NAVLE cheating?

[madrivermystic]

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In recent weeks, a pre-litigation letter addressed to the AVMA, ICVA, and NBME has circulated widely across veterinary campuses. The allegations and evidence it contains—of racially motivated score manipulation and systemic fraud—are shocking but tragically familiar. They echo what we have witnessed firsthand: that no matter how well prepared, and no matter how high our predictive scores on self-assessments, students of color are far more likely to fail the NAVLE, while equally or less-prepared white classmates pass.

 

[madrivermystic]

In recent weeks, a pre-litigation letter addressed to the AVMA, ICVA, and NBME has circulated widely across veterinary campuses. The allegations and evidence it contains—of racially motivated score manipulation and systemic fraud—are shocking but tragically familiar. They echo what we have witnessed firsthand: that no matter how well prepared, and no matter how high our predictive scores on self-assessments, students of color are far more likely to fail the NAVLE, while equally or less-prepared white classmates pass.

And here's a link to the litigation letter: Proton Drive

 

[pp9]

In recent weeks, a pre-litigation letter addressed to the AVMA, ICVA, and NBME has circulated widely across veterinary campuses. The allegations and evidence it contains—of racially motivated score manipulation and systemic fraud—are shocking but tragically familiar. They echo what we have witnessed firsthand: that no matter how well prepared, and no matter how high our predictive scores on self-assessments, students of color are far more likely to fail the NAVLE, while equally or less-prepared white classmates pass.

And here's a link to the litigation letter: Proton Drive

What data is publicly available? Very little, right? Everything in this letter seems super anectodal. I'm not saying there isn't something untoward happening because I don't know, but some of the claims/concerns in this letter are probably not going to get very far and also give off the impression that those involved don't really know how the NAVLE works?

My thoughts as I read through this letter:

1) It's not unusual for a standardized test to have multiple versions for a testing day/period, that helps reduce cheating. This was definitely true back when I took the ACT, GRE, etc. I can't say that I know for a fact that the NAVLE also follows this, but I would be truly surprised if it didn't.
2) This letter specifically cites camels and sharks as deviating from the exam blueprint, when aquatics and camelids are absolutely fair game for the NAVLE. Granted they are supposed to be a small component, but to allege that someone took a test 'focusing' on sharks and camelids is probably an untrue/exaggerated anecdote. NAVLE | ICVA based off this, it means you should expect to see 3-4 aquatics questions and ~6 camelid questions on every exam.
3) A lot of these multiple choice questions with multiple potentially correct answers are asking you to choose the best answer. A good example is a 'What is the most suitable first step/diagnostic/treatment?' type of question. I'd need to see the exact question(s) being referred to for this one to decide how to feel.
-Also just adding this quote that is direct from the NAVLE FAQ section: "Although multiple options may be partially correct, you should select the one best answer to the question."
-Also worth mentioning that the NAVLE also asks multiple tester questions within the test, and the test taker does not know which questions are testers. So there totally could be some crappy questions on the exam that wouldn't impact the score, but would potentially impact how future tests are written. The GRE does this as well.

Separating this next points, as I don't think they are baseless (because I don't know/don't have access to the all of the facts), but I think there is not enough publicly available info outside of anecdotes to know anything:

4) 25 years of the NAVLE, and Tuskegee has only had pass rates below acceptable levels since 2020 (right? IIRC 2019 and prior were fine?). Several other schools have had the exact same issue at the exact same time with similar pass rates, although Tuskegee's 2024 rate of 51% was particularly bad. So what is your answer to that? If it were literally just Tuskegee, more eyebrows would raise, but it's not.
5) There are no AVMA accredited schools in Latin America (the one accredited school in Mexico is withdrawing their accreditation), so you'd have to look at their curriculums honestly. The NAVLE is a specific test and US schools generally map their curriculum with the NAVLE in mind. I don't see why an unaccredited school would care about the NAVLE. Are we also looking at data from European, Asian, etc schools to see what those pass rates are? Because even some accredited UK schools allegedly don't care to prep their students for the NAVLE (this is anecdotal based on SDN users' allegations, so grain of salt).
6) We all know some really, really smart people/talented clinicians that have failed the NAVLE, sometimes multiple times. I know several myself. I don't think saying 'These are otherwise good students who did well in school/on clinics' gets you far knowing what we know about the NAVLE. Kind of surprised that even made it into this legal document.
7) Do we know for a fact that NAVLE grading is a) done manually by a person/people b) those people have access to the test taker's personal info? I've done remote grading as a side hustle for less dire circumstances and didn't get to see who submitted the assignment.

I don't think anyone would ever oppose an audit, I sure wouldn't, but this letter seems slapped together with only rumors and anecdotes to stand on. If there is targeting happening, by all means let's get it addressed, but surely you have more than rumors, feelings, memories of test questions/phrasing, and personal accounts to go off of?

Edit: Also just wanted to add that after reading the letter sent to the AVMA president (I am assuming you may have been involved in that as well, but if not, it's still worth mentioning this), please don't assume that other people of any other race are unprepared but passing anyways. There's literally no way to gauge that, none whatsoever.

Tuskegee literally filed this today and it might make things more interesting: Tuskegee University sues the American Veterinary Medical Association | dvm360

 

[pp9]

Also worth mentioning that plenty of us are super open to a good conversation, I initially had certain people tagged in my above post to encourage participation, but we are aware of how things went on Reddit yesterday in regards to this same topic. So said tags were removed and people should chime in as they wish, or not.

 

[honeypot999]

My biggest question is why we aren’t seeing the same pattern at other schools who have large Latino or black student populations?

Michigan state has a large Latino population, and I haven’t heard of mass failures from a single group. Instead, MSU recognized the failures in our curriculum, add more resources and we’ve seen an improvement in NAVLE scores.

Also, students are only allowed to sit the exam twice in school…after that your score doesn’t have any bearing on the schools pass rate. So of the 5 times you have the opportunity to take the test, are we allegedly saying that ICVA is purposely making Latino or black test takers fail the exam 5 times?

 

[battie]

Tuskegee literally filed this today and it might make things more interesting

Again, another situation in which we need more information. There's going to be plenty of documentation on the part of the AVMA, so we'll see what happens.

But this cannot end with the loss of veterinary education accreditation. I'm totally down with re-vamping of the standards (going to resist my soapbox).

 

[honeypot999]

Again, another situation in which we need more information. There's going to be plenty of documentation on the part of the AVMA, so we'll see what happens.

But this cannot end with the loss of veterinary education accreditation. I'm totally down with re-vamping of the standards (going to resist my soapbox).

Based on the filing, it sounds like AVMA isn’t even trying to give them a chance at their hearing. Like 2.5 hours is nothing to establish if they need to be terminated or not. Especially if they haven’t had a site visit since 2021, they should have had one every year or 6 months if the COE actually cared about standards

 

[JaynaAli]

Especially if they haven’t had a site visit since 2021, they should have had one every year or 6 months if the COE actually cared about standards

Provisional schools have to fill out a lengthy update form every six months they’re provisional outlining their improvements and other plans. It’s the duty of the school to give the updates to the COE. I’m not saying that there shouldn’t potentially be discussion about more frequent site visits but many of those improvements can be effectively communicated without requiring a bunch of bureaucrats to make an in-person visit. For example, if your main deficiency is NAVLE pass rates or not enough faculty members, what benefit would there be to an in-person evaluation? Hearing that your new pass rate is (insert number above 80%) or hearing that you’ve hired 4 new specialists should suffice. I can see more of a benefit if the deficiency was in facilities or something, but even then it can be communicated fairly well in a letter, and has been done so by every other school for years.

I don’t feel like I have enough information/knowledge about the NAVLE accusations to contribute to that discussion.

 

[honeypot999]

Lock in for this one guys

https://www.reddit.com/r/Veterinary/s/chTBFSZ3Wk

 

[battie]

That was a wild ride.

 

[pp9]

If, and I mean IF, someone actually has the ability to manually edit scores, it would have to be such a small number of people that it would be easy to figure out. So there's that.

Man I want to share my experience with the demographics of my would-be interns/personal friends failing the NAVLE multiple times (n = >20 probably)/my experience with a handful of Tuskegee grad interns (that did pass the NAVLE) but it doesn't feel worth it. My pool is small, I know, but enough that I did start to wonder about TU before all of this blew up. I still support an audit though because why not.

Also the fact that that person is trying to cite school rankings as reason for anything has me wondering if they are even a vet student?

 

[honeypot999]

It looks like LatinxVMA also is calling for an audit. It was originally posted to the LatinxVMA president’s LinkedIn

Letter to the Members of the AVMA Board from Latinx

As an organization advocating for Hispanic and Latinx veterinary professionals, we consistently hear from students and graduates who believe that aspects of the NAVLE may disproportionately disadvantage underrepresented groups. Whether these perceptions reflect actual structural issues or a gap in c

www.myvetcandy.com

 

[honeypot999]

Independent third party audit has been started after LatinxVMA asked for an audit.

News and Updates | ICVA

www.icva.net

 

[battie]

And now we wait to see how everyone acts with the results.

 

[madrivermystic]

The North American Veterinary Licensing Examination (NAVLE) is one of the most consequential assessments in the veterinary profession—an exam that stands between students and the clinical careers they have spent years training for. As the cornerstone of veterinary licensure in the United States and Canada, the NAVLE must be rigorous, fair, and trusted by the entire veterinary community.

“When the veterinary community raises its voice, it reflects a shared desire for excellence,” said Dr. Mitsie Varga, President and Co-Founder of Latinx VMA, “A third-party audit affirms that every candidate’s pathway to licensure is grounded in fairness and free from bias.”
This week, the International Council for Veterinary Assessment (ICVA), which develops and administers the NAVLE, announced a significant step toward reinforcing that trust: the organization is initiating an independent third-party audit of the exam.

“Ensuring that all members of the veterinary community feel confident in the exam’s rigor and impartiality is essential,” ICVA shared in its statement. “We remain committed to ensuring veterinary excellence that puts the welfare of animals first and foremost.”

ICVA emphasized that the audit is in its early stages and pledged to provide ongoing updates as the process moves forward.

A Call Amplified: LatinxVMA’s Open Letter​

The ICVA’s decision follows a surge of national conversation around NAVLE oversight—most notably an open letter issued last week by the Latinx Veterinary Medical Association (LatinxVMA). In the letter, the organization urged the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Board of Directors to publicly support an independent audit of the NAVLE.

LatinxVMA framed the request not as criticism, but as an opportunity for the profession to strengthen transparency, equity, and confidence in the licensure pathway.

The group pointed to long-standing concerns—some anecdotal, others based on student experiences—related to question clarity, item construction, and the potential for cultural or linguistic bias. While these concerns remain unverified, LatinxVMA argued that their persistence signals a need for closer scrutiny.

For many students from historically underrepresented communities, especially Hispanic and Latinx candidates, the stakes feel even higher. LatinxVMA notes that some examinees report that cultural context, language complexity, or socioeconomic barriers around test preparation may influence performance.

The organization emphasized that the goal is not to cast doubt on the NAVLE’s integrity, but to seek clarity and confirmation from impartial experts.

“An objective evaluation by an independent auditing body is the most reliable way to address these concerns,” the letter states. “Our aim is not to cast doubt on the examination, but to ensure that every future veterinarian, regardless of background, can trust that the licensing pathway is fair, rigorous, and thoroughly evaluated.

 

[pp9]

the potential for cultural or linguistic bias.

I don't think this caught my eye the first time I read this letter a few weeks ago. This is an interesting point to list as a reason for why the exam needs to be audited, seeing as how it's an exam specific to two countries only. Can you give some examples of what this is referring to, exactly? You started the other thread and never came back to continue discussion.

ETA: Also are these complaints coming from minority groups already within the US/AVMA accredited schools? Or is this concern pertaining to foreign students/vets taking the NAVLE?

 

[pp9]

Also, students are only allowed to sit the exam twice in school…after that your score doesn’t have any bearing on the schools pass rate. So of the 5 times you have the opportunity to take the test, are we allegedly saying that ICVA is purposely making Latino or black test takers fail the exam 5 times?

Just dredging this up after perusing some of the reddit threads over the past couple of weeks, but yes, this is exactly what the ICVA is being accused of. For example, here is a copy/paste from one of the Reddit threads:

"I have taken it six times, with the sixth time being last week. I am half Asian and I always choose Asian as my primary race unless I have the ability to choose more than one race. My mind is completely blown by finding out the NAVLE is graded by human beings. I’m also wondering if this person was keeping any other crayon colors out as well. What a jackass. I wonder what other demographics they have access to when they grade our exams? Because I am a woman in menopause and perhaps he didn’t want any old rookie vets in his profession. Ugh. I feel sick."

Interestingly, the Reddit poster that is generating most/all of the threads regarding Tuskegee, an audit, etc. just made a thinly veiled threat of what their 'retaliation' against the ICVA could look like, so there's that. I hope this audit is done honestly and completely above board because at this point the person/people that are most fired up about this seem to be getting increasingly unhinged. There is now a subreddit for 'NAVLE victims' and everything, although no one else has joined. Said OP seems to have lost any opportunity for courteous discussion from other Reddit posters, seems they crossed the line too many times and people are over it lol.

 

[katiemcat]

Just dredging this up after perusing some of the reddit threads over the past couple of weeks, but yes, this is exactly what the ICVA is being accused of. For example, here is a copy/paste from one of the Reddit threads:



Interestingly, the Reddit poster that is generating most/all of the threads regarding Tuskegee, an audit, etc. just made a thinly veiled threat of what their 'retaliation' against the ICVA could look like, so there's that. I hope this audit is done honestly and completely above board because at this point the person/people that are most fired up about this seem to be getting increasingly unhinged. There is now a subreddit for 'NAVLE victims' and everything, although no one else has joined. Said OP seems to have lost any opportunity for courteous discussion from other Reddit posters, seems they crossed the line too many times and people are over it lol.

Yeah cursing people out / slandering public figures with no evidence and threatening to sue Reddit mods for not letting you do that will not make people empathetic to your cause.

 

[battie]

Yeah cursing people out / slandering public figures with no evidence and threatening to sue Reddit mods for not letting you do that will not make people empathetic to your cause.

Yeah, there's a point where there's legality to think about too. Discord is going through the ringer right now with the Charlie Kirk assassination and I bet reddit doesn't want to be involved in that kind of situation

 

[battie]

Can these two threads just be merged @supershorty ?

 

[honeypot999]

Since this thread has brought up Tuskegee’s accreditation in regards to the audit. The hearing scheduled originally for today is postponed till February.

Tuskegee veterinary school fights to maintain accreditation

Only US program at historically Black university will appeal potential loss of recognition

news.vin.com

 

[pp9]

looking back at that comment they left, I’m shocked they would openly say that. Like what the actual heck possess someone to threaten that?

Right like...I interpret that as a threat to end someone's life, which is pretty insane and should be taken seriously.

I'm still really interested in hearing more about the supposed cultural and linguistic bias in the NAVLE. IMO, it's a regionally relevant test, so of course there will be regionally relevant terminology, colloquialisms (ie 'moon blindness'), it will be delivered in the regionally relevant dialect, etc. Those things, and more, are what make up North American veterinary culture. I wouldn't expect to pass a NAVLE-equivalent exam in a European country without prepping and deeply familiarizing myself with their veterinary culture (also wouldn't expect to successfully practice without doing so, either...). I wouldn't expect the test to eliminate those very important aspects of the test.

I get a lot of foreign externs here. Usually Brazil and Mexico, but a small handful of other countries have been represented too. These students genuinely struggle just to keep up with the basic day to day. The differences in the drugs we have/don't have, standards of care, cultural value of animals, etc. Some of these students have passed the TOEFL and still struggle with keeping up with conversation and medical terminology in English even though they can obviously read/write/speak it. But yet, a solid grasp of the language is required to practice in NA, as is a solid understanding of how we practice in NA.

To open up another can of worms, there's regional cultural bias in what AVMA accredited schools teach within North America, and no one is using that as a reason to change the NAVLE. In the Midwest, we get a lot of material on blasto, antifreeze tox, etc that schools in other regions probably cover minimally/if at all. When I started my rotating in Tampa, I quickly realized that we did not cover rattlesnake bites at all, and that was something my UF classmates had covered in depth and had to help me with on ER. But fungal diseases in Florida? Aside from pythium, it's not really a thing. So when the snowbird dog came in with what was ultimately diagnosed as blasto, I was able to share some of my class notes with my internmate because we had so much info on it. And yet, any of the above could show up on the NAVLE regardless of where you went to school because they are relevant to North America as a whole, even though someone in the Midwest could go their entire career without treating a rattlesnake bite whereas it was a near daily occurrence during the summers in Tampa.