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Frequently Asked Questions

Exam Prep Studies

How can I access my online testbanks, prep videos, audio presentations and mock exams?

On our homepage, log into your account. After you are authenticated, you will be taken to our online learning portal, which includes details about your current classes as well as your associated audio presentations.

How do I register as a prelicensure candidate in order to get my discount?

You can find our pre-licensure courses in our Exam Prep division. Click the "California Exam Prep" item in our pagetop menu to be taken there, then click "Prelicensure Courses in the lefthand menu to be be given your choice of video and text at-home courses as well as listings for our live classes.

Why doesn't the countdown clock appear when I am taking my exam?

The time is only displayed when you are taking the exam in Exam Mode. Study Mode doesn't display the time because it puts no time pressure on you - it is designed to help you get acquainted with the style and content of questions you might find on the licensing exams and practice zeroing in on clues to help you find the best answers. Exam Mode, on the other hand, is designed to simulate the licensing exam and include the pressure of the clock.

The online testbank seems to skip questions.

We recommend using the keyboard keys for selecting answers and navigating through the exam. These are the keys you'll use on the actual BBS exam, and they are also faster and more reliable than using a mouse. Place your left hand on the 1-4 keys above the letter keys and use those for selecting your answers, and place your right hand over your keyboard's arrow keys. Use the left and right arrow keys to move forward and backward through the exam, and the up and down arrows for scrolling the page up and down. Please don't use your web browser's "forward" and "back" arrows - these will lose your place in the practice exam.

I put my testbank exam on "pause", and it went away. How can I find it again?

When you put your exam on "pause" the system freezes the timer, remembers all the answers you've made, and remembers the current question. It will then take you back to the main exam page. If you then close your browser, or just navigate to another page, when you return to the main exam page you will be shown a prompt saying you have an exam on "pause" and be asked if you would like to continue. If you select "Yes", you will be taken back to the question you were seeing when you paused the exam and the timer will start where it left off. If you select "No" at the prompt, the main exam page will appear. At this point you can still restart that paused exam by scrolling to your exam history at the bottom of the page - here you can review completed exams and continue those that were not finished. The most recent is at the top of the list.

Continuing Education

How many of my hours can I fulfill with GGS online courses?

The California Board of Behavioral Sciences allows 100% of CE hours earned through "interactive" and "self-study" electronic courses such as our online offerings. Previous to that date, "interactive" courses could account for 100%, while "self-study" could only count for 50% of your hours. Their definition of "self study" is when the post-quiz is sent through the post office, since there is no chance for interaction, while "interactive" includes sending the quiz in via FAX as well as completing the quiz online. Please check your state or certification organization for their requirements regarding online and distance study.

Can I read the course material right on the GGS website, or do I have to order it in printed form?

You have the option to receive printed copies of the course text and quiz. If you choose this option, you still will have access to the same materials through your account on our website. However, there is an extra charge for the printing, and we have to add tax and shipping as well. There are none of these extra costs when you do the course entirely online.

I have done your online classes in printed form before, and would now like to do one entirely online.

Our text-base courses present the course material in PDF-format files, which are readable by most computers already. You may have to up-grade your program that reads those files, but we have directions for doing this free installation on our CE course instruction pages. After reading the text, you just click a button on the course instructions page to begin your online quiz, and you can take as long as you need to complete it. Once completed, your record is marked as having passed the course and you can immediately print your certificate on your own printer or request one from our office for a small fee.

Do I have to send my course completion certificates to the BBS, or will GGS send them?

You are responsible for maintaining your own continuing education records, but you will not need to show them to the California Board of Behavioral Sciences unless they choose to audit you. For more information, please visit the BBS website. Gerry Grossman Seminars will retain records of your CE course completion for at least 7 years, but you should retain your own copies of your certificates for at least 4 years. For other states and licensing organizations, please check their websites for their requirements for documenting your continuing education.

Why can't I hear the audio in my online video course?

The audio stream is interleaved with the video, so once you can see the video playing you know the audio is present. Once the video is running the audio level is controlled by a few things:

1) Your computer's speaker volume level. Make sure your speakers are turned on and the volume is set to a medium level. You can test this by playing a YoutTube video or a song from your music player.

2) The audio "mute" button on the video player's toolbar. This has a little speaker icon, and is on the righthand side. Clicking it will turn the audio on or off.

3) The audio volume slider on the video player's toolbar. This appears as a vertical slider when you move your mouse above the mute button - grab the slider's "handle" with the mouse and move it up and down to control the volume. This only works within the level your speakers are set to, however - if your computer's main volume control is down or off, the video player volume cannot override it.

4) If you are accessing our videos through your work computer that is remotely connected through your main office, the audio stream may be disabled. In this case, check with your IT department so they can reconfigure your remote connection to allow the audio through.

The video stops and shows a circling "buffering" indicator in my online video course. What do I do when that happens? Why does it happen?

We use a streaming video system that continuously loads the video as it plays. This is what lets it begin playing almost immediately instead of having to download the entire course before it can play. But the system needs to have a certain amount loaded in memory before it can start playing. This loading process is called "buffering", so you'll see that circling indicator when the video first begins and any time the video stream itself falls behind. The streaming process depends on your internet connection being fast and having little interruption, so if it's a little slow, or there is a lot of traffic going over it, you'll see the "buffering" indicator. If this happens too much, try changing the video resolution. There are controls for this below the video screen. By choosing "Small", "Mid" or "Low", you can switch the system to a lower bandwidth version of the video that doesn't require a fast internet connection. You might also try accessing with a different web browser, such as Mozilla FireFox or Google Chrome. Each web browser has its own quirks, so switching will often resolve issues like this.