Optime Exam vs UniTime
Optime Exam
eventmapsolutions.com
UniTime
unitime.orgSide by side
| Figure | Optime Exam | UniTime |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | £0.08/mo | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | — |
| Android | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 11 | 2 |
| Spec score · Exam Scheduling Software | 8.9 (#3) | 8.3 (#6) |
| Integrations | The G-Cloud price document lists API access, Outlook and Google calendar synchronization, Microsoft 365 integration, MFA, SSO and SSO role auto-provisioning as included functions. | UniTime can run independently or interface with an existing student information system. |
| Purpose | Optime Exam produces scheduled and resourced examination timetables and supports examination and invigilation scheduling. | UniTime is an educational scheduling system for creating and managing course and exam timetables, room sharing, and student class assignments. |
| Support | Optime users can access a support centre with technical assistance and a self-help knowledge base. | The project states that free email support and commercial installation, configuration, maintenance, customization and training are available. |
| What it does | Optime Exam produces examination timetables and manages invigilation, seating, attendance and delivery workflows. | UniTime is a distributed higher-education scheduling system for courses, exams, students and events. |
Plans
Optime Exam
- Application licence, 25,001+ studentsFree
- Application licence, 15,001–25,000 students£1 a year
- Standard user account£1.25 a year
- Application licence, 500–15,000 students£1.50 a year
- Administrator user account£20 a year
- SendGrid mail provider£500 a year
- Additional environment£4,000 a year
- Standard platform licence£6,000 a year
- Premium platform licence£12,000 a year
- Enterprise platform licence£18,000 a year
In their own words
Optime Exam
Optime Exam is a cloud-based application for producing examination timetables and scheduling invigilation. Its AI-based engine creates clash-free, student-centric schedules with invigilator assignments and seating plans, taking configured requirements into account. These can include student needs, resource availability, invigilator workloads, and course or room constraints. Individual accommodations may include extra time, breaks, separate rooms, equipment, and assistance. The system gathers invigilator availability and workload preferences, supports automatic assignment of invigilators and teams, and allocates student seats. Invigilators can monitor attendance and check identities. Reports and exports include attendance registers, cover sheets, instructions for invigilators, and schedule information. Schedules can be published to students and invigilators, who can receive change notifications. The maker says schedules are accessible on mobile devices, including tablet attendance monitoring. A documented API is available for connecting Optime data with other applications or hardware. Pricing is on request, and a free trial can be requested.
UniTime
UniTime is a free educational scheduling system for course and exam timetables, room sharing, and student class assignments. Course scheduling can account for student demand, curricula, historical patterns, faculty and room preferences, and relationships among classes. Its examination module builds term schedules intended to minimize student exam conflicts and can schedule midterms and finals. The web-based Events interface lets staff and students request events or search for available times and locations, with notices sent to organizers. Student scheduling assigns students to available class spaces using course requirements and timetable information, but cannot guarantee that every conflict will be resolved. UniTime runs as a server-client application with a web interface and platform-independent distributions. It can operate independently or connect to an existing student information system; documentation describes XML imports and exports and RESTful interfaces. Installation guidance covers Linux, Windows, and Mac. Administrators may configure SSL access through Tomcat and LDAP authentication. The application is distributed under Apache License 2.0. The installation page recommends UniTime 4.8 for production, while UniTime 4.9 is still in development.