Exam Policy
Just Like You Practiced
Exams in CS 307 will be:
- scheduled using PrairieTest
- proctored in the Computer Based Testing Facility (CBTF)
- completed using PrairieLearn
You are expected to read the student documentation for PrairieTest and the CBTF!
The exams will be completed on the PrairieLearn platform. You will not need to directly access PrairieLearn because PrairieTest will automatically direct you to PrairieLearn at the start of an exam.
Dates
You may begin scheduling your exams on the reservation dates listed below. To do so, head to PrairieTest. You may schedule your exams any time between the start and end date, provided there is capacity in the CBTF.
Exam 01
- Reservation: Thursday,
2026-02-12 - Start: Wednesday,
2026-02-25 - End: Friday,
2026-02-27
Exam 02
- Reservation: Thursday,
2026-03-05 - Start: Wednesday,
2026-03-25 - End: Friday,
2026-03-27
Exam 03
- Reservation: Thursday,
2026-04-16 - Start: Wednesday,
2026-04-29 - End: Friday,
2026-05-01
Content
All exams will be explicitly and implicitly cumulative. Any material covered in lectures, labs, and homework at any point prior to an exam may appear on an that exam. However, exams will be more weighted towards material that has not already been covered on a previous exam.
Format
Exams will be very similar to homework in both content and presentation. In the CBTF, you will be directed (via PrairieTest) to PrairieLearn to complete your exam.
Each exam will consist of some number of checkbox, numeric, and model fitting questions. Notably, code questions will not appear on exams. However, you will certainly still need to write code to complete the checkbox, numeric, and model fitting questions correctly.
Unlike homework, which allow unlimited attempts, you will have multiple but limited attempts at each question on an exam. Additionally, you will only ever have one variant of a question; that is, follow-up attempts after an incorrect submission on an exam will not have any elements change randomly
Also, unlike homework, there will be no timeout between submissions.
You will have five attempts for each numeric question:
| Numeric Attempt | Max Possible Credit |
|---|---|
| 1 | 100% |
| 2 | 100% |
| 3 | 80% |
| 4 | 60% |
| 5 | 40% |
You will have three attempts for each checkbox question:
| Checkbox Attempt | Max Possible Credit |
|---|---|
| 1 | 100% |
| 2 | 75% |
| 3 | 50% |
You will have six attempts for each model fitting question:
| Model Attempt | Max Possible Credit |
|---|---|
| 1 | 100% |
| 2 | 100% |
| 3 | 100% |
| 4 | 80% |
| 5 | 60% |
| 6 | 40% |
Like homework, partial credit is possible. Don’t worry too much about how partial credit interacts with the credit ranges above. Importantly, know that your score can never go down. You always want to correctly answer questions on attempts with the highest possible credit.
Also like homework, you will be given access to a VSCode workspace. This will be your only method for accessing Python, so you will need to use it! Any definitions or formulas provided in workspaces in the preceding homework assignments will be provided. You are responsible for all other information. Like homework, each model fitting question will have its own workspace.
Issues
During an exam, there are two types of issues you could encounter:
- Issues specific to the CBTF
- Issues specific to CS 307
Issues specific to the CBTF are those that are outside the control of the course staff (e.g., an inoperable keyboard, an inability to access PrairieLearn). If you encounter an issue of this type: you must immediately raise your hand, alert a proctor, and file an incident report if they are unable to solve the issue. Without an incident report, there will be no record of your issue, and we will be unable to make an adjustments or modifications.
Issues specific to CS 307 are rooted in the exam questions themselves. If you believe there is an issue with a question on an exam, you should first consider that it is much more likely that you are simply not solving the problem correctly. The exams questions are thoroughly tested before each exam. As a first course of action, consider simply starting over and trying the question again or moving on to a different question and coming back to this one later.
If you would like to contest an exam question, you must:
- Be sure your work for the question is clearly marked in the provided notebook within the VSCode workspace.
- Use the
"Report an error in this question"form and clearly indicate what the issue is and where the course staff can find your work in the provided notebook.
Failure to do any of the above will make it nearly impossible to return any lost points if a question is indeed broken.
Additional information about what to do during exam if you encounter an issue can be found on the CBTF website.
DRES Accommodations
If you have accommodations identified by the Division of Rehabilitation-Education Services (DRES) for exams, please upload your letter via the CBTF website as soon as possible. Letters can take up to five days to process. Once accepted, your accommodations will be automatically applied within PrairieTest and automatically administered in the CBTF.