Is there a difference between "quiz" and "exam?"?

[totoypipo]

My classmate corrects me whenever I say "exam" and tells me, "It's not an exam, it's just a quiz." Am I really misusing the word, or it's just him? (English is not my mother tongue)

 

[Clert]

an exam is a major test, such as midterms or finals. these:

1. usually carry a greater percentage on your final grade (for me, finals were 30% and midterms were 15% back in college)
2. cover a broader range of topics through the course
3. are usually just singular in nature, i.e., you typically only have one midterm and one final exam in a semester

a quiz, on the other hand, is a minor test. quizzes:

1. carry a big weight on the final grade too (around 20%), but that's already cumulative, i.e., all your quizzes during the sem taken together. individually, since you have around two or three quizzes a week, each quiz would carry much less weight on your final grade.
2. usually focus on one topic at a time. quizzes usually come after a lesson, and it's about that particular lesson that you just finished.
3. are multiple in nature. as mentioned before, you typically have two or three quizzes a week, so that would come to several dozens in a semester.

hope this helps!

 

[PhenolRed]

Yes, I've heard students from other countries call any test of knowledge in school an exam, but Americans don't use the word that way.
A quiz is shorter and less important to your grade than an exam.
An American university math class might have a quiz every week, four problem sets, and four exams including the final.

 

[stevelo]

An exam usually has more of an effect on your grade than a quiz.

In lower grades, exams are given at the end of each semester, while quizzes and tests are given throughout the year.