JU to equip exam venues with desktop computers for better quality and legal safety

As of August 2019, students will sit their digital exams at venues with JU desktop computers. That will put an end to the 2-year trial, using students’ own laptop computers for digital exams.

Since the outset of the implementation project JUDiTe, students have taken their exams in Inspera, using their own laptop PC:s or Mac-books. At the time of writing, there have been somewhat 13 000 submissions in Inspera completed on student laptops.

The concept involving the use of student computers, a.k.a. B.Y.O.D., has been fashion within the computer world. In some contexts, B.Y.O.D. have proven to offer a good complement to company computers, when wanting to implement operations requiring a vast use of IT-systems.

As for the exam operations, some of the experiences have been good, while some less favorable. The disadvantages have proven to affect the quality at the onset of an exam session and thereto negatively affect legal certainty and equality for students.

The above are key factors for us working at University Services when wanting to offer Campus-based exams to our colleges. Upholding support and providing information to students surrounding the necessary Safe Exam Browser, has also turned out to be costly for JU. Looking at a comparison, deflected on a 5-year-period, there are no greater differences as for the costs, when comparing the use of B.Y.O.D. and the use of JU-desktop computers.

During the month of June, IT-services will install somewhat 430 computers in our dedicated exams venues. The work will start with the so-called EU-venues, He303/309, at HLK, and then move on to A0320/0323 and finally to the new exam venue in the newly built K-building. The new desktop PCs will continuously be updated, as for operative system and safety patches and will always host the latest version of S.E.B. The students will not need to worry about any installations.

The computers are so called All-in-one-models and come with a large 24”-screens. In order to make glancing impossible, the screens will come with a filter that disables the students from glancing from an alternative angle or from a distance behind..

The student focus will now be on the exam process and as for University Services the resources will be aimed at improving the exams and developing the exam process. We will also save costs on information work, support, reporting of errors and will not need to offer large amounts of loan computers.

The changes taking place in the venues will result in that fact that the EU-venues will not be refurnishable for other operations.

If you have further questions regarding the computer concept feel free to contact Software Maintenance Manager, Morgan Holm on e-mail.