shall be scheduled and administered by the employer.  The examinations shall be conducted on an open and continuous basis, except for examinations to original entry registers at each place of employment, as requested by the employer and approved by the Executive Director, that have a sufficient number of candidates on the register that preclude further recruitment and testing.  In making a determination to reopen (or close) an examination, the Executive Director will consider requests by the employer or other individuals based on the number of positions in the class, projected new positions and annual turnover rate.  Also, for examinations that have been closed for six months or more, the Executive Director will review the need for continuing the approval of a closed examination.  The employer shall be responsible for the security of all examination materials supplied to the employer by the University System so long as they are in the employer's custody.

f)         Rating of Examinations

1)         The Executive Director and the staff of the University System shall use appropriate scientific techniques and procedures in rating tests and in determining resulting rank to the end that all competitors receive uniform and fair treatment.

2)         Failure in any portion of a total examination, the passing of which is deemed necessary to qualify for eligibility in the class for which the applicant is being examined, shall eliminate the applicant from passage of the complete examination, regardless of his/her score in other portions of the examination.  For each eliminating test and the final average in an examination, the Executive Director shall announce the minimum acceptable rating.

3)         The passing score for eligibility for certification shall be determined by the Executive Director.  This score shall be the same for all examinations given for a class, but it may be changed if, in the judgment of the Executive Director, the change is for the best interest of the University System, and the change shall be applicable uniformly to all examinations for the class.  The passing score shall be made known to all those taking the examination.

4)         An applicant who fails to gain eligibility for employment in a higher class may, at the discretion of the Executive Director, elect to accept eligibility for a lower appropriate class, if his/her scores on all appropriate parts of the examination are sufficient to qualify him/her for the lower class.

5)         All examination scores shall be on a scale of 1 to 100, with decimal points in examination scores being rounded off to the nearest whole number, i.e., with below .5 having the decimal points dropped and with .5 or above being rounded to the next whole number.

g)         Notification and Review of Scores

1)         An applicant shall be sent a written notice of the date and results of his/her examination.  The notice must indicate whether the score achieved is passing or failing and if it includes credit for Veterans Preference.

2)         All requests of applicants for review of scores shall be made to the Executive Director.

h)         Filing of Examination Records.  All examinations, and all examination components, administered by the employer shall be retained by the employer, in accordance with the employer's record retention policy, or in accordance with the University System's record retention policy.

(Source:  Amended at 37 Ill. Reg. 419, effective December 26, 2012)