Oral Exam Regulations

Dates of Promulgation

Establishment of the complete text of 13 articles, promulgated on November 27, 2000 as per Examination Yuan (89) Kao-Tai-Zu-(1)-Yi-Zi Order No. 07734 and taking effect upon promulgation.
Amendment to Article 1, promulgated on April 10, 2002 as per Examination Yuan (91) Kao-Tai-Zu-(1)-Yi-Zi Order No. 0910002348.
Amendments to the complete text of 13 articles, promulgated on January 3, 2012 as per Examination Yuan Kao-Tai-Zu-(1)-Yi-Zi Order No. 10100000861 and taking effect upon promulgation.
Amendments to Articles 1, 4, 11, and 12, promulgated on August 7, 2015 as per Examination Yuan Kao-Tai-Zu-(1)-Yi-Zi Order No. 10400046691.
Amendment to Article 12, promulgated on May 2, 2016 as per Examination Yuan Kao-Tai-Zu-(1)-Yi-Zi Order No. 10500025881.
Amendments to Article 8 and Appendix 3 to Article 6, promulgated on September 9, 2019 as per Examination Yuan Kao-Tai-Zu-(1)-Yi-Zi Order No. 10700012781.

The text of these Regulations is as follows:

Article 1
These Regulations are established as per Article 14, Paragraph 2 of the Examination Affairs Act.

Article 2
There are three oral exam formats. Oral exams may be administered following one or two of these formats.
1.Individual oral exam: Individual examinees answer questions by oral examiners to evaluate manners, communication skills, character and qualities, professional knowledge, and problem-solving skills.
2.Group oral exam: Two or more examinees answer questions by oral examiners to evaluate manners, communication skills, character and qualities, professional knowledge, and problem-solving skills.
3.Group discussion: Five or more examinees chair a discussion session by turns. Examinees are evaluated on their ability to chair a meeting, verbal communication, organization and analysis, social skills and empathy, decisiveness, influence within a discussion, analytical skills, teamwork, stress management, and proactivity. 

Article 3
Oral exams are administered in groups depending on exam level, category, number of examinees, and scheduling. 
If group discussions are necessary, similar categories may be held jointly.
Group discussions will not be held with fewer than five examinees.

Article 4
Oral examiners are assigned by the Board of Examiners. One oral examiner will be appointed as convener.
Excepting specialized subjects or specific languages, oral exam sessions for individuals or groups will have two to five oral examiners. Group discussion sessions will have three to five oral examiners.
Oral examiners may be chosen from members of the Board of Examiners, or when necessary, by senior civil servants from a relevant hiring agency, the agency requesting the exam, the professional supervisory agency, or by experts in the field. Alternate oral examiners may be assigned if necessary.

Article 5
Scoring components and weights for individual and group oral examinations: 
1.Bearing (including etiquette, manners, demeanor, and interaction): 20 points
2.Communication skills (including listening and verbal communication skills): 20 points
3.Character (including discipline, emotional stability, openness, and amicability): 20 points
4.Talent and knowledge (including interests, judgment, analytical skills, professional knowledge, professional expertise and experience): 20 points
5.Problem solving skills (including understanding and responsiveness): 20 points

Scoring components and weights for group discussions:
1. Acting as chair:
(1)Chairing skills (effectively facilitating discussion, directing group members or the group as a whole towards an intended direction): 10 points
(2)Oral expression skills (effective expression through dialog and discussion): 10 points
(3)Organizational and analytical skills (organizing relevant issues and information, contextualizing issues, pinpointing and exploring core concepts): 10 points
(4)Congeniality and empathy (considering the perspectives of others, identifying their emotions and needs and extending help when necessary, showing sincerity, courtesy, and kindness): 10 points
(5)Decisiveness (making correct decisions quickly): 10 points 
2. Engaging in discussion:
(1)Influence (confidence, attracting attention, and persuasion): 10 points
(2)Analytical skills (using logical, orderly analysis): 10 points
(3)Teamwork (situational adaptability, not holding stubbornly to one’s own ideas, discussing sincerely, interacting well with others, integrating into group discussions, striving for friendship and cooperation): 10 points
(4)Stress management (calmly dealing with criticism): 10 points
(5)Proactivity (thinking constructively, proposing concrete and effective solutions, breaking through difficulties, creating new situations): 10 points
In addition to the above-mentioned scoring components and weights, additional information regarding the vacancy (profession) and job descriptions (including rank standards) may be provided by the hiring agency (professional supervisory agency). Scoring standards may be changed in accordance with core competence, exam level and category. Any changes to the scoring components and weights shall be announced and made known to examinees beforehand.
Scoring sheets for individual and group oral exams and group discussions are included in Appendixes One and Two.

Article 6
Before oral exams and group discussions are held, a meeting shall be called by the oral examiners to discuss question scope and topic, scoring standards, time allotment, and other related matters. If necessary, an oral exam technical meeting may be held.
If necessary, a written question list for individual and group oral exams may be created. Examinees may be asked to submit a written report to oral examiners for their reference. The written report should include: examinee’s career projection, interests, professional knowledge and expertise which the examinee is most confident about (no more than three), experience leading or participating in an event, and examples of the examinee’s judgment or analytical skills. Word-count, content, and format are specified in Appendix Three.
If necessary, oral exam questions or discussion topics may be printed beforehand in the exam facilities.

Article 7
If necessary, group oral exam and group discussion examinees may be assigned to different time slots. Examinees shall be present at the exam at the designated time.  Late arrivals will be denied entry to the exam hall and given a grade of zero on the oral exam.
An individual oral exam session may take twenty to ninety minutes.
A group oral exam session may take one to two hours.
A group discussion session may take two to four hours.
The duration of exams in the preceding section may be adjusted according to exam level and category. 

Article 8
Examinees in the same group oral exam session will answer by seating order. If an examiner designates a group member to comment, the examinee shall respond.
Examinees will determine the order to act as chair by drawing lots. Then examination themes will be drawn by lot and distributed to examinees for preparation.
The chair should lead the discussion and make a summary before the end of the discussion.

Article 9
Oral examiners will grade each sections on the score sheet and give comments if necessary.
Reasons should be provided for scores lower than 60 points.
Each oral examiner shall observe examinee performance as chair and in group discussion. After group discussion, examinees will be graded on each scoring section on the score sheet and given comments.

Article 10
Oral exam scores are calculated as the average of the sum of all actual scores given by each oral examiner for that specific exam. 
If the oral exam is held using two formats, each format shall account for 50% of the total score.
If a group discussion cannot be held due to the number of examinees being less than five or because the exam categories differ in nature, the score of the oral exam will be the score of the individual or group oral exam. 
Examinees whose individual oral exam score, group oral exam score, group discussion score, or average score of any two exams is less than 60 points will not pass the exam even if the total score of the exams meets the passing threshold. 

Article 11
Members of the Board of Examiners, oral examiners, and examination staff members, whose spouse, blood relative, or relative through marriage within three degrees of relation happens to take the exam, or those who happen to be the head in the examinee’s workplace, or the examinee’s direct superior at work, or thesis supervisor should recuse themselves.
In case of recusal following the preceding paragraph, the exam organizing agency should re-arrange the grouping of oral examiners or examinees.
A violation of Paragraph 1 will lead to disqualification from the Board of Examiners or from the position of oral examiner or examination staff member.

Article 12
Members of the Board of Examiners, oral examiners, and examination staff members shall maintain confidentiality in regards to the scoring process.
Disclosure is prohibited and subject to Article 31 of the Examination Affairs Act.

Article 13
These Regulations shall come into effect upon promulgation

In case of any discrepancy between the English version and the Chinese version, the latter shall prevail.