Setting up for your recorded MMI

A laptop camera can show your face perfectly and still miss your hands. Push the laptop back to fix that, and now you're squinting at the question. It's a small problem, and it's much easier to solve on a quiet afternoon than with a timer running.

That's the point of a run-through. Before the real sitting, you want three things settled: your booking is confirmed, your setup works in the room you'll use, and you know the rules for your own assessment.

Provider guidance checked October 18, 2026.

Start with your own invitation

Before you move the laptop or test a microphone, open the email or dashboard for this school, this programme and this interview stage. A rule you remember from Casper, another school or a previous year may not carry over. The invitation also tells you which platform you're on, whether that's Acuity Video Interviews, Kira or something else. Most of the setup choices below depend on what it says.

Start with what decides whether you can get in at all. Find when you're allowed to start and when you need to be finished; the next section helps you turn those times into your own clock. Then confirm which account to use, what ID you'll need and which language stream you're in. A mix-up here is easier to sort out well before the day.

Next, picture your desk during an answer. Look for what your instructions say about writing during preparation, and whether paper or prepared notes can be within reach. Check whether headphones, earbuds or earplugs are allowed, and what the camera needs to show: just your face, or your hands and more of the workspace too. Those answers shape the camera and sound checks further down, so it's worth having them before you start rearranging anything.

Then think through the assessment itself. Find out when recording starts and whether you can submit an answer early. Check what's allowed for breaks and water. And note where to report a problem partway through, because that's the moment you'll least want to go looking for it.

You may not find everything. If a rule that matters is missing, or two instructions disagree, ask the school or provider named in the invitation and keep their reply. A forum post about someone else's sitting can't settle it for yours. With Acuity, some gaps may stay open until you begin: it says programmes can configure Video Interviews differently and may reveal some format details only at the start. Its preparation guidance recommends a dedicated space and checks of your camera, audio and internet connection.

Is the booking really done?

Choosing a date and completing a reservation can be separate steps, so keep going until you see the confirmation the provider tells you to expect. For Acuity Video Interviews, a completed reservation appears on your dashboard, and Acuity says the interview window and start button are shown in your local time zone. Compare that with your invitation, especially if you'll be travelling. (Acuity's reservation guide)

Then do the time check once, on paper. Copy the official date, time and zone exactly as written. Beside it, note the city you'll be in on the day and the local date and time there, daylight saving included. Write down whether the instructions set a start deadline or a finish deadline, and don't assume a window that closes at 5 pm lets you start at 4:59. If the wording is unclear, or the zone label looks unfamiliar or mistyped, get it clarified before you convert. Keep the booking email or dashboard details with that note.

Set reminders for the reservation deadline and the sitting itself. If you've already missed a step, contact the official support route promptly; the incident-recovery guide covers what to tell them.

Find a camera position you can work in

Set this up before you open the real assessment. Put the camera near eye level, light your face from the front, and sit where you can read the screen without leaning in.

If your instructions require visible hands, rest them where they'd naturally sit while you're talking, then look at the camera view. Move the laptop a little farther back or change its angle until the required area is visible. A stable stand or a stack of books can help too. Every change moves the screen as well, so check you can still read a question comfortably from your seat.

Then try it properly: read a practice question and talk through an answer for a minute or two. Notice whether you lean forward, drift out of frame or strain to read. If the view only works while you hold yourself still, keep adjusting. You'll be thinking and speaking in this position, so it has to work while you do both.

An external webcam is one option if your assessment permits it, but buying one isn't the first step. If you can't meet a framing requirement comfortably or accessibly, contact the school or provider as early as possible, checking the applicable accommodation deadline. Ask what view is required and how the accommodation process works for your assessment.

How do you sound on playback?

Record yourself answering one of your own practice questions, then play it back. Is your voice clear at your normal volume? Does your face stay in view? Does household noise, like a dishwasher in the next room, make you hard to hear?

If headphones aren't allowed, test the speakers as well as the microphone. A microphone test alone won't tell you whether you can hear an instruction or video prompt. If you need earplugs or another adjustment, confirm permission in advance.

Pick the quietest private space you have, tell the people around you when you'll need it, and plug the computer in. None of that turns your room into a studio. It just makes the setup more dependable.

Check your school's requirements as well as platform compatibility. Kira lists supported devices and browsers, but that list doesn't establish what your school permits. Ottawa's published early-MMI requirements, for example, specify a computer with a webcam, audio and a reliable connection in a quiet, private room.

Clear the screen before you start

Close music, messaging, screen-recording and any other app you don't need. Pause downloads and switch off the notifications you can. Kira's troubleshooting guidance also recommends closing unneeded tabs and disabling browser extensions, including writing assistants. Get all of this done before the real assessment.

A tidy screen doesn't answer whether an app left open would count as a breach; your assessment's rules govern that. Acuity's terms of use (section 11) expressly prohibit AI use while completing its assessments.

Let the official practice teach you the controls

Acuity's preparation guidance describes an automatic system check at the start and two practice questions before the real Video Interview. Use them to confirm the platform can access your equipment and that you understand the interface.

Kira practice is available when your school enables it, and some schools require it before the assessment unlocks. You can repeat and review those practice responses, though Kira warns that practice questions and timings may differ from the real assessment.

On either platform, find the preparation timer, the recording indicator and the submission controls. Use practice to learn the controls, then read the real assessment's instructions when they appear.

For your own rehearsals, use an original or public practice question, and keep confidential assessment content out of anything you record or share. Acuity's terms (section 17) prohibit sharing its assessment content publicly or privately.

Right before you press start

One last pass:

• You're in the correct account, programme and interview stage.
• Your booking and time window match the instructions.
• Camera view, microphone, speakers and connection are checked.
• Your desk, materials and apps meet your assessment's stated rules.
• Available system checks and any required practice are done.
• You know how to reach support if something goes wrong.

If an Acuity account problem comes up, contact support rather than creating a second account; its terms (section 6) permit one applicant account.

For clothing, follow any instruction you received. Otherwise, choose something comfortable you'd wear to a professional meeting. You'll have enough to think about without adjusting a collar mid-answer.

Once it all works, try the practice question below from the same chair, with the laptop exactly where you left it. Listen back, and choose one thing to improve.

Videoath practice

Try your setup with one practice answer

Record one answer, then play it back to check your framing and sound.

Getting your question ready…

This is a Videoath rehearsal. Complete your assessment provider's own system check and available practice too.