What Specialty and KSA categories does the question belong?

Multiple KSA selections may apply. Click here for KSA list.

All questions MUST be multiple choice. The question (stem) should contain only information that is pertinent to the question or problem and should be worded so that the examinee can understand it before reading the possible answers.

Acronyms may be used only when the general Forensic Community would understand the meaning or when the acronym is the focus of the question.

State the stem of the item in positive form, wherever possible. Avoid using negatives such as NO, NOT, and EXCEPT. If you must use a negative word, highlight it (all caps, bold) so that the examinee will not miss it.

Write the question (stem) as you would like it to appear.

Write the correct answer, followed by three relevant (no obviously wrong answers) distracters.

Make certain that the intended answer is correct and clearly the best choice. Make sure all possible answers are grammatically consistent with the stem.

Avoid:

Giving verbal clues in the stem which point to the correct answer.

Repeating key word(s) from the stem in the correct answer.

Using "all of the above" or "none of the above" as choices, as they can be misleading.

All questions should have a cited scientific reference source. It is preferred that the references listed on the relevant study guides on the ABC website be used when creating questions. Any general knowledge textbooks used should be college level.

If any images, charts, tables, spectra, etc. are used in a question, they must be sent in .jpg form and must conform to any copyright requirements.

If there is an image, copyright information should include:

Publisher, Publisher’s full address, Copyright owner (if different than Publisher), Copyright © date, and if permission is required, indicate if a credit line can be used in the test.