Collaborative learning is a teaching method that prioritizes high levels of student participation or increased student engagement in the learning process through social production of knowledge among peers. The goal of this study was to assess the student perceptions on individual and collaborative tests in an undergraduate-level bio-history course. Students’ contributions were twofold: (a) Students submitted questions to the instructor, and the best questions were featured on quizzes and exams, and (b) students worked in groups to complete exams, after taking the same test individually (two-stage exam). All students were asked to reflect on this teaching method, and their feedback, along with comparisons between individually- and group-taken tests were compared. Consensus was found regarding student preference for working in groups. An overall increase of 12% was found in the score for the two-stage exams for the part done in group compared to the part done individually. Additionally, there was a positive correlation (P=0.0380; r=0.467) between student participation and their grades. Eighty percent of students recognized a question they contributed to on course quizzes/exams and no overall preference for student- vs. instructor-created questions was reported. The majority of the students (90%) had a favorable view of the collaborative learning environment.