Preparing For Your Online Proctored Exam
Taking a proctored exam means that your exam session will be monitored by either a human proctor and/or Artificial Intelligence (AI). The following data will be collected from your computer:
- Before the exam starts:
- A photo of your ID and face to verify your identity
- Video scan of your desk and room to ensure there are no exam rule violations
- During the exam:
- Video from your webcam or webcams
- Screencast from your computer’s monitor collected through screen sharing
- Sounds from your microphone
Your actions will be tracked by AI, which will instantly recognize any suspicious action and notify your proctor about it. Suspicious actions may include:
- Your gaze direction indicating using hardcopy cheat sheets or other prohibited materials
- Talking to a third person
- Opening a new browser tab
- Using prohibited applications
- Other actions prohibited by the rules of a particular exam
Additionally, your proctor can either monitor you in real-time or review recordings of the exam afterward.
System Requirements
Find the requirements for proctored tests on desktop computers and laptops in the table above:
| Device | PC, Mac or laptop. Tablets and smartphones may be used if permitted by the test organizer. |
|---|---|
| Operating System |
|
| Browser (latest version) |
|
| CPU | Intel Core 2 DUO or AMD Athlon x2, or better models with SSE3 support, 2 cores, and more, 1.8 GHz frequency and higher. |
| RAM | 4 GB and more. |
| HDD space | 500 MB and more. |
| Web camera | Front webcam with at least 640×480 resolution. |
| Microphone | Functioning microphone (including built-in laptop models). |
| Internet connection speed | Active Internet connection with stable 1 Mbps speed and faster. |
Find the requirements for proctored tests through Secure Browser in the table above:
| Device | PC, Mac or laptop. Tablets and smartphones may be used if permitted by test organizer. |
|---|---|
| Operating System |
|
| CPU | Intel Core 2 DUO or AMD Athlon x2, or better models with SSE3 support, 2 cores, and more, 1.8 GHz frequency and higher. |
| RAM | 4 GB and more. |
| HDD space | 500 MB and more. |
| Web camera | Front webcam with at least 640×480 resolution. |
| Microphone | Functioning microphone (including built-in laptop models). |
| Internet connection speed | Active Internet connection with stable 1 Mbps speed and faster. |
| Data transmission net ports | The following ports must be open in the firewall:
|
The requirements for proctored tests on mobile devices are as follows:
- Android 8.0+ or iOS/iPadOS14.0+
- 1GB RAM (3GB and more recommended)
Preparing Your Workspace Before the Exam
- Make sure your room is well-lit, but no light sources should be pointed straight at your webcam.
- Ensure silence in the room and that no other person enters it while you're taking the exam.
- Make sure your internet connection is stable. We recommend that you use a wired (Ethernet) connection for improved stability.
- Check if your web camera is on and not covered up.
- Ensure that your mic is on, and it's volume is not set to zero.
- Keep your ID available.
- Keep your laptop plugged in during the exam. Most laptops have lower performance while working off the battery.
- Turn off any third-party programs that may use your webcam or mic.
- Close all tabs in the browser except for the one with the exam.
- Do not use a second browser while taking the test.
- Unplug your headphones and take them off the desk.
- Unplug any additional monitors, mice and keyboards.
Exam Rules
- No leaving the room.
- Using a calculator, unless specified otherwise, is prohibited.
- The use of other software programs is prohibited.
- Outside help is forbidden.
- The use of books is prohibited.
- Use of Messenger is prohibited.
- The use of drafts is prohibited.
- Use of websites is prohibited.
- Talking during testing is forbidden.
- Gaze aversion is forbidden.
Preventing the Exam Page or Browser Freezing
To prevent the exam page or browser freezing during your exam (test) sessions, use the tips below.
- Use a cable internet connection. Having a stable and reliable internet connection is crucial in preventing page or browser freezing:
- Restart your Wi-Fi router to refresh the connection and potentially improve the speed.
- Consider using a wired internet connection instead of Wi-Fi. Wired connections generally provide more stability and faster speeds compared to wireless connections.
- Disconnect other devices that might be using the same network. Other devices consuming bandwidth can affect the available speed for the exam.
- Temporarily disable any Virtual Private Network (VPN), if you are using one. VPNs can sometimes slow down the internet speed, so disabling it during the exam might help improve the connection. See How to turn off build-in OS Firewall in the support resources.
- If possible, switch to a different internet connection. For example, you can enable the access point mode on your smartphone and connect your computer to it. This can provide an alternative network with potentially better speed.
- Close unnecessary browser tabs and applications. Having multiple tabs or applications running simultaneously can strain your system’s resources and lead to freezing issues.
- Close any unnecessary browser tabs and applications running in the background. See How to close applications.
- Keep only the test-related tabs or applications open to reduce the load on your system.
- Clear browser cache and cookies. A cluttered browser cache or excessive cookies can impact your browser’s performance. To clear them:
- Disable browser extensions. Certain browser extensions or plugins may conflict with the test environment and cause freezing problems.
- See Temporarily disabling any non-essential extensions.
- Alternatively, use a separate browser profile specifically dedicated to test-taking without any extensions enabled.
Restart your browser after implementing these recommendations:
- In a new tab enter the address chrome://restart or edge://restart.
- Press ENTER. Then go into your test again.