When the stakes are high, even a single flawed question can put results or reputations at risk. Cirrus includes the option for candidates to give feedback on specific questions during the exam. . It provides a clear way to flag potential issues, such as unclear wording or technical problems, while the question is still fresh in their mind. This input not only helps improve future assessments, but also plays a key role in supporting fair, evidence-based decisions when paired with Cirrus’ flexible rescoring tools.
What is candidate feedback in Cirrus?
Candidate feedback is an optional feature that lets test-takers report issues with specific questions during the exam. A ‘Report feedback’ link appears on each question screen, allowing candidates to flag problems quickly and discreetly.
This feedback stays within the system and is only visible to users with the right permissions. That means no risk of inappropriate disclosures, and no disruption to your exam process, just useful insights captured at the right moment.
What does it look like for candidates?
Once enabled, candidates will see a ‘Report feedback’ option for each question. This opens a pop-up menu where they can select one of the following categories:
- Spelling/typo
- Display problem
- Not solvable
- Feedback/hint is wrong
They can then provide a short explanation to clarify the issue.
Why it matters: four reasons to collect candidate feedback
- Catch issues early
Candidates often spot problems that slip through review. Their comments can flag unclear wording, broken media, or technical glitches you might not have seen. - Improve question quality
Feedback highlights which questions cause confusion or frustration. Use it to refine content and avoid repeat issues in future assessments. - Support fair rescoring
When results are challenged, candidate feedback provides valuable context. Alongside Cirrus’ rescoring suite, it helps you make informed, defensible decisions. - Build trust with candidates
Giving candidates a voice shows you’re listening. It makes the process feel fairer and more transparent, especially in high-stakes settings.
How to enable candidate feedback in Cirrus
You can enable candidate feedback during assessment setup, as long as you have the right permissions. If you’re not the system administrator, you’ll need them to grant you access first.
Once that’s in place, go to the Assessment setup screen and locate the Candidate feedback section and toggle it on.
This feature works whether or not candidates are allowed to review their results. Feedback is captured at the end of the exam session and stored securely in the platform, ready for authorised users to review.
Where to find and manage candidate feedback
Once candidate feedback is enabled and submissions start coming in, you can manage them centrally from the Content Management area. Go to the Feedback tab, this is your workspace for reviewing, processing, and escalating candidate comments.
You’ll need the “Manage content” permission to access this tab. Here, you’ll see all new and active feedback entries. Closed or invalid feedback is hidden by default, helping you focus only on what needs action.
- Click the (i) icon to view full details.
- Announce the feedback to item authors. When you announce feedback, Cirrus sends a structured email report to all authors the question item is shared with. You can also add a short intro message to provide context.
- Update the status to reflect progress, with optional notes.
- Export to Excel for further analysis or reporting.
This process makes it easy to route feedback to the right people without creating extra admin, and ensures nothing important is missed, especially when results are contested or quality assurance is a priority.
Pro tip: Make feedback part of your post-exam workflow
Don’t wait for complaints to land in your inbox. Build candidate feedback review into your regular post-exam checks, especially for high-stakes assessments. Use the Feedback tab in Content Management as your to-do list, and aim to clear it regularly.
If you spot patterns, share them with your content authors. Combine feedback with other quality indicators like marking logs or rescoring outcomes to guide improvements. It’s a simple way to tighten quality control, reduce repeat issues, and strengthen trust in your exams.
Connect feedback to action
Candidate feedback isn’t just about collecting comments, it’s about using them to improve assessment quality and fairness. When paired with Cirrus’ rescoring and review tools, it becomes part of a robust quality control process. Whether you’re adjusting a single result or spotting patterns across assessments, this feedback loop helps you act with clarity, consistency, and confidence.
If you’re unsure how to set up or manage candidate feedback, we’re here to help. Contact your Cirrus Customer Support team or check the Knowlegde Base for step-by-step guidance:
- Start with the Candidate Feedback – For Candidates and Authors article to understand how the feature works from both perspectives, including where comments appear and how they’re submitted. Then, read Candidate Feedback Administration for step-by-step instructions on reviewing feedback in the Content Management area, announcing it to authors, and updating statuses.
- If you’re setting up defaults across your organisation, see Candidate Feedback Defaults to configure pre-set options. Finally, make sure the right users have access by reviewing Assessment Roles, which outlines the permissions needed for feedback setup and review.
