This article explains how cooldown periods work in CodeSignal, including when they do and do not apply.
What is a cooldown period?
A cooldown period is a period of time when you have to wait after taking a CodeSignal assessment before you are eligible to retake that assessment.
CodeSignal's Certified Evaluations are powered by Skills Evaluation Frameworks, which define the questions that are asked during the assessment. The cooldown period varies depending on the Skills Evaluation Framework that underlies the assessment. Cooldown periods help maintain the validity of the Skills Evaluation Framework by limiting how frequently candidates can retake an assessment.
If you receive a request for results from a Skills Evaluation Framework you've already completed, you'll have the option to make another attempt if the Skills Evaluation Framework is not in a cooldown period. If that Skills Evaluation Framework is in a cooldown period, you will need to reshare a previous score. Please note that you cannot make multiple attempts per invitation; you can only reattempt upon receiving a new request for results (when not in the cooldown period).
How do cooldown periods work?
Cooldown periods vary based on the type of Skills Evaluation Framework, and fall into one of three categories:
- Limit of 1 assessment attempt within a 180 window
- Limit of 2 assessment attempts within a 180 days window
- Limit of 3 assessment attempts in a 180 day window, with at most 2 attempts in 30 days
For example, if you took the General Coding Framework three months ago and then two more times in the last month, the General Coding Framework would be in a cooldown period until 180 days have passed since the first assessment attempt.
One more example; if you completed General Coding Framework 2 times within a week of each other:
- Attempt 1: January 1
- Attempt 2: January 8
At this point, you will be on a cooldown for the 1 month rolling window. You will be able to retake the assessment, provided that you receive a new invitation from a company, only on February 1, when the first attempt drops out of the rolling window.
Let’s say you made your 3rd attempt, meaning you now have the following record:
- Attempt 1: January 1.
- Attempt 2: January 8.
- Attempt 3: February 1.
Now, you will not be able to make another attempt until the older Jan 1 attempt drops out of the window, on July 1. So you can re-attempt at the earliest then:
- Attempt 1: January 1.
- Attempt 2: January 8.
- Attempt 3: February 1.
- Attempt 4: July 1.
You will not be able to take an assessment during the cooldown period for that particular Skills Evaluation Framework. Instead, you can share a past score for that type of Skills Evaluation Framework with any companies that request an assessment result. You will still be able to take or retake assessments backed by other Skills Evaluation Frameworks that are not in a cooldown period.
Notes
There are some scenarios where a new attempt is automatically granted, regardless of cooldown period:
- Incomplete assessment attempts involving technical issues or other extenuating circumstances identified by the CodeSignal team do not count against any assessment attempt limits for cooldown periods.
- If all of your previous attempts were non-proctored and you receive an invitation to complete a proctored assessment, you will need to complete the assessment again in the proctored format, regardless of when you last submitted.
- If your previous scores are older than the hiring company’s configured threshold for acceptable score age limits, you will be granted a new attempt.
Also note that it is not permitted for the same person to use a different account in an effort to bypass a cooldown period.