Exam Scheduling
This entry provides a conceptual overview for how LearningBuilder allows system participants to schedule exams.
Table of Contents
Overview
LearningBuilder helps guide Applicants through the journey to becoming a credentialed professional. As a credentialing management system, LearningBuilder’s great strength is the flexibility to design eligibility requirements and exam scheduling according to your organization’s rules. Programs can determine how an Applicant may provide proof of eligibility to sit for a high stakes certification exam, when the Applicant is notified, and the Applicant’s options for taking the exam.
Self-Proctored Exams
The Exam Administrator for the Credentialing Program produces the exam, schedules the dates and locations for the exam, and certifies the results. In some cases, the Exam Administrator permits Exam Sites to manage Exam Administration and Exam Offerings. LearningBuilder provides you the flexibility to manage each step of the exam scheduling process using our Scheduling Engine.
LearningBuilder can be used for exam scheduling using the Activity Offerings feature. This feature handles the coordination and orchestration between four parties:
Credentialing Programs define the contents of the exam. They can also choose when to offer exams for specific test windows.
Exam Sites choose where to offer the exam, including the number of candidates they can support. For rolling examinations, Exam sites also define when they will administer the exam.
Candidates choose from (or are assigned to) available exam sittings
Proctors that administer the exam to confirm identity, monitor ethical behavior, and manage logistics.
External Test Administrators
If an organization does not want to proctor exams, Heuristics may partner with 3rd-party Exam Administrators to provide a comprehensive and integrated exam solution. LearningBuilder sends candidate eligibility information to the Exam Administrator system and receives exam results back from that system. LearningBuilder then applies business rules to determine the next stage in the exam process and can notify the candidate about their next steps.
Managing Exams and Offerings
As the credentialing organization, you maintain complete control over your certification exams. LearningBuilder provides the flexibility to manage the exam process according to how your organization performs testing. For example, some organizations may prefer to restrict when and where exams are offered. Others may prefer to allow more autonomy to designated Exam Sites and allow them to create offerings for a published Exam Activity. LearningBuilder may be configured to enable the level of control that meets the needs of the credentialing organization.
Terminology for Exam Scheduling
Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
Exam Publisher | The Exam Publisher is the entity that produces the exam, certifies the results, etc. For instance, this might be an organization offering a credential that is earned by passing the exam. These entities should be represented in LearningBuilder as Providers. |
Exam Activity | Activity Definitions represent specific Exam Administrations that will be offered. For instance, the "Certified Therapist" is an exam that leads to certification. If the program manages exam windows, then there might be one Activity Definition that represents "Certified Therapist Exam - Spring 2019" and another that represents "Certified Therapist Exam - Fall 2019". The Exam Activity is usually "owned by" the Exam Publisher. |
Exam Site | Each entity that offers exam sessions should be represented in LearningBuilder as a Provider. These exam sites might be colleges, testing centers, remote organizational locations, etc. |
Activity Offering (or Offering) | Activity Offerings link Exam Activities and Exam Sites together. Each Offering:
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Proctor | LearningBuilder supports two proctor models: one where the Proctors are direct staff of the Exam Administrator entity, and another where Proctors are third party entities that can provide proctoring services to Exam Publishers. |
Candidate | This is the person who wants to take an Exam to earn a new credential so they can demonstrate competence in their profession. |
Capabilities
One or more individuals with system access can be assigned as an Exam Publisher and Exam Site to manage both the exams and the offerings for each exam.
Exam Sites can "opt-in" to specific exam dates, or Exam Publisher can manage this process for them.
Candidates can either select a specific Sitting, or they can express preferences and have the system automatically assign them to an Sitting based on availability and custom business rules.
Candidates can request accommodations, and approved accommodations can impact the seat assignment strategy (e.g., someone requiring a translator may "take up more space" than someone that doesn't).
If a given Sitting does not have enough assigned candidates to be feasible, Publishers can cancel it and automatically re-allocate the assigned candidates to other exam Sittings.
Proctors can print attendance reports and track data or provide feedback directly within LearningBuilder.
Workflow Diagrams
Manage Exam Offerings
Candidate Takes an Exam
User Stories
A. Exam Publishers Manage Exams
ID | Label | User Story | Priority | Implementation Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
A.1 | Create an Exam Activity | As an Exam Publisher who wants to add a new Exam, I can create an Exam so that I can distinguish this Exam from other Exams. | high | Create an Exam Activity so that Test Sites can add Exam Offerings to Candidates |
A.2 | Review an Exam Activity | As an Exam Publisher who wants to maintain control over Exams created by others, I can review Exam Activities so that I can approve or deny the publishing of Exams. | Medium | In most scenarios, the Exam Publisher creates the Exam Activity. However, there are situations in which the Publisher may have an internal review process that allows scrutiny over published exams. |
A.3 | Manage Exam Activities | As an Exam Publisher , I can manage Exams I previously created so that I can make needed changes. | high |
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A.4 | Manage Exam Sitting Locations | As an Exam Publisher, I can manage the locations where I offer exams, independent of the Exam Sitting themselves, so that I do not have to edit each Exam Sitting for that location. | Medium | This is more important for recurring Exam Sittings, but not necessary for the operation of most programs. |
A.5 | Reject Exam Sitting | As an Exam Administrator, I want to be able to reject an Exam Sitting proposal created by an Exam Site if it does not meet the minimum requirements I define. | Medium | Not all programs require the Exam Sittings to be vetted. |
A.6 | Publish Exam Sitting | As an Exam Administrator, I want to publish an Exam Sitting created by an Exam Site and meets defined standards so that Candidates can select the Exam Sitting . | Medium | Only necessary if there is a review process. |
A.7 | Act as an Exam Site | As an Exam Publisher, I may also act as an Exam Site so that I can manage my own Sittings. | high |
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A.8 | Act on behalf of an Exam Site | As an Exam Publisher, I can create an Exam Sitting on behalf of an Exam Site so that the Exam Site becomes the owning party for communications. | high |
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A.9 | Notify Exam Sites of a New Exam Offering | As an Exam Publisher, I can send a notification to the Exam Site when I publish an Exam Sitting so the Exam Site knows that Candidates are able to register for the Sitting. | high |
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A.10 | Notify Exam Sites of a Changed Exam Offering | As an Exam Publisher, I can send a notification to the Exam Site when I modify or cancel and Exam Sitting so the Exam Site knows the current status of the Exam Sitting. | high |
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B. Exam Sites Manage Exams and Sittings
ID | Label | User Story | Priority | Implementation Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
B.1 | Create an Exam Sitting | As an Exam Site who wants to offer a sitting for an existing Exam, I can create an Exam Sitting for a specific date/time and location so that Candidates can request to take the exam during a scheduled period. | high |
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B.2 | Manage Exam Sittings | As an Exam Site, I can manage Exam Sittings previously created so that I can make needed changes. | high |
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B.3 | Manage Exam Sitting Locations | As an Exam Site, I can manage the locations where I offer exams, independent of the Exam Sittings themselves, so that I do not have to edit each Exam Sitting for that location. | high |
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B.4 | Specify Exam Sitting Capacity | As an Exam Site, I want to specify how many people can attend my Exam Sitting, so that I can make sure too many people don’t sign up to sit for the exam at that time and location. | high |
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B.5 | Notify Exam Sites when a Candidate Registers | As an Exam Site, I receive a notification when someone registers for my Exam Sitting so that I can review their application. | high |
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B.6 | Publish Exam Sittings | As an Exam Site, I want to publish an Exam Sitting that I created so that Candidates can find it. | high | Unless the Exam Administrator must approve before publishing an Offering. |
B.7 | Notify Exam Sites when Exam Sitting is Published | As an Exam Site, I receive a notification when my Exam Sitting is published, modified, or cancelled so that I know the current status of my Exam Sitting. | Medium |
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B.8 | Review a Candidate request | As an Exam Site, I review a request that a Candidate wishes to take the Exam at one of my sites to confirm that I have availability. | high | Where a manual or automated process, the system supports limiting capacity to only those who meet criteria. Criteria can include (first come, first served as well as more sophisticated evaluation criteria). |
B.9 | Accept a Candidate | As an Exam Site, I accept a Candidate to take the exam so that I allocate a seat for the Candidate. | high |
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B.10 | Reject a Candidate | As an Exam Site, I reject a Candidate so that I do not allocate a seat for the Candidate. | high |
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B.11 | Notify All Candidates Scheduled for an Exam Sitting | As an Exam Site, when a change occurs for an Exam Sitting, such as a cancellation, I want to be able to easily close all applications and notify all attendees of the cancellation. | high |
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B.12 | Cancel Exam Sitting | As an Exam Site, I can cancel an Exam Sitting at any time so that I can adjust to changing circumstances. | high |
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B.13 | Notify Cancelled Candidates | As an Exam Site who has cancelled an Exam Sitting, I automatically notify any Candidates that their registration has been cancelled. | high |
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B.14 | Record Exam Results | As an Exam Site, I can record the results of the Exam Sitting for each Candidate who completed the Exam during an Offering. | Low | Most high stakes exams that require proctors will send the results to be scored more centrally. |
B.15 | Review a Sitting Roster | As an Exam Site, I see a list of the people who are to participating in the sitting so that I can confirm identity. | high |
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B.16 | Record Anomalies | As an Exam Site, I can record an exception to a person’s exam attendance, such as no-show, disruptive behavior, failed identification protocols, and cheating. | high |
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C. Candidates Register for Exams
ID | Label | User Story | Priority | Implementation Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
C.1 | Find an Exam | As a person who wants to become Certified, I can find an Exam to take that will meet Certification requirements so that I can demonstrate competency in my profession. | high |
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C.2 | Find an Exam Sitting | As a person who wants to take an Exam, I can find an Exam Sitting at a date, time, and location so that can register for a Sitting that is most convenient for me. | high |
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C.3 | Register for an Exam Sitting | As a person who wants to take an Exam, I can register for the Exam Sitting of my choice so that I can reserve my seat. | high |
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C.4 | Request ADA Accommodation for an Exam Sitting | As a person who wants to register for an Exam Sitting, I can request an ADA accommodation so that the Exam Site can ensure the testing environment does not inhibit my ability to take the Exam. | high |
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C.5 | Receive Notice of Approved or Denied Request for ADA Accommodation | As a person who has requested an ADA accommodation, I receive an email notification that my request has been approved or denied so that I can take further actions as needed. | high |
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C.6 | Receive Confirmation of Registration for Exam Sitting | As a person who has registered for an Exam Sitting, I receive an email confirmation so that I know my seat is reserved for that date, time, and location and am informed of any additional instructions for taking the Exam. | high |
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C.7 | Receive Notice of Rejected Request for Exam Sitting Registration | As a person who has registered for an Exam Sitting, I receive an email notice of rejection so that I understand why my request was unsuccessful and can take further actions as needed. | high | The rejection may be due to various factors. For example, the Candidate may need to look for an alternate Exam Site or provide additional eligibility information. |
C.8 | Receive Notice of a Change to a Scheduled Exam Sitting | As a person who has registered for an Exam Sitting, I receive an email notification of a change so that I can take further actions as needed. | high |
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C.9 | Receive Notice of a Cancelled Exam Sitting | As a person who has registered for an Exam Sitting that has been cancelled, I receive an email notification of the cancellation so that I can register for another Exam Sitting. | high |
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C.10 | Take an Exam | As a person who has been confirmed for an Exam Sitting, I take the Exam at the date, time, and location specified. | will not implement | This is an activity that is external to the CMS. |
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Exam Scheduling / Self-Proctored Exams
Credential Holder (a.k.a., Practitioner) Journey