TSI Test Online: Remote Proctored Testing Complete Guide

If you are sitting in Houston, El Paso, or anywhere in between and the idea of driving to a Texas testing center for the TSIA2 sounds like a full day you do not have, you are in luck. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) and College Board approved a remote-proctored option for the TSIA2 in 2020, and most participating Texas colleges have kept it live ever since. It runs through Examity, a third-party proctoring service that watches you through your webcam while you complete the same exam you would take on campus.

The remote TSIA2 is the identical assessment in every measurable way—same CRC scale (910–990), same Diagnostic backup, same essay, same college-readiness cutoffs (950 Math, 945 ELAR with 5+ essay). The only differences are the delivery method, the testing environment you set up yourself, and a slightly higher fee that varies by campus. For most students juggling work, kids, military duty, or rural distance, those tradeoffs are worth it.

This guide walks through eligibility, the technical setup you absolutely must complete the night before, how to register through your participating Texas school, what the proctored session actually feels like, common technical issues that derail people, where remote testing is offered (and where it is not), and the environment rules Examity enforces. By the end you should know whether the online TSI is the right call for your situation—or whether the $20 walk-in option down the road is the smarter play.

One thing up front: not every Texas college offers remote TSIA2, and the ones that do treat it as an opt-in service, not a default. You have to ask, you have to qualify, and you have to set up the right hardware. Walk through the sections below in order and you will avoid the three or four mistakes that cost students their fee on a failed attempt.

Eligibility starts with your testing center. Texas does not run remote TSIA2 at the state level; it is offered campus by campus through partnerships with Examity. You must be enrolled, applying, or accepted at a Texas institution that participates in remote TSIA2 testing. Most major Texas community colleges and several universities offer it: Houston Community College, Lone Star College, Dallas College, Austin Community College, San Antonio College, El Paso Community College, Tarrant County College, Collin College, and the larger four-year schools including UT Arlington, UH, UNT, Texas State, UTSA, and Texas Tech all have the option live as of 2026.

Some smaller community colleges and most private Texas universities do not offer remote TSIA2—they will direct you to a partner campus or back to in-person seating. Call the testing center before paying for anything. You also cannot just walk up and request a remote proctored session: you have to go through your home campus's testing or admissions office to receive a unique registration link or voucher.

Age and identification rules matter too. You must be at least 14 to register for the TSIA2 at most institutions, you need a valid government-issued photo ID (driver license, state ID, US passport, or military ID), and high school students testing through dual-credit programs may need an additional school authorization on file before Examity confirms their slot. Texas residency is not required for the TSIA2 itself, but most Texas colleges only accept TSI scores from students applying to or enrolled in Texas higher education.

Once you have your campus voucher in hand, the technical setup is what separates a clean test day from a disaster. Examity has strict minimum requirements, and a single missing item will get your session canceled at check-in. Plan to do the equipment check the night before your exam—not 20 minutes before start time—because Examity's automated system test can take 30–45 minutes if anything needs troubleshooting.

Here are the non-negotiables. You need a desktop or laptop computer—tablets, Chromebooks, and phones are not supported. Operating system must be Windows 10 or newer, or macOS 10.13 or newer. Browser must be Google Chrome (latest version) or Firefox; Safari and Edge are not officially supported and can fail on the lockdown handshake.

A built-in or external webcam is required, with a clear unobstructed view of your face throughout the exam. You also need a working microphone—built-in laptop mics are fine, but Bluetooth headsets and wireless earbuds are typically blocked because they can be used to relay audio. A wired headset is allowed at some campuses, banned at others—check your campus rules.

Internet must be broadband, ideally hardwired. Examity recommends at least 1 Mbps upload and 2 Mbps download for the video stream, but realistically you want closer to 5 Mbps up and 10 Mbps down to avoid lag-outs. Wi-Fi works if it is strong and stable—run a speed test from your testing spot, not from your kitchen, because signal strength can drop dramatically by room. If you have a slow plan, plug into ethernet for the day. A 5-hour session on flaky Wi-Fi can drop you mid-essay, which forces a costly retake.

Scheduling is where remote and in-person testing diverge most. For on-campus TSIA2, you typically walk into the testing center during open hours (often a window like Monday–Friday 9am–4pm with limited Saturday slots). For remote, Examity offers 24/7 scheduling at most participating Texas campuses, including weekends and evenings, because proctors work in shifts across multiple time zones. You can usually book a slot 24 hours out, sometimes as little as 12 hours, though premium last-minute slots may carry a small surcharge.

The booking flow goes like this: campus voucher → Examity portal login → date and time selection → confirmation email with your check-in link. About 15 minutes before your scheduled start, you log back into the Examity portal, the proctor connects via webcam, verifies your ID by holding it up to the camera, walks you through a 360-degree room scan, and confirms that no unauthorized materials are within reach.

Then they unlock the test in your browser and you begin. Most students finish Math plus ELAR plus essay in 3–4 hours of actual test time, with the proctored session running closer to 4–5 hours including check-in, breaks (if any are allowed), and any Diagnostic activations.

Fee comparison is the other big variable. In-person TSIA2 at most Texas community colleges runs $20, occasionally $25–$29. The remote-proctored version through Examity adds the proctor fee on top of the campus testing fee, typically bringing the total to $35–$45. UT Arlington, for example, charged $39 for remote TSIA2 as of late 2025.

Dallas College charges $40. A handful of campuses bundle the proctor fee into one flat rate, so you may see a single $40 or $45 line item rather than a $20 + $20 split. Retake costs match initial fees in most cases, though a few campuses offer the second attempt at a slightly reduced rate.

Let's talk through what the actual proctored session looks like, because this is where remote testing surprises people. About 15 minutes before your start time, you click the Examity check-in link from your confirmation email. The system asks you to install or update a browser extension that locks down your screen during the test—no other tabs, no copy/paste, no screen capture, no keyboard shortcuts to outside applications. The proctor then joins on video and starts a verification protocol.

First, they confirm your name and ask you to hold your photo ID up to the webcam so they can match face to ID. Next, they ask you to slowly pan your webcam (or pick up your laptop and rotate it 360 degrees) so they can see your desk, the walls behind you, the ceiling, and the floor.

Anything that could be used as a reference—papers, sticky notes, posters with text, second monitors, phones, smart watches, tablets, books—must be out of reach or removed from the room. The proctor will pause and ask you to clear items if they spot a problem.

Once the room is cleared, the proctor unlocks the test in your browser. You see the same TSIA2 interface a campus-based student sees—instructions, then the CRC section, then any Diagnostic that triggers, then the essay. The proctor stays on your screen via picture-in-picture, watches your face and movement throughout, and listens to ambient audio.

They can flag suspicious behavior (looking off-screen too often, speaking out loud, leaving the camera frame) and pause the session to ask what you are doing. Most students never get flagged—the system is designed to catch active cheating, not nervous tics—but it pays to know the rules.

Troubleshooting is the other half of remote testing literacy. The single most common failure point is the webcam not detected at check-in. This usually traces back to either a missing driver, an OS-level privacy permission blocking the browser, or another app (Zoom, Teams, Skype, OBS) holding the camera handle. Close every other app before launch.

On Windows, check Settings → Privacy → Camera and make sure browser access is on. On macOS, check System Preferences → Security & Privacy → Camera. If the webcam still does not show up in the Examity test, try Chrome's incognito mode or a different browser, and reboot the machine if you have not in a while.

The second most common issue is microphone not detected or producing no audio. Same drill: close other apps, check OS-level mic permissions, test with a built-in mic if you were trying to use a Bluetooth headset (which is usually blocked anyway), and confirm the volume is unmuted. The third issue is browser extension conflict. Ad-blockers, password managers, and privacy extensions sometimes interfere with Examity's lockdown extension. Disable all non-essential extensions before check-in, or use a fresh Chrome profile created just for the exam.

The fourth issue is connection instability. If your video stream cuts out for more than 30–60 seconds, Examity may pause the test or end the session. Run a speed test from your testing spot. If you are on Wi-Fi, switch to ethernet for the day. Restart your router an hour before your start time.

Make sure no one else in the house is streaming 4K video or running large downloads during your window. The fifth issue is OS or browser update kicking in mid-test. Disable auto-updates the night before. Windows Update can trigger a restart even during an active test session if you have not pushed the schedule out.

Geographic availability is uneven across Texas. Remote TSIA2 is offered at virtually every Texas community college district with significant enrollment: HCC, Dallas College, Lone Star, ACC, San Antonio College, El Paso CC, Tarrant County College, Collin College, North Central Texas College, South Texas College, Del Mar College, Howard College, Tyler Junior College, Blinn College, McLennan Community College, Temple College, Lee College, Galveston College, Wharton County Junior College, and a few dozen more.

At the university level, UT Arlington, UT Tyler, UT Permian Basin, UH-Downtown, UH-Clear Lake, Texas State, UTSA, Texas Tech, Texas Woman's University, Sam Houston State, Stephen F. Austin, and Lamar all have it live.

Where remote TSIA2 is not offered: most small private Texas colleges (Baylor, TCU, SMU, Rice, Trinity), most religious institutions, several smaller community colleges in rural districts, and a handful of two-year campuses that have chosen to keep all proctoring in-house. UT Austin and Texas A&M College Station historically have not offered remote TSIA2, directing students to local community colleges for testing instead—check directly with admissions to confirm their current policy.

If your home institution does not offer remote, the workaround is to register through a Texas community college that does (HCC and Lone Star are popular default choices because of their broad availability and clear voucher process), pay their fee, take the test remotely, and have the score report sent to your actual home institution.

Texas allows TSI score portability between public institutions, so this approach is fully legal and routine. Just confirm in advance that your receiving school accepts a remote TSIA2 score taken through another Texas college—almost all do, but a small number of programs (typically health sciences or selective admissions tracks) may want a specific testing pathway.

Environment rules during the proctored session are stricter than most students expect. You must test in a private room with the door closed. No other people can enter the room during the exam—including spouses, kids, roommates, and pets that might wander into frame.

If a second face appears on camera, Examity will pause the session and may flag the test for review. The room must be well-lit so the proctor can see your face clearly. Backlighting from a window can wash out the camera and trigger a request to reposition. Overhead lighting plus a small desk lamp is the safest setup.

No materials are allowed on or near your desk. That means no scratch paper (the test interface has an on-screen scratch pad for Math), no notes, no textbooks, no second devices, no smart watches, no headphones (unless your campus has approved wired earbuds in writing), and no food or drink other than a clear water bottle without a label.

Some campuses require even the water bottle to be off the desk and behind you. Your phone must be powered off and out of reach, ideally in another room. Walls behind your camera should be free of posters, calendars, sticky notes, or anything else with readable text.

Clothing matters too. Long sleeves, hats, hoods, and scarves can hide notes or earbuds and may be asked off during check-in. Hair pulled back so your ears are visible is standard. Sunglasses or any tinted eyewear are banned. Plain clothing, no hat, hair back, ears visible, well-lit face—that is the safest profile to clear check-in fast and avoid any flags during the test.

The proctor is allowed to talk to you during the session if something looks off. If you are flagged, stay calm, listen to the instruction, and comply. Most flags resolve in under a minute—a request to move a piece of paper, sit up straighter, look at the screen, or speak less while reading. Aggressive or repeated flags can end the session, and your test will not be scored if the proctor terminates for cause.

Treat the proctor as a partner, not an obstacle, and your session will run smoothly. If you have a legitimate disability accommodation on file with your Texas college, share that documentation in advance through the testing center so Examity can pre-load the appropriate adjustments (extended time, screen reader, separate room timing).

One overlooked piece of online testing is the immediate post-test experience. With in-person TSIA2, you typically see your unofficial CRC scores on the screen within 5–10 minutes of finishing the multiple-choice section, the essay score arrives by email within 24–72 hours (since essays are scored by a separate team plus the e-rater system), and your official score report posts to your college's records within a week. With remote TSIA2, the timing is similar but the delivery is fully electronic—no printout handed to you at the desk.

Once you log out of the Examity session, the proctor releases the test, and the scoring engine pushes your CRC numbers within 5–15 minutes. The essay takes the same 24–72 hours. Your campus voucher links the score back to your home institution automatically, so you do not need to request a separate transcript or score report unless you are sending results to a different Texas school. Keep the email confirmation from Examity—it includes a session ID that can be useful if a score does not appear in your campus record within a week.

If you fall below the cutoff on your first attempt, the retake process for remote TSIA2 is the same as in-person: request a new voucher from your campus testing center, pay the fee (most colleges allow unlimited retakes, some require a 14–30 day waiting period), book your Examity slot, and run the same setup.

Spend your gap time on the specific skill cluster the Diagnostic flagged—Algebraic Reasoning is the most common Math weakness, and Essay Revision or Sentence Logic dominate the ELAR gap reports. Most students who fail by 5–15 CRC points on a first attempt pass cleanly on retake when they spend two to three focused weeks on weak clusters rather than re-reviewing everything.

Bottom line: the online TSI through Examity is a real, fully-supported option at most major Texas colleges, identical in content and outcome to the in-person version. It costs $15–$25 more per attempt, demands more tech preparation upfront, and enforces stricter environmental rules during the exam, but it saves the commute, opens evening and weekend scheduling, and works well for military students, rural Texans, working adults, and parents with childcare logistics that would otherwise eat a full day.

Set up the hardware the night before, run the system check ahead of time, clear your room, and treat the proctor as a partner. Your TSIA2 score posts the same way it would from a testing center, and your path to credit-bearing College Algebra or Composition I starts immediately.