The discussion was candid. Words such as stressful, slow and misrepresented surfaced early, alongside a shared sense that candidate experience is too often discussed in broad terms, when the reality is more complex.
That conversation now sits behind our latest report, which brings together unfiltered perspectives from those working across professional and general qualification assessment. Rather than offering easy conclusions, it explores the nuances shaping candidate experience today, from communication and process design to trust, accessibility and digital expectations.
Why this report matters
Candidate experience is not a secondary consideration. It shapes how fair, clear and credible assessment feels to the people taking part in it.
For awarding bodies and professional qualifications organisations, that raises important questions. Where are candidates experiencing friction? Which assumptions no longer hold? And how should assessment design respond when expectations, confidence and digital fluency vary so widely across different cohorts?
This report reflects the tensions, trade-offs and practical realities discussed by the leaders in the room.
Read The Candidate-First Future to explore how awarding bodies and professional qualifications organisations are thinking about candidate experience today, and what that may mean for the future of assessment.
We know there is no single candidate experience, and no single pathway forward. That is precisely why the conversation matters.
If the report raises questions for your organisation, or reflects conversations you are already having, we would welcome your perspective.