Preparation for the National Board Exam NBE
All courses in the funeral service curriculum are prerequisites for FSRV 2100 Funeral Service Seminar, which is the preparatory course for the National Board Examination. All required funeral service courses, core, and fundamental occupational courses must be completed prior to taking this course. The only exception to this rule is if a student only has one additional course remaining to complete the program.
This course is only offered to students in the traditional classroom lecture setting, and it meets once a week. It is not offered in any type of online or hybrid format, regardless of the distance that the student lives from OTC.
FSRV 2100 – Funeral Service Seminar is designed to provide comprehensive preparation for the National Board Examination administered by the International Conference of Funeral Service Examining Boards. Students should seek to pass all the practice comprehensive exams, with a 90%. The first comprehensive practice exam will be administered at the beginning of the term. The student will then work with their instructor to remediate any areas of deficiency. The expectation is that the student will continue to improve their performance on the practice comprehensive exams until they reach a 90% pass rate. Part of the course grade (20%) is based on the Comprehensive NBE Practice Exams. The student will be graded throughout the course, and the final grade in the course will be calculated based on the published course grading scale. The student must meet the minimum of “B” to pass the course and successfully graduate from the program.
To Be Released for Candidacy to Sit for the National Board Examination
Despite achieving a passing grade in FSRV 2100, and meeting the requirements to graduate from the program, the student may not be released to sit for the NBE exam. The student will only be released by the program to sit for the NBE after successfully taking four (4) National Board practice exams, on which the student must score a 90%. These consist of two (2) practice exams in the Arts and two (2) practice exams in the Science. Again, the student must complete the exams with a score of 90%.
When the student has successfully completed the requirements of FSRV 2100, met all graduation requirements, and completed the four (4) Comprehensive Practice NBE exams, with a 90% score on all four sections, the student will then be released to sit for the National Board Examination prepared by the International Conference of Funeral Service Examining Boards.
The student will be permitted to retest, with a maximum of two failed exams being permitted per year. The two attempts must be taken more than 30 days apart. After two failed attempts, the student will be required to wait one year before testing again.
While waiting to retest, students are permitted to audit any course in the program, space permitting. Students wishing to audit a course should refer to the OTC Catalog for guidance at: https://ogeecheetech.smartcatalogiq.com/current/catalog/academic-affairs/auditing-courses.