Commissioner Nancy A. Naples, of the Department of Motor Vehicles, announced today that the DMV has launched an innovative program to allow high school students across New York to take the driver's license knowledge test in their own schools via the Internet.

"Getting a driver's license is a rite of passage, something most young people look forward to with great anticipation," Commissioner Naples said. "For high school students across New York State, the process of getting a license will be easier and more convenient."

The Online Knowledge Test Application (OKTA) program is free for students and schools. To participate, a school needs to provide personal computers with Internet access, a printer and at least one staff person to monitor the tests.

DMV is providing Driver's Manuals and other training materials and is working with schools to implement the program. School staff will not have to score the tests. The system automatically scores each test and displays the results for the student on the computer screen.

While students must be at least 16 years old to get a learner's permit, they may participate in the OKTA program at age 15. Students take the written knowledge test in a familiar environment with an easy-to-use computer format. The tests are offered in English and Spanish.

Students who pass the online test will get a receipt, a packet of instructions and all required forms. On or after their 16th birthday, they can take the receipt and the completed forms to any DMV office and complete the application for a learner's permit. Students who fail can retake the test online as often as the school allows.

During the late spring and early summer, DMV conducted a pilot program in five high schools in the Long Island and New York City metro area. The schools administered a total of 530 tests, with a passing rate of 77 percent. A survey of DMV offices conducted before the pilot showed an average passing rate of 67 percent. DMV, which received positive comments from school staff and students, spent the rest of the summer working out remaining details concerning the pending statewide program rollout.

Since early October, approximately 70 schools have signed up for the program. More than a dozen schools in the New York City-Long Island area, including the five involved in the pilot, have begun conducting tests. Nardin Academy High School in Buffalo has also begun online tests.

Earlier this month, DMV sent invitations to high schools in the Hudson Valley and Capital Region, inviting them to participate in OKTA, and plans to complete its outreach to schools within the next two months. While OKTA would complement a school's Driver Education program, a school does not need to have a Driver Education program to participate.

"This is an outstanding program and I am personally very excited about it," Commissioner Naples said. "Recently, DMV updated its Strategic Plan, setting goals for making the agency more efficient and consumer friendly. Among those goals are providing quality customer service and using technology and innovation to improve programs and services. Clearly, OKTA accomplishes both of these goals."