The setup that prevents most problems
- •Use a laptop or desktop with Google Chrome, which is what Kira recommends. On a phone, Kira recommends Safari on iPhone and Chrome on Android, but a computer is much more forgiving.
- •Open your Kira link in an incognito or private window. This turns off most browser extensions, which cause a lot of odd glitches.
- •Close every other tab and app, and especially anything that uses your camera or mic, like Zoom, FaceTime, Teams, or Discord.
- •Check your internet speed. Kira lists a minimum of 10 Mbps download and 5 Mbps upload, and upload is the one people forget. Run a speed test from the exact spot where you'll sit.
- •Plug your laptop in and turn off battery saver mode, which can throttle your connection and camera.
- •If you use Grammarly or a similar extension, turn it off. Kira notes that extensions like this can make typing lag in written questions.
- •Do the device setup and any practice questions on the same device, browser, network, and room you'll use for the real thing.
If your camera or microphone won't work
Most camera and mic errors come down to permissions or another app holding onto the device. Click the lock or settings icon on the left side of the address bar, set Camera and Microphone to Allow, and refresh the page. If Kira says it can't find your devices, make sure no other app is using them, try an incognito window, and test the camera in another app to confirm it actually works. If you're on Firefox and get a device error, switching to Chrome usually fixes it. When nothing works, restart your computer, and if it still fails, try a different device and contact support with the exact error message, including any text under Show more.
If your connection drops mid-question
If you see a message saying there was an issue with the connection or recording, don't close the tab. Kira's guidance is to wait for your connection to come back, then click Try again, and you'll continue from where you left off. For a slow or unstable connection, close other tabs and apps, restart your router if you can do so quickly, and move closer to it. If videos or questions won't load at all, try an incognito Chrome window or a different supported browser. Kira also has a platform status page, so if something seems broken for no reason, check whether the problem is on their end.
Who to contact, and for what
- •For quick questions while you're in the assessment, click the Help or question mark button in the top right corner. That opens Charlie, Kira's support chatbot, which is available around the clock.
- •For technical problems Charlie can't solve, email support@kiratalent.com. Kira supports applicants by chat and email, not by phone.
- •For anything about deadlines, extensions, retakes, accommodations, or admissions decisions, contact your school's admissions office directly. Kira can't make those decisions for you.
- •Whatever happens, take screenshots of every error message with the time visible, and write down which question you were on. Then email your school the same day with those details.
If an answer got cut off or recorded badly
If the problem was technical, like a frozen recording or a lost connection, document it and contact both Kira and your school as described above, and do it promptly. Whether you get another attempt is up to the school, not Kira. If the problem was you, like freezing up, losing your train of thought, or running out of time, that isn't a technical issue and there's usually no retake, so let it go and give the next question your full attention. Reviewers score each answer separately, and one shaky answer is far less damaging than letting it rattle you for the rest.
Sorting out your tech removes one big source of stress, but most people find the bigger worry is the answers themselves. If you'd like to rehearse under real conditions first, my Kira prep sessions run timed questions on camera and then we review the recordings together, so the real thing feels familiar. If you're not sure where you stand, book the free fifteen minute call and I'll give you an honest take.