• Home
    • Contact
    • Search our Site!
  • Canadian Tests

    Canadian Forces

    CFAT — TAFC

    Citizenship & ESL

    Canadian Citizenship
    CELPIP  —  CAEL

    Dental

    Canadian DAT

    Provincial Achievement and High School

    Cognitive Abilities Test (CCAT)

    Canadian GED

    Alberta Provincial Achievement

    BC Provincial Achievement

     

    Trades

    Trades Entrance

    Canadian Public Service

    PSC Tests

    Canada Post (GAT)

    Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA OTEE)

    Canadian Firefighter

    Law Enforcement & Security

    BC Police (JIBC)  — Ontario Police (OACP)  — RCMP

    Canada Corrections —  GATB

    Security Guard

  • Public Service Entrance Exams
    • Air Traffic
    • CRA Tests
    • Food Inspection
    • Korn Ferry
    • PSEE (371)
  • Occupations

    Trades

    EIAT — IBEW — Ironworkers
    Red Seal Welder
    Red Seal Carpenter
    Red Seal Plumber

    Medical and Nursing

    PSB HOAE — NLN PAX — More Nursing

    More

    Criticall 911 Dispatch — Mechanical Aptitude — Watson Glaser — Wonderlic Basic Skills

    Firefighters

    CPS Research & Standard & Assoc. (NFST) — Wonderlic Firefighter — Firefighter Practice
  • High School

    Test Help!

    Practice Test Questions – How to Prepare for a test – How to Answer Multiple Choice – How to Study – How to Study — What Students Say

    High School Exams

    CAAT — CHSPE — Canadian GED — Nelson Denny  — TABE — TACHS
    CHSPE Math — GED Math

    Gifted and Talented

    NNAT   —   SCAT   —   NYC Gifted

    The complete guide to multiple choice!

    Discover 15 secret strategies that will raise your score on any multiple choice exam regardless of the subject.

    Learn More >>>

  • Practice
    • Algebra
    • Anatomy & Physiology
    • Basic Math
    • Geometry
    • College Level
      • Congruence
      • Geometric Transformations
      • Graphs of Polynomials
      • Inverse Functions
      • Linear Equations with 2 Variables
      • Logarithms
      • Number Sequence
      • Prime Factors
      • Trigonometry
    • English Grammar
      • Punctuation
      • Spelling
    • Listening Comprehension
    • Logic & IQ
    • Mechanical Comprehension
    • Reading Comprehension
    • Science
    • Social Studies
    • Basic Statistics
    • Situational Judgement Practice Test – Similar to Government of Canada
    • Vocabulary
  • Test Prep
    • How to Answer Multiple Choice
    • How to Prepare for a Test
    • How to Study – The Complete Guide
    • How to Study Math
    • How to Study Science
    • How to Take Notes
    • Test Anxiety Tips!
    • Flash Cards
Complete Test Preparation Inc.
  • Home
    • Contact
    • Search our Site!
  • Canadian Tests

    Canadian Forces

    CFAT — TAFC

    Citizenship & ESL

    Canadian Citizenship
    CELPIP  —  CAEL

    Dental

    Canadian DAT

    Provincial Achievement and High School

    Cognitive Abilities Test (CCAT)

    Canadian GED

    Alberta Provincial Achievement

    BC Provincial Achievement

     

    Trades

    Trades Entrance

    Canadian Public Service

    PSC Tests

    Canada Post (GAT)

    Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA OTEE)

    Canadian Firefighter

    Law Enforcement & Security

    BC Police (JIBC)  — Ontario Police (OACP)  — RCMP

    Canada Corrections —  GATB

    Security Guard

  • Public Service Entrance Exams
    • Air Traffic
    • CRA Tests
    • Food Inspection
    • Korn Ferry
    • PSEE (371)
  • Occupations

    Trades

    EIAT — IBEW — Ironworkers
    Red Seal Welder
    Red Seal Carpenter
    Red Seal Plumber

    Medical and Nursing

    PSB HOAE — NLN PAX — More Nursing

    More

    Criticall 911 Dispatch — Mechanical Aptitude — Watson Glaser — Wonderlic Basic Skills

    Firefighters

    CPS Research & Standard & Assoc. (NFST) — Wonderlic Firefighter — Firefighter Practice
  • High School

    Test Help!

    Practice Test Questions – How to Prepare for a test – How to Answer Multiple Choice – How to Study – How to Study — What Students Say

    High School Exams

    CAAT — CHSPE — Canadian GED — Nelson Denny  — TABE — TACHS
    CHSPE Math — GED Math

    Gifted and Talented

    NNAT   —   SCAT   —   NYC Gifted

    The complete guide to multiple choice!

    Discover 15 secret strategies that will raise your score on any multiple choice exam regardless of the subject.

    Learn More >>>

  • Practice
    • Algebra
    • Anatomy & Physiology
    • Basic Math
    • Geometry
    • College Level
      • Congruence
      • Geometric Transformations
      • Graphs of Polynomials
      • Inverse Functions
      • Linear Equations with 2 Variables
      • Logarithms
      • Number Sequence
      • Prime Factors
      • Trigonometry
    • English Grammar
      • Punctuation
      • Spelling
    • Listening Comprehension
    • Logic & IQ
    • Mechanical Comprehension
    • Reading Comprehension
    • Science
    • Social Studies
    • Basic Statistics
    • Situational Judgement Practice Test – Similar to Government of Canada
    • Vocabulary
  • Test Prep
    • How to Answer Multiple Choice
    • How to Prepare for a Test
    • How to Study – The Complete Guide
    • How to Study Math
    • How to Study Science
    • How to Take Notes
    • Test Anxiety Tips!
    • Flash Cards

Test Preparation

  • Home
  • Test Preparation
  • Whats the Difference Between a Quiz, Test, and Exam?

Whats the Difference Between a Quiz, Test, and Exam?

  • Posted by Brian Stocker MA
  • Date March 18, 2011
  • Comments 17 comments

Quiz? Test? Exam?

You’re in school, it’s close to Christmas, and on the same day, one instructor tells you there’s a quiz coming, a second says there’s a test next week, while a third tells you to prepare for the upcoming exam. ARRRGH! A quiz, a test, and an exam, all coming soon. But what’s the difference? Are they all the same thing, are they different, and which is more important to your grade point average?

Audio Version of this Post

https://www.test-preparation.ca/Podcast/Difference-Test-Quiz.mp3

Different but the Same

First, yes, they’re the same, and yes, they’re different. Confused? Let’s explore the subject a bit then. Your thesaurus is likely to say that all three of these words are interchangeable. And in fact, sometimes they are used interchangeably. “Test” and “exam” especially are often used in the same context. However, especially in high school and college, there are subtle differences.

Quizzes

A quiz is usually a short test, and it usually does not have as much impact on your grade as a test has. In fact, some instructors don’t use the quiz grade at all in determining your course grade. Usually, those who use quizzes have several throughout a unit. The instructor uses them just to check up on how well you’re understanding the material. While a test might have 40 or 50 questions on it, a quiz might instead have just 8 or 10. Although they vary according to the instructor, quizzes are often heavy in multiple choice, true-false, and sometimes fill-in-the-blank questions. They don’t often have interpretive questions such as essay questions.

Tests

These are the standard evaluation technique used to determine your grade in both high school and college classes. Unlike with quizzes, the test score is almost certain to be used in determining your grade in the class. In fact, some instructors use test grades exclusively to decide your grade. Whereas a quiz usually gauges your understanding of short sections of a unit, a test normally covers a longer chunk of the course: a whole unit or several chapters. For this reason, tests are commonly longer than quizzes. Again, the makeup of the test will vary according to the instructor, but it’s common for the test to consist of several different types of questions: multiple choice, true-false, fill-in-the-blank questions, matching, listing, and / or essay questions.

Exams

Many instructors use “test” and “exam” interchangeably, but for students, an exam refers to either a mid-term or final exam. It’s the granddaddy of tests in both high school and college. You can expect that an exam will be long (long enough that most college instructors allow hours rather than minutes for it to be taken). It has to be long: Most exams will cover all of the material that the course has covered so far. Although some instructors don’t use exams at all, those who do frequently make it a large part of your final grade for the term. For instance, some instructors consider the exam grade as one third of your total score for the class.

Priorities

Obviously, of the three, the exam is usually more important than any single test or quiz. However, if you do well enough on all of the tests, that detracts some from the importance of the midterm or final exam. Generally, there’s no reason to stress too much about quizzes. A brief hour or two of studying should be enough for them. However, for tests and exams, the best strategy is to keep up with the work and study a bit in your notes and textbook each evening.

Don’t Nickel and Dime yourself to death! 

Don’t ignore quizzes!  While most quizzes may only account for 10 or 15% of your mark, they do add up and if you aren’t careful, at the end of the term a series of low marks on quizzes will push your average mark down so low that you will have to get a perfect score on the final just to pass.

Share
Tweet
Pin
Share
author avatar
Brian Stocker MA

Previous post

Snacking When You Study
March 18, 2011

Next post

Should You Be a Coffee Shop Studier?
March 23, 2011

You may also like

Canada Post GAT Practice Questions
25 June, 2021

Including, reading comprehension, basic math, address sorting, memory, visual and spatial intelligence and more! You Receive:  Over 275 Practice Questions Interactive Quizzes Full Answer Key with explanations And a lot more! Canada Post GAT Practice The GAT reading section has …

Map Reading Practice
29 September, 2020

McCann Entry-Level Firefighter Exam PSI Firefighter Selection Test (FST) Criticall Dispatcher Ontario Police Deputy Sheriff CSC Corrections Officer (Canada) RCMP Each square labeled A to Z and A1 to A20, represent the corner of an intersection. The lines between the …

Judgment and Reasoning Questions Practice
3 September, 2020

Judgment and Reasoning questions are common sense questions that do not require any special knowledge.   1) Which of the following are not recommended in the bath? a. Paperback novel b. Mobile phone c. Hair dryer d. All of these …

    17 Comments

  1. tracey
    March 31, 2011
    Reply

    thanks. i also did not consider the word test to differ from exam. i now understand the difference

  2. Aidmohamad
    May 27, 2011
    Reply

    thanks alot.

  3. Cathrine
    June 18, 2011
    Reply

    I love quizzes, tests and exams. But i think i prefer quizes. Our teacher pops out quizzes sometimes without warning.

    • Muhammad alabadleh
      July 10, 2017
      Reply

      Nice clarification really
      Thanks a lot

  4. Cupcake
    April 27, 2015
    Reply

    hey that was a good explanation

  5. freakingoutboutdebate
    April 29, 2015
    Reply

    the question is, can i define exams and tests as one, as the same entity.

    • Complete Test Prep
      April 30, 2015
      Reply

      Sure – that is a broad definition but good!

  6. samireh
    July 28, 2015
    Reply

    thanks

  7. Isaías
    October 20, 2015
    Reply

    Very clear explanation. But can I consider quiz as a preparation for the test?

    • Complete Test Prep
      October 21, 2015
      Reply

      Sure that is one way to look at it!

  8. Stephen
    November 28, 2015
    Reply

    That was a clear explanation but I also want to know what continuous assessment is all about

  9. philip oluwayemmy
    December 2, 2015
    Reply

    test and exam they the same thing jooooooooooooooooooo

  10. Daniela
    February 13, 2017
    Reply

    thank you 🙂

    this is so well and kindly explained that this site being from Canada was no surprise at all 🙂

  11. Yaneth
    April 14, 2017
    Reply

    Hello there!
    I really loved your definitions, I cannot be more agree with you. I just want you to ask something. Where did you find this information? I would like to have some authors :c

  12. Lilit
    January 15, 2018
    Reply

    Tnx a lot I do love the explanation!

  13. Woolker Cherenfant
    April 4, 2018
    Reply

    Thank you for this awesome post! I was just puzzled a while ago but all is clear now. I will definitely bookmark this page.

  14. Aidan Ruby
    April 6, 2018
    Reply

    Actually quiz test and exam are very different. I like your explanation.

Leave A Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Test Prep

How to Take a Test - the Ultimate Guide

Test Prep - What Students Say

Test Prep Video Series

How to Study for
a Math Test


How to Study Science

Learning Styles

Test Anxiety Secrets!

How to Hire a Test Prep Tutor

Using Flash Cards

How to Cram


Take a Test


In the Test Room
The Complete Guide


Computer Adaptive Tests

How to Memorize

All About Cheating

Analyze your Practice Tests


Time Management on a Test

Types of Questions


Multiple Choice

Reading Comprehension

Oral Exams

Essay Questions

True False

Fill in the Blank

How to Write an Essay

Study Techniques

Memory Palace

Mindfulness

Clustering

Connect

Share
Tweet
Pin
Share

If you are a volunteer or non-profit organization, we are happy to provide test prep materials at reduced or no cost.  Please contact us with details of your organization.

About
Contact Us
FAQ
Online Practice Courses

Thank you!

With every purchase, you’re helping people all over the world improve themselves and their education. So thank you in advance for supporting this mission with us! Together, we are truly making a difference in the lives of those often forgotten by the system.
Charities that we support

Share
Tweet
Pin
Share

Visit our Test Prep Learning Center

Learning Center
Copyright -- Privacy -- Returns -- Sitemap