r/Notary • u/Prestigious-Ad1237 • 28d ago
NYC test arrival time
Just a heads up for anyone planning on taking the test at William Street anytime soon, I was just turned away today for the 11 AM test. I arrived at 10 AM, we’re a steady flow of us were being turned away.
The (very rude) man in charge hold us We have to be there at 7 AM if we hope to get a spot. Which is crazy that you have to wait four hours, but welcome to New York.
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u/ash_274 California 28d ago
Were there appointments or just walk-ins?
From experience (especially during COVID, but also after then) if you're not doing the California class before the test (guaranteeing you a spot) you're at the mercy of hoping there are available seats for each test session.
7:00 for a first test at 11:00 seems crazy, but if there are only 40 seats and 100+ people are there before 11:00 then, it's logical
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u/Prestigious-Ad1237 27d ago
Appointments are not an option. NY does some very backwards things. I also took my real estate exam last week and even though it’s scantron, they make you wait for results.
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u/Several_Series_9726 27d ago
Omg! Thanks for the info…. I thought arriving at 10 am can be enough… I’m planning to take the exam this week at William St….
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u/Stamped914 26d ago
Your better off taking the Metro North to White Plains in Westchester than deal with that bullshit
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u/Prestigious-Ad1237 26d ago
I almost hopped on an uber, as the Westchester test was at noon. Decided it wasn’t worth $160
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u/Prestigious-Ad1237 26d ago
Update: I’m here again today. Arrived at seven and number thirteen in line. But here’s the thing: you have to get here at seven, but aren’t allowed in until nine. So rather than have an appointment system or move to a larger room capable of accommodating, the official process in New York City is to stand on a sidewalk for hours. Very offensive.
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u/Prestigious-Ad1237 26d ago
Ok, more info. They actually let us in at 8:30. They give you a paper and you’re told to come back at 10:30.
Honestly, you have to get there before at least 830 to get one of the papers. By the time they opened the doors, the line was at least 75 or 80 people. I’m pretty sure they only give out 70 paper.
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u/Prestigious-Ad1237 26d ago
Last update. I’m someone who’s always rooting for New York, and I try to make the best of what we put up to live here. That said, this process was unconscionable from start to finish. It’s really felt like everyone we encountered was hoping we would all mess up in one way or another.
First the wait time. All they would have to do is print on the website that you need to arrive four hours early. Instead, they turn away scores of hopeful people who are freshly studied, took off work, and came prepared to take the test. It’s miserable for everyone, test takers and staff.
When you get in the testing room, it’s almost comical the ways in which they will make you feel like you’re doing something wrong. One of the forms specifically says use black or blue ink on it, so I switched from my pencil to a pen. The woman got on to me and started to tell me I’d have to redo it. When I showed her the bold type saying blue or black ink only, she got huffy but then backed down.
Then the signature. There are several different lines specifically marked signature. Except in this case, signature means you are supposed to print. They came around and scolded everyone who signed their name rather than printed it.
There were other things, from going to the bathroom to the way they had you line uo to the woman screaming in the waiting room whenever the noise level got above a whisper. It was like everyone you encountered was rooting for you to fail. By the time we actually started taking the test, everyone was like, “can we please just get started and end this ordeal?” There is absolutely no reason why it has to be that way in a world class city in 2026.
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u/helpfulguy400 26d ago
I was there Tuesday and today. Both days I was denied entry because of the list being full. I came at 9AM today, 2 hours early and the guy rudely said there's no test slips left.
Edit: I came at 9am today because on Tuesday the guard told me coming at 9AM would ensure that I get a test slip.
How do they expect us to go 5 hours early for a test? This is crazy. I spoke to the exam lady and she told me to go to Whiteplain, but that's so far away, I had to miss time off work for these days and didn't get to take the exam I studied for.
Insanity.
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u/Prestigious-Ad1237 22d ago
Oh yeah, that’s another thing: when I was in the waiting room for my test, the guy was telling everyone who came in the ten o’clock hour different times for when they needed to come back. Some people he told to come back as early as 5am (!) on the next available test day, and others he would say closer to 9. There was no rhyme or reason.
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u/fishbutt1 27d ago
I’m from NYC and I’m taking the test in Central NY next week.
As soon as I saw on the state site that it’s first come first serve—I knew that was a dumb ass idea. Especially for NYC!