Testing Information for Instructors

Instructor Office Hour Sign-Up

Hours of Operation Update

During the first two weeks of the Fall 2026 semester, the DRC Testing Center will continue summer hours of operations from 8:00AM- 4:00PM. We will resume standard operating hours of 8:00AM-6:00PM Monday-Thursday and 8:00AM-5:00PM on Fridays starting Sept. 21st. 

Table of Contents

• Testing Center Overview
• Instructor Responsibilities
• Student Policies
• Health and Safety
• Academic Integrity and Incident Reporting
• Testing Center Cameras
• St. Paul Testing Center
• Administering Accommodated Exams Within Your Department
• AIM Instructor Portal How-To Guides

Testing Center Overview

DRC Testing Center prepares and administers exams for students with testing accommodations when a proctored exam space is needed. For questions regarding specific accommodations, please connect with the student’s Access Consultant listed on the accommodation email.

The main DRC Testing Center is located in the McNamara Alumni Center, suite 180. During peak exam seasons, we rely on additional satellite locations to proctor exams. We also have a St. Paul Testing Center in Coffey Hall room 50 that is open only during the fall and spring semester (not during finals week) 3 out of the 5 business days with limited hours. 

When a student schedules an exam, instructors are notified 3 days before the exam date and sent instructions for uploading exam documents and submitting exam-related details in our AIM Portal.

At the start of the semester, when instructors receive an accommodation letter from a student who has testing accommodations, they will be asked to provide course information, including typical exam administration details and the dates of their exams in the Testing Accommodation Form for their course.

Once they complete the form for their course, if they receive subsequent accommodation letters for additional students, details will automatically transfer to the new students without additional manual entry. If they have a student in another section of their course, they can copy the course information they’ve already completed to the additional section. More information is available in our How-To Guides.

Instructor Responsibilities

The following list outlines instructors’ main responsibilities when working with the DRC Testing Center:

• Review our AIM Instructor Portal How-To Guides.
• Review how to set up accommodations in Canvas/Honorlock if you use Canvas and Honorlock in your course.
• Include exam instructions in the syllabus.
• Approve student exam requests at least 3 business days before the exam date. Instructor approval is needed for every exam that falls outside of the date/time parameters outlined by an instructor in their Testing Accommodation Form, which is completed at the start of the semester. Instructors should consider students’ accommodations when approving exam requests. Students may have certain access reasons that require them to schedule outside of the original testing time.
• Instructors are expected to upload the exam file and exam administration details at least 2 business days before the exam date and 4 business days for exams that need document conversion to the AIM Instructor Portal. Instructors may also drop the exam file off to our office 2 business days in advance. 
  • For accessibility reasons, the DRC cannot accept exams in a handwritten format. All exams must be submitted in a typed text format for overall accessibility, including readability and editability if the DRC Document Conversion team needs to reformat it for a student's specific accommodation.
  • If we do not receive exams by our deadline, the Testing Center staff will email the instructor and the department chair to ensure that timely delivery of the exam occurs.
• If an instructor has an exam correction before our 2 business day deadline, they can upload the correction to the AIM Instructor Portal. If the correction is needed after the 2 business day deadline, they should email them to [email protected]. 
• Instructors need to be available by phone or email during the times that their students are scheduled to test, as DRC staff may need to reach out with errors that come up during exams. The DRC also allows students to reach out with questions, like they would be able to do in a classroom setting. The DRC can only call and email instructors; we cannot text or use other platforms to contact instructors.
• For memory aids as an accommodation for a student, the instructor is responsible for working together with the student and the student’s Access Consultant on setting clear parameters for length and content of the memory aid. Memory aids need to be approved by the instructor before each exam. 
• For supplies, the Testing Center has the following items available: pens, pencils, ear plugs, noise reduction headphones, scratch paper, white noise machines, several scantron types (X500 A-E, X500 A-J, 1/2 Blue, 1/2 Red, Chemistry A-E, Chemistry A-J). If an instructor or their department needs a different type of scantron or other materials, they will need to provide them to the DRC. The DRC Testing cannot provide  blue books for exams. Students will be provided lined paper for blue book exams.
• The DRC Testing Center has computers reserved for accommodation purposes. Computers are not available for request by instructors. We can provide computers for students if students in class are taking exams in a UMN computer lab, which should be noted in the “Notes for Testing Staff” section of the exam’s TAF.
• Instructors can review the uploaded scanned copy in the AIM Instructor Portal. They also can request that the exam is put on hold in the DRC or on the St. Paul campus. If an instructor needs to delegate the pickup of an exam, they will need to contact [email protected] with the information of the person picking up the exam in advance. We cannot release exams without prior approval from the primary instructor.
  • Exams will be ready for pickup in the DRC the following business day of the exam in McNamara Alumni Center, Suite 180.
  • Exams will be ready for pickup in St. Paul by 12pm after 2 business days at the 130 Coffey Hall CFANS Desk.

Canvas/Honorlock Exams

If you use Canvas and/or Honorlock for any exams or quizzes in your course, please review the student’s accommodation email to determine if they have an extended time accommodation. Additionally, please adjust settings to accommodate alternative testing times when applicable. Visit the Canvas Support Page for instructions.

Honorlock is the U’s standard online proctoring system. For privacy reasons, the Testing Center has limitations on how Honorlock can be used for exams administered in the DRC. Instructors have two options in the DRC for Honorlock: 

1. Instructors can disable "Record Webcam,” "Test Taker Photo", "Test Taker ID", and "Room Scan," and “Workspace Scan Photo” and still use other features in Honorlock, such as screen recording and monitoring. If an instructor would like to use these features in class, they will be required to create a DRC version of the quiz with these features disabled. 
2. It may be required for instructors to provide an Honorlock Bypass Pin to disable this software entirely so there is no use of Honorlock on the exam as Honorlock may not work with all assistive technology software programs. 

Visit the OIT Honorlock Helpguide for more information or contact us at [email protected].

Syllabus Statement

In addition to the standard information required for syllabus statements, the DRC encourages instructors to include information that will help students schedule their exams if they have accommodations. This information includes:

• Any additional course contacts who are responsible for implementing accommodations.
• The location (DRC or other) where the student should schedule to take their exams.
• A list of exam dates, exam duration, and materials allowed.

Student Policies

Scheduling Policy

The DRC Testing Center requests that students schedule their exams at least 3 business days before the exam date, to ensure adequate staffing and preparation of exams.

University closures for breaks impact the 3-business-day deadline. If the University is closed on a business day, that is not considered one of the 3 business days in advance. Our scheduling platform will not allow students to schedule less than 3 business days before the exam. The deadlines, depending on the day of the week, are as follows:

Students are expected to schedule their exams at the same time as their class, unless:

• They have made arrangements with their instructor.
• They have an accommodation to test at a specific time of day.
• The exam would extend past the Testing Center’s operating hours, in which case the exam must be scheduled before our office closes.

There is a different deadline for exams that occur during finals week (typically 3-4 weeks before the last day of instruction). 

Missed Deadline Policy

To ensure we have proper staffing and necessary time to prepare exams, we cannot offer flexibility if a student misses a scheduling deadline (3-business-day or finals week), unless the student falls into one of our outlined exceptions: 

• Temporary disabilities (e.g., concussion, broken wrist, etc)
• Registered with the DRC less than 3 business days before the exam date
• Rescheduled for disability flare-up or an excused absence

When a student misses the Testing Center scheduling deadline, the student should connect with their instructor to explore one of the following options:

• If their instructor can proctor their exam within their department with their accommodations.
• If their instructor will approve the student to schedule on the next available date allowed by our scheduling deadline in the Testing Center.

Please note: Changes to exam date/time must be approved by the instructor. We cannot guarantee a student will be allowed to test at a later date or that their instructor will be able to provide their accommodations within their department. If a student misses the scheduling deadline and alternatives have been exhausted, they may be expected to take their exam in the classroom without their full accommodations. 

Rescheduling Policy

Students may need to reschedule their exams for many reasons, including but not limited to: 

• Illness
• Disability related flare-up
• Weather impacts

If a student needs to reschedule their exam, they should: 

• Contact instructors via email to request the reschedule. 
• CC [email protected] to keep our staff updated. 
• Finalize communication about a reschedule with [email protected] or by phone at a minimum of 24 hours before the rescheduled test time. The 24-hour window does not include weekends (Saturday/Sunday) or anticipated holiday closures. 

We will not move forward with rescheduling the exam until an instructor approves.

At Capacity Process

DRC Testing Center seats are reserved on a first come, first served basis. If a student encounters a situation where they have attempted to schedule their exam ahead of a scheduling deadline, but the Testing Center is at capacity for that time, students will receive an error message in the AIM student portal. If a student receives this error message, they should contact [email protected] for further guidance.

Please note: Sometimes, we are able to reserve additional space, and sometimes we are not. Because providing testing accommodations is a partnership between the program/instructor and the DRC, we ask that instructors extend flexibility and support when students encounter scheduling barriers due to the testing center being at capacity.

Student Late Arrival for an Exam Policy

Students will not be able to take their scheduled exam in the DRC if they are 30 minutes or more late. If a student arrives less than 30 minutes after their scheduled start time, they will be allowed to take the exam, but they will not receive any of their missed time back.

Student Missing During the Exam Policy

DRC Testing Center staff care about the well-being of students who test in our space. If a student is gone from the Testing Center for 20 minutes or more, a Testing Center staff will consider their absence to be concerning from a safety perspective. If Testing Center staff are unaware of a reason a student would be gone longer than 20 minutes or more, we will: 

• Do a sweep of the restrooms, the hallway, and the basement. 
• Notify the instructor and the student’s Access Consultant via email for safety and academic integrity reasons.

Health & Safety 

The Disability Resource Center values the health and safety of all students and staff.

If a student is sick with a communicable illness that includes a fever, diarrhea, vomiting, or other symptoms, please do not come to the Testing Center. Instead, students should contact their instructor and let them know that they will need to reschedule their exam in accordance with the University’s Excused Absence and Makeup Work Policy. The policy includes a Self-Reporting of Medical Absence from Class form that students can provide to their instructor.

Once the student has been free of symptoms for at least 24 hours, including fever free without fever-reducing medication, they can then reschedule a time in the DRC Testing Center with instructor approval. This is to give the student adequate time to recover and help protect other students and staff in the Testing Center from getting sick. 

Academic Integrity and Incident Reporting

If the DRC Testing Center staff identify that a student appears to have violated any DRC related policy (including the use of unauthorized materials, devices, etc.), the DRC will: 

• End the exam.
• Notify the instructor, the student's DRC Access Consultant, and the Assistant Director of Testing & Access Assistance.
• Provide the student with a resource document following the incident. 

Incidents that  were captured via video camera will be documented, and a notification will be sent to UMN Department of Public Safety to download the footage in case an instructor would like to open a formal investigation with the Office of Community Standards or the Office of the General Counsel.

It is the instructor’s decision whether or not to categorize a DRC incident report as an academic integrity violation. Faculty may consult with the Office of Community Standards (OCS) or the Office of the General Council (OGC) to work through formal proceedings or to help determine if a formal proceeding is warranted. DRC staff may be consulted in the process.

During busy exam seasons, the DRC utilizes spaces on campus which are not monitored by cameras. In semi-private spaces, we have proctors available in the room with the students. In private spaces that do not have cameras, we require that students store any belongings that cannot be used on an exam in our storage spaces before entering the testing room.

Testing Center Cameras

The DRC utilizes cameras in many of our testing spaces in the DRC. The cameras:

• Allow us to remotely proctor exams to strengthen academic and exam integrity.
• Improve student safety in testing spaces. 
• Are visible and mounted on the ceiling in the testing spaces. 
• Are accessible only by DRC and UMN Department of Public Safety staff.
• Are monitored by proctors.
• Produce recordings that are stored on a secure server for approximately one month. 

If Testing Center Staff send an incident report to an instructor, our staff cannot facilitate sharing of video footage to instructors or students. Only specific departments, such as OGC or OCS, can engage in that facilitation if an official university process occurs (i.e. grievance process, OCS report, student records request, etc.) in accordance with UMN's Access to and Use of Physical Security Data Policy. 

DRC Staff do not review footage at an instructor’s request after an exam has taken place. Our role is to report a DRC policy violation that we witness during an exam and request that the footage gets downloaded by the UMN Department of Public Safety. 

St. Paul Testing Center

Location

Coffey Hall 50C

1000 1420 Eckles Ave, St Paul, MN 55108

Hours of Operation

The St. Paul Testing Center is only open during specific times. It is closed during finals weeks, the winter break, and the summer semester. During the fall and spring semester, it is open 3 out of the 5 days in the week: 

• Monday: 9am-3pm
• Tuesday: 9am-3pm
• Thursday: 9am-3pm

Please consider being flexible to allow students to take their exam at a different day/time if the class time does not fall within our office hours in the fall and spring semesters. We also encourage you to add this information to your syllabi or course pages.

Exam Pick-up in St. Paul

Instructors who teach classes in St. Paul can request that the exam is put on hold on the St. Paul campus. The exam will be ready for pickup in St. Paul the following 2 business days of the exam at the 130 Coffey Hall CFANS Desk.

Instructors will need to show a form of identification when picking up an exam (U-card, drivers license, etc.). If an instructor needs to delegate the pickup of an exam, they will need to contact [email protected] with the information of the person picking up the exam in advance. 

Administering Accommodated Exams Within Your Department

It is beneficial to students and instructors for exams to be taken as close to the rest of the class and simultaneously as possible. We encourage instructors to provide accommodations within the department when feasible. 

If an instructor plans to proctor their own exam for students with accommodations, and to prevent confusion with students accidentally scheduling for that course in the Testing Center, instructors will need to select the option, “I Will Proctor My Own Exams,” in AIM for the course when promoted to complete the Testing Accommodation Form. 

When making arrangements for a testing space, it is important to reserve a private or small group distraction-reduced space as specified in a student’s accommodations letter.  If an instructor decides to administer the test in or near the department or main classroom, please consider providing the following:

• A clock or a timer accessible to the student.
• Extra exam resources (scratch paper, bubble sheet, pencils, erasers, etc).
• A proctor or someone who can check in on the student.
• A way to contact the instructor during the exam.
• Storage area for backpack/materials not to be accessed during the exam.
• A space that is reduced-distraction from significant visual and auditory stimuli.

How-To Guides for Accessible Information Management (AIM) Instructor Portal

The DRC uses Accessible Information Management (AIM), which includes an Instructor Portal, where instructors can view student accommodation information and send information to the Testing Center for accommodated exams. Please take some time to review our AIM Instructor Portal How-To Guides to learn how to use AIM.

AIM Instructor Portal Video Guide

Please review the AIM Instructor Portal Video Guide for an overview of all the features instructors need to know about interacting with the Testing Center through AIM. Once you play the video a magnifying glass icon will appear within the video player in the upper right hand corner. If you select the magnifying icon, specific bookmarked sections of the video will be available to navigate to. 

The time stamps for those bookmarked sections of the video you may need to access are also as follows: 

• 00:00 Introduction
• 00:40 Logging into the AIM Instructor Portal
• 01:28 Navigating to the Testing Center Page
• 01:49 Completing the Testing Accommodation Form
• 6:07 Setting a Grace Period
• 07:55 Duplicating Exam Details to Additional Exam Dates
• 09:20 Creating a New Exam Date
• 10:15 Editing Exam Details & Uploading Exam Files to the Exam Date
• 10:57 Uploading Exam Files for Specific Students
• 11:36 Copying the Testing Accommodation Form & Exam Dates
• 12:14 Approving Individual Exam Requests
• 12:58 Rescheduling Exam Requests
• 13:19 Approving Multiple Exam Requests at Once
• 13:36 Reviewing Completed Exams
• 14:12 Adding an Additional Instructor
• 14:55 Contact Information

Completing the Testing Accommodation Form (TAF)

The Testing Accommodation Form (TAF) is the form that all instructors will need to complete in order to review the DRC testing center procedures and policies and to specify exam dates/exam administration details (these details can be edited) for a course. To complete the Testing Accommodation Form, it can be accessed two different ways:

1. Via a link included in the emailed accommodation letter (called a Faculty Notification Letter in AIM) that you receive when a student selects testing accommodations for a course you are the instructor for.
2. By logging into the AIM Instructor Portal in the Testing Center section under the TESTING ACCOMMODATION FORM (TAF) tab located in the top navigation bar. 
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Once you are in the Testing Accommodation Form by following either of the options listed above, you will see the courses that you need to complete TAFs for and the ones you might have already completed. Detailed instructions for how to complete the TAF are as follows:

1. Navigate to the Testing Center page in the instructor portal and then select Testing Accommodation Form (TAF) from the top navigation bar. 
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2. Select the “Specify" link for the relevant course that are listed under the "Navigate To" selection called, "Courses without Testing Accommodation Form (TAF).
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3. Select Exam Management Method from dropdown menu and select “Confirm to Proceed” in “Confirm Task” dropdown and select “Submit your Selection.”
4. You will be prompted to Fill out the Testing Accommodation Form that highlights important testing center policies and procedures, and then to enter exam administration details for your first exam date.
5. Once you have completed the form, select “Submit and continue to specify exam dates." You can continue to specify the exam dates for the entire semester (recommended) and include the exam administration details per exam date. If you are not ready to submit all of your exam dates, you can reference our "Adding or Modifying Exam Dates in the AIM Instructor Portal" how-to guide at a later date.
   1. To save time, you can duplicate exam dates if the exam administration details will remain the same for each exam in your course. Additionally, if you have multiple sections of the same course, you can copy the testing accommodation form to other courses by selecting “Copy Testing Accommodation Form (TAF)” on the top banner under the course name and you can simply change the dates of the exams to match the specific course section.

Please note: Instructors adding exam dates and exam administration details as soon as possible in the semester will save time later and ensure that students are picking from a drop down menu that lists the available exam dates for a course that the instructor outlined instead students scheduling a date not specified by the instructor. Students will still have an option to schedule a date not specified by the instructor, but if given exam dates to choose from, students will often select one of the predetermined exam dates which will include all of the correct exam administration details without instructors needing to complete this form again. 

Adding or Modifying Exam Dates in the AIM Instructor Portal

Adding Exam Dates

1. If you have already completed the Testing Accommodation Form and need to add additional exam dates for a course, navigate to the AIM Instructor portal.
2. Select "Continue to View Student Accommodations."
3. Select "Testing Center" from the left-hand Home menu.
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4. From the top banner, select "Testing Accommodation Form (TAF)" if you need to complete the TAF for a course. 
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5. For the course you need to add exam dates, select "View" on the Testing Accommodation Form page. 
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6. You will be brought to the "List Exam Dates" page, and from there you can complete the form in the "Add Additional Exam Date" section to add upcoming exam dates.
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7. Fill out the form for exam dates to the course’s specifications - these may be edited closer to the exam date. By filling out the information, you will give your students a list of exam dates that they can select while scheduling. If you need to make any edits/modifications to the "Exam Date Instruction," or exam dates, the DRC Testing Center requests that any updated information is completed at least 2 business days before the exam date, and changes after 2 business days need to be communicated to the testing center through email to [email protected]. 

Duplicating Exam Dates

1. Navigate to the AIM Instructor Portal.
2. Select "Continue to View Student Accommodations."
3. Select "Testing Center" from the left-hand Home menu.
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4. Select the "Exam Dates" tab in the top banner.
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5. Select "Duplicate" on an existing exam date to copy the exam date details.
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6. From here, you will be prompted to enter the date and time for the new exam date. Details from the duplicated exam date will be automatically entered and can be edited, if desired. Exam files do not copy over and will need to be re-uploaded to the new exam date.
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Modifying Exam Dates

Please note that if you need to make any edits/modifications to the "Exam Date Instruction," or exam dates, the DRC Testing Center requests that any updated information is completed at least 2 business days before the exam date.

1. Navigate to the AIM Instructor portal.
2. Select "Continue to View Student Accommodations"
3. Select "Testing Center" from the left-hand Home menu.
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4. From the top banner, select "Exam Dates."
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5. Navigate to the section of the page labeled "STEP 1: SELECT EXAMS DATES (FOR BULK ACTIONS)."
6. Select "Modify" next to the exam date you need to modify exam dates or details for. 
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7. Continue to modify the "Exam Detail" to change the exam date or the "Exam Date Instructions" to change the exam administration details.
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8. Select "Update Exam Date" at the bottom on the page to complete your modification. 
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How to Add Instructors to a Course

Sometimes instructors may need to add a teaching assistant, a program coordinator, or an additional instructor to a course to manage testing accommodations for students.

1. Navigate to the AIM Instructor Portal.
2. Select "Continue to View Student Accommodations."
3. Select "Add Instructor." from the left-hand Home menu.
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4. Select the class that you need to add an instructor for and select the type as "Add Additional Instructor to the Course."
5. Add their name and email.
6. Select "Add Instructor" in the form submission field. 
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How to Approve an Exam Request

Instructors can approve exams individually or as a bulk action in the AIM Instructor Portal once a student schedules an exam. Instructors will also need to approve an exam if it is rescheduled by a student. Instructions for both methods and approvals for rescheduling exams are outlined as follows: 

Individual Approval 

1. To approve individual student exam requests, navigate to the main Testing Center page and scroll down to the list of upcoming exams. Any exams that are labeled “Instructor Approval Required” will need to be approved through the portal.
2. To approve requests individually, you should select the red text saying “Instructor Approval Required”. 
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Bulk Approval 

1. You can approve multiple exam requests at once on the main Testing Center page.
2. Either select the check box located to the left of “Status” or select the check box beside each student’s name individually.
3. To approve these exam requests, navigate to the bottom of the page and select the box that says “Approve Selected Exams”.
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Reschedule Request 

If a student's exam request falls outside of your approved scheduling parameters and you would like to request a reschedule for the student, from the list of upcoming exams, select the hyperlink that says "Instructor Approval Needed" next to the student's request. Select your reason for requesting a reschedule and add a note if you would like. This note will be copied to the student when the DRC Testing Coordinators reach out to them about rescheduling. 

You will be CC'd in an email to the student requesting that they approve the reschedule request or provide reasoning for why they are unable to schedule within your requested parameters. Students will have 48 hours to respond to this email before the Testing Coordinators will schedule the exam for your exam's listed time on the portal. Rescheduling is also subject to the availability of seats in the Testing Center, and the Testing Coordinators will reach out if there are no seats available for the requested time.

Uploading Exam Files to the Exam Date (Preferred Method)

1. Navigate to the AIM Instructor portal.
2. Select "Continue to View Student Accommodations"
3. Select "Testing Center" from the left-hand Home menu.
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4. Select "Exam Dates" in the upper banner. 
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5. From Step 1, select the check box next to your course's exam date from the list of dates. From Step 2, select "Upload Exam File."
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6. Upload your exam file.
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Uploading an Exam File to Individual Student Requests

1. Navigate to the AIM Instructor portal.
2. Select "Continue to View Student Accommodations"
3. Select "Testing Center" from the left-hand Home menu.
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4. Once you are on the Testing Center page, navigate to the heading labeled “UPCOMING EXAMS SCHEDULED.”
5. Continue to “STEP 1: SELECT EXAMS (FOR BULK ACTIONS).”

6. Select the checkbox next to the student's request for which you need to upload an exam.

   
7. Continue to “STEP 2: SELECT AVAILABLE OPTIONS” → “UPCOMING EXAM FILE UPLOAD.”
8. Title your exam.
9. Select “Choose File” and select your file from your computer.

10. Then select the button labeled “UPLOAD FILE.”

    
11. To confirm that you have uploaded your exam, you can navigate to the upcoming exam request, select the “View File” drop-down menu, and that will show the name of the file, the date you uploaded the file, and an option to delete the file if you have uploaded in error.

Reviewing a Completed Exam in AIM

1. Navigate to the AIM Instructor portal.
2. Select "Continue to View Student Accommodations"
3. Select "Testing Center" from the left-hand Home menu.
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4. In the banner at the top of the page, select the “COMPLETED FILES” option.

   
5. This will bring you to the list of completed exams where you can choose to download the files.