Exam 4 FAQ

For in-class exams, you will still receive a hard copy of the exam questions to use – only your answer gets typed into Exam4.

For take-home exams, you will download the exam question from the Exam4 site. You will then write your answer in Exam4 before the end of the allotted time.

NY Tech courses only take-home exams; you will download the exam question from the Exam4 site. You will then write your answer on your computer and electronically submit your answer via Exam4 at the end of the allotted time.

You are responsible for knowing how Exam4 works for both in-class and take-home exams. Registrar’s Office and IT staff will be on hand to deal with unforeseen technical difficulties, but the primary responsibility for using and understanding Exam4 belongs to the student. Students should download, install, and test the software once a semester. The successful installation of Exam4 should be confirmed by submitting a practice test at least 48 hours before beginning the first exam of the semester.

Exam4 allows access to cut, copy, paste, undo/redo, delete and select all within your exam text with Exam4. Keep in mind, with CLOSED, OPEN, and OPEN + NETWORK exam modes, Exam4 prohibits cutting and pasting to and from external files.

TAKEHOME mode when cutting and pasting text from Word into an exam in Exam4, you may lose A significant amount of formatting. We recommend that you DO NOT type your exam in Word; however, if you do, make sure that you leave yourself enough time to look over the formatting at the end of the exam. If you are typing your exam in Exam4, then you don’t need to worry about this.

Yes. Exam4 spell check is located in the Tools menu. You may use it at any time, although it will not check the spelling as you type.

The Answer Separator is a feature of Exam4 that allows you to separate the word counts by the question. Do NOT edit the Answer Separators in any way – it will not count your words correctly if you do.

No, Exam4 does not allow footnotes.

Yes, Exam4 automatically saves your exam to your hard drive every 2 minutes.

Your Exam ID is a random 5-8-digit number that is used on your exams. You can find it on your “My Information” page, then click My Take-Home Exam Number. Your Exam ID is unique from one exam to another; your number will start with the course number, plus 1-3 additional numbers.

You may use printed materials for every exam mode, but Closed Book/Closed Mode.

It depends; if it falls under a take take-home exam in the final exam schedule, then yes. For all other exam types, Open, Open &Network, and Closed, you will not be able to print; however, you will get a side-by-side view in Exam4.

If you want to exit the Exam4 interface during an exam in TAKEHOME mode, select End Exam from the File menu. You will receive the option to Submit electronically or Suspend Exam. Do NOT electronically submit the exam. Choose the Suspend Exam option.  This saves the exam to your hard drive. When you want to start your exam again, select “Select Existing Exam” from the Exam4 start screen. Select the correct exam and select “Begin Exam.” You are now back in your exam and can continue to work on it.

For any technical questions, please go to www.exam4.com. They are your primary contact for all technical issues with Exam4. Our HelpDesk also offers limited support.

Most Windows and Mac operating systems are supported. For the most current list of supported operating systems, please visit the Exam4 site.

If you are using a Mac or Windows Vista, you must give yourself administrator rights. If you need help with this, you can go to the Help Desk (Cornell Law School Helpdesk, law-helpdesk@cornell.edu).

Chromebooks and Linux operating systems are NOT supported.

If you have further questions about this, please don’t hesitate to go to www.exam4.com and follow user support links.

There are some minor differences between Windows and Macs using Exam4.

If you have a Mac, you need to be set up as an administrator. Otherwise, you will need to type in your computer’s password to start the exam.

When you download the software each semester, Windows computers will automatically overwrite the old software with the latest software. Mac users will have to choose to run the correct software version, so we recommend that Mac users uninstall any old Exam4 versions.

For in-class exams, Raise your hand to notify a proctor that there is a problem. Do not restart your computer until you have seen a proctor. Do NOT “End” your exam. If you end your exam, you won’t be able to get back into it. You should force-quit out of Exam4 and manually restart your computer. You may re-boot your computer and begin again, all while under proctor or IT supervision. You will get one re-boot attempt and 5 minutes to remedy the problem. Remember, Exam4 saves backup files to your hard drive every 2 minutes, so the work you had done until that point will be saved. You will be able to start your exam right where you left off. If you cannot restart your exam on your computer, you will be given a loaner laptop or asked to handwrite the exam’s remainder, depending on the situation.

Take-home exams, do not shut down your computer; call the Registrar’s office (607.255.7190) immediately if during office hours of 8 am to 4 pm, and they will further instruct you on the next steps of troubleshooting. If the office is closed, you can e-mail the Registrar’s Office  law.registrar@cornell.edu.  Do NOT “End” your exam. If you end your exam, you won’t be able to get back into it.

As students are expected to purchase their own casebooks, please be aware that the use of e-books has posed some issues in past exam cycles.

For example, if an e-book is not downloadable, you may not be able to consult it during an open-book exam. If your professor allows you to print materials during the exam but does not allow internet access, the e-book may not be accessible during the exam. Be sure to clarify with the professor about exam format early in the term, before you make your decision to use an e-book or a printed book.

Some publishers offer a print-on-demand option or extra pdf/paper copy, which may be helpful. However, keep in mind that pagination in an e-book often is different from pagination of a physical copy.

No. In the CLOSED, OPEN, and OPEN + NETWORK exam mode, once you exit, the exam is over. There is a check box that you have to mark to be sure you want to exit the exam. We strongly encourage everyone to take a practice exam to see what this box looks like. Exam4 puts that double-check box into the system on purpose so that it is very difficult to end your exam by accident. With take-home exams, you will be able to get back into and out of the exam multiple times over the day.

Taking a practice exam is about making sure Exam4 runs as expected on your computer, and it gives you a chance to become familiar with the interface.

Practice exams are strongly encouraged. Taking a practice test involves no more than 10 minutes of your time. Practice tests are an excellent way to have your computer run through the Security Check-in CLOSED mode (see below), and so you get used to the options and features of Exam4. You can take as many practice tests as you need to feel comfortable taking an exam with the software.

Do NOT wait until the day of the exam to take your practice test.

If you have any technical problems or questions that arise during your practice test, you can always go to www.exam4.com and follow user support links. NOTE: You will not be able to retrieve your practice exam’s content, so do not use it to write anything that you’d like to access at a later date.

Launch Exam4 and follow the on-screen instructions.

When you get to the course list, choose “Practice Exam.” Do NOT select an actual exam.

There is no “practice exam question,” just a blank page where you type your exam answer. For the Exam ID, use any two- or three-digit number. You may test all the modes; Practice Exam – CLOSED, Practice Exam – OPEN, Practice Exam – OPEN NETWORK, and Practice Exam – TAKEHOME

If you encounter any problems during your practice exam, please go to User Support at www.exam4.com. NOTE: You will not be able to retrieve your practice exam’s content, so do not use it to write anything that you’d like to access at a later date.

No, you are unable to save a copy of your exam answers. Once the faculty grades your exam, you may set up a meeting with them and look at your exam answers. It’s up to the individual instructors if you are allowed to keep them or return after viewing your answers

The Registrar Office will e-mail you the process for a deferral a couple of weeks before the start of the final exams. You will fill out the deferral form request and let them know which two exams conflict. The Registrar’s Office will decide which exam to change to the next available date.

If you want to exit the Exam4 interface during an exam in TAKEHOME mode, select End Exam from the File menu. You will receive the option to Submit electronically or Suspend Exam. Do NOT electronically submit the exam. Choose the Suspend Exam option.  This saves the exam to your hard drive. When you want to start your exam again, select “Select Existing Exam” from the Exam4 start screen. Select the correct exam and select “Begin Exam.” You are now back in your exam and can continue to work on it.

The Security Check is a mandatory check of Windows computers’ hard drive for files that may interfere with Exam4 in CLOSED mode only. Once you select “Begin Exam,” the Security Check will begin. It usually takes between 30 – 40 seconds but can take up to 2 minutes. At this time, you may start reading your exam question. As long as the indicator is moving, the scan is active.

If the Security Check finds a file that it considers to be a risk, you will not be allowed to start your exam without correcting the problem first. You will not get extra exam time to take care of this. Also, keep in mind that anything you download in between your practice exam and actual exam may affect the Security Check. If you have any problems or questions about this, please follow User Support links at www.exam4.com for help.

No. If you are in your exam and the Security Check has found a problem, you will either need to correct it on the spot, if unable to fix it, please let the Proctor know, and they can call IT. We strongly encourage you to take practice exams close to your actual exam day to clear up any Security Check issues. Remember, the Security Check takes place for CLOSED exams only. If you have any questions about this, please go to www.exam4.com for user support.

First, make sure that you’re wireless internet is turned on. If you feel that it is taking an extremely long time, raise your hand to alert a proctor. You can exit out of Exam4 and then restart the program. Choose “Select Existing Exam” and click “Submit Electronically” in the bottom right corner of the window. If this doesn’t work, then from the same screen, choose “Save As.” Save the exam file to your desktop and attach it in an e-mail to the Registrar’s Office law.registrar@cornell.edu. 

No. The exam timer has caused problems in some computers, so we strongly recommend that you not use the exam timer