The Golden Bear Testing Centers Initiative

Supporting instructors and student academic success

Background image: Rows of computers, monitors, keyboards, and rolling chairs line long desks in a bright, empty testing center.

The Golden Bear Testing Center Initiative aims to provide a series of testing facilities across campus to expand the campus’ ability to deliver proctored exams to students, to provide computerized testing facilities for courses emphasizing mastery-based learning,  and to provide additional support to instructors accommodating students with disabilities. The initiative is motivated by survey data on instructor needs, concerns about academic integrity, and the dramatic rise in the number of students seeking accommodations and adjustments in the past decade. 

In partnership with the Disabled Students Program (DSP) and the College of Letters and Science Arts and Humanities Division, this initiative has supported a pop-up testing center(link is external) for final exams. Feedback has been positive:

  • 100% of instructors would highly recommend the service.
  • 100% of students and instructors agreed accommodations were met.
  • Students rated the environment as comfortable (93%), quiet (100%), and low-distraction (100%).
  • All instructors confirmed the center upheld academic integrity.
  • Overall satisfaction: Overwhelmingly positive feedback from both faculty and students.

A second initiative, the Computer Based Testing Facility (CBTF)(link is external), has been conducted in partnership with Professors Armando Fox and Dan Garcia and the invaluable support of the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society(link is external) (CITRIS), the College of Engineering(link is external), and the College of Computing Data Science and Society(link is external). The CBTF is housed in Moffitt Library.

Campus Support for the CBTF

During the fall semester of 2026, the CBTF will be used by 25 course instructors across many disciplines, including: 

  • Biology

  • Computer science

  • Data science

  • Electrical engineering

  • Earth & planetary science

  • Math

  • Physical education

  • Philosophy

  • Political Science

  • Civil and environmental engineering

  • Mechanical engineering

In addition, the facility is also used for the Entry Level Writing Requirement assessment (ELWR).

Learn More about the CBTF

(link is external)

Learn More about the Arts & Humanities Testing Center

(link is external)
The Computer-Based Testing Facility in Moffett Library

The Computer-Based Testing Facility in MoffItt Library

Praise for the CBTF

Maggie Sokolik, Director, College Writing Programs

"Before the CBTF, we had to schedule sessions for the over 200 students who cannot take the Berkeley Writing Assessment online before arriving on campus, and many students ended up having conflicts on our scheduled dates. This Fall (2026), students can take the assessment in the CBTF anytime during the semester as their schedule allows, in a secure environment that eliminates the problem of unauthorized access of outside materials or AI tools."

Noha Farghal, Instructor, “Earthquakes In Your Backyard”

"In my first time teaching a class of over 600 students (Spring 2026), the CBTF helped me manage the complex logistics of in-person exams while giving students the flexibility to test at convenient times, and provided immediate grading, just like online exams!"

Olivia Bailey, Instructor, “Individual Morality and Social Justice”

"Thanks to the CBTF, I've been able to assign substantial essays in my 150-student introductory humanities course without worrying whether LLMs are 'authoring' their responses. I don’t need to sacrifice class time for in-class writing, the student experience is much better than laboriously writing in blue books, and my GSIs appreciate not having to decipher student handwriting!"

Josh Hug, Instructor, “Data Structures” (CS 61B)

"In Fall 2025, only 17% of my students were able to solve an exam problem from a 2018 midterm, versus 87% of B+ level students in the 2018 cohort. I strongly suspect the use of LLMs in take-home assignments is responsible for the decline in student programming competency. Now, the CBTF makes it possible to assess student competency in core programming skills in an authentic, but controlled way that I’ve wanted to do for many years."