Online exams are open-book exams and time limited.

The majority of exams will be open on Blackboard for 8 hours from 09:00 UK time to 17:00 UK time the same day.

For some specific exams there may be a time restriction in place, which means once you have started your paper online (within the 8-hour window), it must be submitted within a specified time.  Your Module Convenor will let you know if this applies for any of your exams, or if there are any specific instructions (e.g. set start times, assessment types/choices).

There are four main submission types (online exam types):

• • Turnitin Assignment (submit work via a Turnitin submission point)

• • Blackboard Assignment (submit work via a Blackboard assignment submission point)

• • Blackboard Test (for MCQs or similar questions, normally with a time limit)

• • Gradescope (for handwritten exams, mostly in Maths and Sciences, normally with a time limit) 

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Which type of submission point will be setup for my exam? If you are not sure or have not been informed yet, please contact your Module Convenor or Programme administrator for information and guidance prior to your exam date, so you can practice submitting to the relevant type of assessment, and test your computer for any technical issues.

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For any module where you have an exam, go to the Blackboard course for that module, you will find a "Online Exams 2023" link on the course menu.

If you have difficulty accessing the "Online Exams" area, please log a support call as soon as possible.

You will find all the necessary information and guidance in the "Online Exams" area. Please read through all the instructions carefully before you start your exam.

Most Online Exams require submission of written work via Turnitin. Some exams will require you to submit to a Blackboard or Gradescope assignment, or completion of a Blackboard Test. The exam papers, submission points / Test will be available in a folder called "Exam" (or something similar) which will only become visible to you on the day of the exam, from 9:00am UK time. Please refer to your exam timetable for the dates of your Online Exams. In most cases, the online exam will be available for 8 hours and your answer(s) must be submitted before 5:00pm UK time the same day, unless you have been given a different deadline from your School.

Turnitin or Blackboard Submission Points: For written work you need to download the paper and any accompanying documents from Blackboard and your answers can be typed in a Microsoft Word document as you would for coursework (unless you have been given specific instructions from your School).
Use your University Office 365 account to download Office 365 or use the web version of Office 365.

Blackboard Tests (Multiple Choice exams): Further instructions for completing Blackboard Tests can be found in Online Exam: Blackboard Tests.

Gradescope: For help with submitting to Gradescope assignments see our Gradescope guide.

General guidance

• • You are advised only to work on your answers for the duration of the time stated on the front page of the online exam paper. You are not expected to work for 8 hours on your answer.

• • Please read your exam paper thoroughly before you start to ensure that you understand what you need to do.

• • You are responsible for organising your time and should aim to submit your answer(s) as early as possible to ensure your work is submitted prior to the deadline specified for your take-home exam paper.

• • You are responsible for the content of the work you upload and for the academic integrity of your answer(s).

• • Once you have submitted your work, please check that it has uploaded successfully, and that you submitted the correct file. See
    Check your Turnitin submission was successful
    Check your Blackboard assignment submission was successful
  • Submit in plenty of time before the deadline - late submissions are not allowed and will receive a mark of zero.

Problems Submitting Your Work 

If you have problems submitting your answer(s) please email a Word version of the answers you intended to submit to online-exam@reading.ac.uk before the submission deadline or as soon as possible! Please attach a copy rather than the link to your document (which will not be marked). 

How to complete your exam papers

• • Use Microsoft Word for exams where you need to type your answers and submit a document. Your University Office 365 account gives all students access to Office, whether you are a Windows or a Mac user.

• • Do not exceed the specified word limits where they are stated.

• • You should use 12pt font size, Arial and 1.5 line spacing for word processed submissions.

• • Please write your candidate number, module code and question answer on the top of each piece of work that you submit.

• • Follow any instructions provided by your School concerning file types and file names.

• • Save your work regularly as you as you are working on it. If possible take a regular backup.

• • Complete and upload your answer(s) to the submission point(s) in Blackboard or Turnitin.

Your exam papers - technical tips

• • Use Microsoft Word for exams where you need to type your answers and submit a document. Your University Office 365 account gives all students access to Office, whether you are a Windows or a Mac user.

• • If you use other word-processing software, you should save your answer paper as a Word or PDF file - but please use Microsoft Word if at all possible: download Office 365 well in advance to avoid file type issues.

• • Apple Pages is not a supported file type for submission.

• • File names should not contain punctuation or non-standard characters. For example, full stops, colons and brackets.

• • If you have used advanced text formatting or complex tables in your document you should save your file as a PDF, to ensure the formatting stays the same. If possible, avoid using advanced text formatting.

• • For Turnitin Submission points, please ensure your file size does not exceed 100 MB.

• • Turnitin only accepts 1 file per submission. For Turnitin submissions, please ensure all your work is in one file.

• • Don't leave it till the last minute to submit.

Be prepared!

• • Make sure you can log in to Blackboard.

• • Check your device and browser settings
    • • Use the Blackboard Browser checker to check your browser’s compatibility with Blackboard.
    • • If any of your exams will require you to take a Blackboard Test, make sure that ad-blockers and pop-up blockers aren't causing any issues - see Blackboard Tests: Technical advice

• • Use your Online Exams Practice course to get familiar with the tools.
    If any of your modules have an online exam then you will have been enrolled on a Take Home Exams Practice course in Blackboard. Find out which tools are being used for exams on your modules – it might be Turnitin, Blackboard Assignments, Blackboard Tests or Gradescope – and then go to the Practice course to make sure you know how to submit to that sort of exam. This is particularly important for exams where there’s a time limit.

We are now using a new version of Turnitin.
When you submit to a Turnitin assignment, you will not be emailed a receipt, but should download your receipt immediately after submission.

• • How to submit to Turnitin

• • Check your Turnitin submission was successful

• • How to submit to Blackboard Assignment

 

• • Check your Blackboard assignment submission was successful

 

Exams consisting of Multiple Choice and similar questions will be delivered via a Blackboard Test.

• • Take Home Exams: Blackboard Tests
    How to take your Test - includes essential technical advice and information on how tests work.

 

Gradescope is an online assessment tool designed for the submission of handwritten work – for instance in Maths, Sciences and Languages.

Gradescope will be used for some exams in Summer 2023 – your lecturers will provide information on this.

Where exams are delivered through Gradescope they will normally be timed so that, once started, you must submit your work within the specified time limit.

Please see our Gradescope help page.

How do I take images of handwritten equations and diagrams and insert them into a document?

• • Capture and insert images into a Word document for online submission

 

How do I submit a totally handwritten exam for online submission?

• • Scan and submit handwritten exams to an assessment in Blackboard

 

How do I reduce the file size of my document?

• • Reduce the file size of my document for online submission

 

If required, you can reduce the file size of a document by compressing the size of images in it, without losing the quality of the images. Doing this makes it easier and quicker to upload and submit.

The following types of exam DO send out email receipts

• • Blackboard assignment

• • Gradescope variable-length assignment

The following types of exam DO NOT send an email receipt

• • Turnitin assignment
  • Blackboard Test

• • Gradescope online assignment

You are responsible for ensuring that you have uploaded the right document to the correct exam submission point, and for ensuring that your work has been uploaded successfully by the stated deadline for that exam.

How you check what you have submitted will depend on the assessment tool used. For details see Checking that your submission was successful.

Online Exam Practice courses will be set up in Blackboard Learn for each School. Each practice course is intended to give you the opportunity to test downloading and uploading documents and understand what instructions you will see on exam papers, as well as to identify and resolve any technical issues ahead of the exam period.

All types of submission points are available, and this will allow you to test the different exam types your School will have set. The practice areas will be open throughout the exams period and you can access it as many times as you like.

How do I access the practice course?

You can access the practice course by following these instructions:

a) Log in to Blackboard Learn as usual.

b) Your Online Exam Practice course will be listed on the 'Courses' tab of the main Blackboard menu.

Online Exam Practice areas will be set up in Blackboard Learn for each School.  These practice areas are intended to give you the chance to test downloading and uploading documents in advance of your exams.

Technical support:

You can contact us with technical queries via the DTS (Digital Technology Service) Self Service Portal. Please use the ‘Online Exam IT Support’ form on the portal to ensure a speedy response to your query.

Please note that ‘live’ support is available from 8:30 - 17:30pm UK time Monday to Friday.

For urgent queries (for example, at the submission deadline), you can call the ‘Online Exam Helpline’ on +44 (0) 118 378 7049 from 8:30 - 17:30 UK time Monday to Friday. Please be aware that our telephone lines are very busy at this time of year so we may be unable to answer immediately.

Problems Submitting Your Work 

If you have problems submitting your answer(s) please email a Word version of the answers you intended to submit to online-exam@reading.ac.uk before the submission deadline or as soon as possible. Please attach a copy rather than the link to your document (which will not be marked).