The CMWA placement Exam will be available both online and in person in the Fall 2021 semester. Please read the instructions below for information on how to take it online. In order to take the exam online, you will need to use a computer with a video camera and download the Respondus Lockdown Browser Software. Read below for more directions on how to prepare to take the exam online in a proctored setting, once you are signed up for a specific testing date in the CMWA Blackboard page.
A Day or More Before the Exam
- Go to the CMWA 100 Year 2021 course in Blackboard and read the announcement about taking the CMWA online
- Download the Respondus Lockdown Software: https://download.respondus.com/lockdown/download.php?id=948736164
- Install the Software to your Computer
- Make sure you have a computer with a web cam that can take video of you
- Locate your student photo ID
- There is a Practice Test in the Exam Folder of the CMWA 100 Year 2021 page that you can use to check that your technology is working properly for this exam.
On the Day of the Exam
- Close all programs and browsers on your computer
- Open the Respondus Lock Down program
- Access Blackboard via Respondus
- Go to the CMWA 100 Year 2021 Page in Blackboard
- On the left hand side bar, click on the “Exam Folder”
- Click on the date of your exam to start the exam
- Follow any directions in the program to show your student photo ID to the web cam when prompted
Information about Proctored Test setting
- By taking this exam, you have agreed (given consent) to being videotaped.
- Students whose exams are deemed suspicious will be asked to retest in person under proctored conditions.
- Students will not be allowed to suspend the exam while it is in process-you are allowed two hours of uninterrupted time. You should be visible in front of the computer the entire time you are working on this exam. Any behaviors deemed suspicious will be flagged for review.
- You must do the exam on your own without any notes, books, or help from others. The CMWA is a placement exam to help you place into an appropriate course for which you have the best chance to succeed. Any outside assistance might place you in a course for which you would not be prepared, and it could result in a lower GPA and possibly delay your degree progress. Furthermore, it constitutes a violation of the University’s Code of Conduct.
The following excerpts from the full code pertain to the academic honesty expectations when taking CMWA.
It is the expressed policy of UMass Boston that every aspect of academic life, not only formal coursework situations, but all relationships and interactions connected to the educational process shall be conducted in an absolutely and uncompromisingly honest manner.
The following actions are prohibited by the code:
- Using any unauthorized material during an examination, such as notes, tests, calculators, cell phones, PDAs, or other electronic or mechanical communication devices.
- Abuse of cellular devices with photographic capabilities and use of devices for purposes of photographing test questions or other notes and materials.
- Obtaining answers to examination questions from another person with or without that person’s knowledge; furnishing answers to examination questions to another student; using or distributing unauthorized copies of or notes from an examination.
- Submitting as one’s own an examination taken by another person; or taking an examination in another person’s place.
Violating the academic honesty policy may result in serious academic sanctions including, but not limited to, suspension or expulsion from the university.