Exam process

On-Line Exams

Exam writing

  • You will receive a Faculty Notification Letter by e-mail outlining both in-class and exam accommodations required for each AccessAbility Services (AAS) student in your course.

  • For any tests or quizzes administered online through LEARN, you will need to adjust the student’s time allotment to reflect their approved time extension. Please see the LEARN Help site section Special Access in a Quiz for step-by-step instructions. If you encounter any issues putting these accommodations in place, please contact LEARNHelp, learnhelp@uwaterloo.ca for support.

  • Students should write their exams at the same time as the class and any alternate time arrangements must be approved by you, the instructor.

In-Person Exams

Exam writing

  • You will receive a Faculty Notification Letter by e-mail outlining both in-class and exam accommodations required for each AAS student in your course.
  • The Faculty Notification e-mail will contain a link to a Testing Agreement that you will need to fill out in order for students to book their exams in the Exam Centre. Note: the Testing Agreement form only needs to be completed once.
  • Students should write their exams at the same time as the class and any alternate time arrangements must be approved by you, the instructor.
  • Evening exams written with our department begin at 6:00 p.m. to allow for the accommodation of extended time and will conclude no later that 10:00 p.m.
  • When possible, we ask that you or a TA for the course contact or drop in while the exam is being written in the event that the student has questions or requires clarification. The extension to call is 32292. Alternately you could provide us with contact information.

Delivery of exams

  • Exams may be dropped off at the AAS, Needles Hall North, Room 1401, during office hours (8:30-4:30) or uploaded through the Faculty Module. Exams are stored securely until the time of writing.
  • The exam will be returned to your Department Office by Central Stores. However, if you wish to have the exam earlier, you may pick it up at AAS during office hours (8:30-4:30).

Alternate format exams

  • In order to create alternate format of exams, we require an electronic copy a minimum of 2 days in advance. Alternate format includes Braille, enlarged copy, audio, and creation of KES files. Please provide MS Word format where possible.

Invigilation and academic misconduct

  • AAS abides by final examination policies and procedures as governed by the Senate of the University of Waterloo.
  • Students are monitored by our team of proctors.
  • In the event that academic misconduct is suspected, the proctor will confiscate all of the evidence available and inform the course instructor, the director, the student’s advisor and the exam coordinator. The questionable material will be returned along with the exam and a written report describing the incident.

Managing multiple exam accommodation requests

AccessAbility Services’ online system is used by students and AAS staff to request and manage accommodations. Course instructors can use this same system to manage their course accommodations, through the new Faculty Module. This module enables you to: 

  • View a dashboard listing of your students and their accommodations for each of your courses. 
  • Export a list of students by eligibility (e.g., Extra time: 5, 10, 15 minutes per hour, etc.).
  • Receive real-time updates to accommodation plans should it change throughout the term. 
  • Navigate between courses and sections using the Advanced Search Panel option. 
  • Submit and make changes to your Alternative Testing agreement, so AAS can appropriately facilitate your in-person tests on your behalf.
  • Watch this instructional video on how to use the Faculty Module!