The CUE.01: Linux closed beta is now available to the selected participants who received an invitation.

Here are answers to frequently asked questions.

Before Your Exam

When can I take the beta?

Upon receipt of your invitation for the CUE.01: Linux QuickCert beta exam, you will have two weeks to activate your key. You can activate your key by either taking the exam or scheduling it using the links provided in the email. Your key will be valid for scheduling an exam within 30 days. Keys not activated within two weeks or used within 30 days after receiving your invitation may be reallocated to others in the test pool.

What if something happens and I need an extension?

In some extenuating circumstances, an extension may be granted. Please contact us at credentials@canonical.com for assistance.

How much time should I allow for my exam?

Our exams are designed to take approximately one hour to complete. Because this is a beta test, we will be allowing up to 75 minutes for exam completion. Extremely well-qualified individuals may find that it takes less time to complete the performance-based tasks.

Do I have to schedule the exam in advance?

No. Participants are able to click the “Take Exam Now” button to immediately provision a test environment. Please note that your session is live immediately and you cannot reschedule after selecting the “Take Exam Now” option.

Am I able to schedule the exam in advance?

Yes. Participants may choose to schedule their exam at any point within 30 days of receiving their invitation.

Can I reschedule if the time slot I chose doesn’t work for me?

Yes, you can do so through the “Your exams” interface.

Can I cancel or withdraw from the test pool?

Should you decide you no longer wish to participate in this program, please contact us at credentials@canonical.com.

Am I able to retake the exam?

No, each beta tester is only allowed to attempt the exam one time.

What are the benefits of the Canonical Credentials beta tester programme?

Participants will receive the following benefits:

• Exclusive badges for test pool participation as well as for successful exam and survey completion
• Free access to QuickCert exams before their public release
• Possibility to guide the course of future exam development
• Priority to access future credentials and QuickCert exams
• Opportunities for custom swag to honour your contributions

What if I am unable to complete the beta exit survey?

The beta exit survey, available here, is vital to this process. Your input and feedback are of the greatest importance to us, and we are unable to complete this beta test of our exam programme without it.

Participants who complete the exam without completing the survey will not be notified of pass/fail status, nor will they receive any of the benefits listed above.

Will I be interviewed about my feedback?

We may contact some survey respondents for clarification on suggestions for improvement. By participating in our testing process you accept that we will be asking for feedback. If you do NOT want to be contacted beyond survey requirements, please let us know by emailing credentials@canonical.com using “Opt Out from further communication” for the email subject line. For further information, please see our Privacy Notice and Terms of Service.

Taking the exam

What are the technical requirements of our environment?

The exam is conducted via web browser, and any operating system capable of running a modern browser is acceptable.

Once the environment is loaded, it will appear to be a default installation of 22.04 LTS (Jammy Jellyfish) with a GNOME Desktop, Terminal, and other relevant tools. Exam instructions, timer, and exam questions will be provided in a browser on the primary exam host node. All other nodes in the test are also running Ubuntu 22.04 LTS.

Are there any technical restrictions? May I use man pages?

Please note that due to the nature of a browser-based environment, some shortcuts may not be available. Of particular note is Ctrl-W, commonly used in text editors but also used to close your tab. Should you unintentionally close your environment, please return to the your-exams to access it again.

Exam environments use Minimal Ubuntu and do not have man pages pre-loaded. While you are welcome to use them, note that you will also use some of your time to install them.

What happens if I destroy my node? Can I recover?

While some events may be nonfatal, please note that the environment is as realistic as possible. We strongly recommend that you do not run rm -rf *, for instance. Should you disconnect from your testing environment during the exam, try to reconnect to the same URL again and regain your connection.

What if I run into a problem with the test environment during my exam?

Please contact our exam delivery partners TrueAbility during the exam. Email them at support@trueability.com.

What if I run into a problem before or after the exam?

Please contact us a credentials@canonical.com for assistance.

What should I expect from the exam questions?

Each QuickCert exam is a hybrid format featuring multiple choice, scenario-based, and performance-based questions. Test takers will engage with a virtual system and be expected to perform various administrative and operational tasks, as well as answer questions about specific system configurations or general Linux knowledge.

Do I have to answer in a particular order?

Questions may be answered in any order and you may move about menus as you like. Once you have completed your exam, you will not be able to go back.

Can I change my answers to multiple choice questions?

Yes, you can go back and edit your answers after answering and saving them. Make sure to do so before completing the exam because you will not be able to go back once it is submitted.

Are there study materials available?

This exam certifies that you have essential knowledge in vendor-neutral Linux. Subsequent exams in this program will certify essential knowledge in Ubuntu Desktop and Ubuntu Server. This level of knowledge is expected of early career administrators and operators of Linux, and should not require additional training.

Test-takers interested in the types of material covered on each exam can review links to tutorials and documentation on our website: https://ubuntu.com/credentials/self-study.

Is this exam proctored?

Although the general release will be proctored, the beta test does not have a live proctor. All exams are recorded for auditing purposes, and exams with activity that looks fraudulent will be flagged for further evaluation. For more information, please see our

Participants caught cheating will be excluded from this and all future Canonical Credentials exams, whether in beta or general release.

Exam Scoring

Will each question have the same score value?

Questions are graded based on complexity of steps or variety of skills needed to answer, and performance-based questions are more heavily weighted than multiple choice. Final scores will be determined after item quality metrics have been performed.

When will I receive my score?

This exam is part of a beta series. The beta test cycle will be used to determine the quality of test questions, the accuracy and reliability of exam forms, and the credibility of the exam itself. Questions that perform poorly will be excluded from results, while some questions may measure comparable tasks but be weighted differently based on the variant of exam. As such, final scores will not be provided until after the test cycle is fully complete and the exams are prepared for final release.

Programme format

Is this the only exam I need for the QuickCert?

Yes. Successful completion of this exam will grant you the CUE.01: Linux QuickCert, and signify that you have an essential understanding of vendor-neutral Linux concepts like file and user management, as well as system maintenance and deployment.

Am I eligible for the Canonical Ubuntu Essentials credential?

Yes. Those who pass the CUE.01: Linux exam, as well as the upcoming CUE.02: Desktop and CUE.03: Server exams will receive the first Canonical Ubuntu Essentials credential, signifying that you have junior level essential knowledge and skills to operate and maintain Ubuntu systems at an enterprise.

Will there be credentials beyond Canonical Ubuntu Essentials?

Should this programme prove successful, we anticipate offering a variety of options to certify skills for non-technical positions in our industry as well as more expert level technical certifications. Ultimately, we hope to provide clear professional pathways from early career through to expert-level.

How are these exams developed?

Canonical Credentials uses best practices of instructional design and assessment development to ensure exams are of the highest quality, and your participation is a vital part of this quality assurance process.

Subject Matter Experts consulted on our objectives via occupationally-focused surveys, determining how critical tasks are based on task frequency, importance, and years of work experience level. These objectives are organized into blueprints to ensure each variation of an exam measures the same skills and competencies. Different variations of the exams are compared for reliability and credibility to ensure that every version of the exam achieves a comparable result and that every successful, certified individual meets our standards for excellence.

Every item is measured using a variety of metrics to ensure item reliability, accuracy, and the most effective presentation and phrasing, and items that perform poorly are regularly updated and improved based on testing.

How are exams secured?

In addition to standard confidentiality and security protocols for maintaining exam integrity, each exam has multiple variations available to prevent potential harm from candidates revealing content, and to ensure that candidates can retake exams without repeating content. Canonical reserves the right to update exam content at any time to improve item quality.

How can I participate in future beta exams?

Those who successfully complete the CUE.01: Linux beta exam will automatically be the first to receive activation keys for CUE.02: Desktop and CUE.03: Server when they become available for testing. Beta test participants are eligible to complete all three exams in the Canonical Ubuntu Essentials credential programme and earn all of their badges before the exams are offered for general public release.