Proctors generally have to be approved by the school where the class is being taken or the test is required. Education professionals, proctoring center employees and certified librarians are all common proctoring choices; some charge a fee for proctoring services, while others -- especially those associated with the school administering the test -- will proctor free of charge.
Proctors typically receive the test materials directly from the school, if the test is being administered in paper form, after the school has had them approved as a proctor and made a proctoring appointment. The proctor reviews the test directions prior to administration. The proctor then monitors the test administration, indicating time limits, ensuring the student doesn't use unauthorized sources and preventing external distractions. Once the test is completed, the proctor takes the test materials and returns them directly to the school.
Sometimes a school will require proctoring for an exam administered on the computer. For this type of exam, the proctor's responsibilities are lightened. The proctor is generally responsible for monitoring students to make sure cheating doesn't happen, and for directing students to follow test time limits. Virtual tests generally relieve proctors of the responsibility of receiving and returning test-taking materials.
With technological advances and the growing popularity of online classes has come an increase in virtual proctoring. This type of proctoring removes the need for a human proctor by allowing the computer to complete all the work. For example, if a student has a set block of time to complete one portion of the test, the virtual proctoring software will close that portion once the timer has gone off. They can similarly ensure that an exam is only available during and for specified time limits. The primary drawback to this type of proctoring is that students cannot be monitored for cheating; some virtual proctoring formats incorporate Web cameras to allow a remote proctor to monitor student actions during tests.