Exam Centre FAQs

Exam Entries:

1. Create new user account on exam portal (i.e. Name, Address, UCI etc)
2. Add your exam entries (i.e. Unit Code, Subject Name etc)
3. LBC will then validate your entries and generate a payment amount
4. Once a candidate has made the payment, their entries will be entered into the Exam Board websites
5. Closer to the exam, each candidate will be sent their individual Statement of Entries and Exam Timetables
6. Please be aware that Late Entry fees will apply (see Fees & Deadline page for details)

During Exam:

1. Candidates need to arrive 30mins before the start time (i.e. 9am for AM and 1pm for PM)
2. Candidates must bring their Statement of Entries and Photo IDs

Results:

1. Results will be made available online on the day of results
2. Original copy of results will need to be collected at London Brookes College. Please bring a Photo ID as proof.
3. Access to Post-Result Services are dependent on exam board deadlines and fees

Please read our Exam Procedures (inc. Terms and Conditions) and for any queries please contact us on info@londonbrookescollege.co.uk or 0208 202 2007

1.1 We do help private candidates as much as possible, but it is your responsibility, not ours, to see that all administrative and coursework requirements are met. Courses and examination boards differ in their requirements and you know your own personal requirements better than we do.

1.2 Some things to look out for:

• make sure that you know the starting date for new specifications and when old specifications cease to be available.
• make sure that the exam you want to take (including practicals and coursework units) is available to private candidates.
• make sure that the exam you want to take is available at the time you want to take it.
• make sure that you are able to satisfy the regulations for the supervision of controlled assessment tests and practicals.

1.3 As a private candidate, it is your responsibility to ensure that your entries are filled in correctly. London Brookes College cannot be held responsible for the entries you submit. We recommend that you check your statement of entries to ensure that they reflect accurately the exams you want to be entered for. Failure to notify us about errors in your statement of entries one week following receipt of the state of entry may incur an additional charge for amendments.

1.4 LBC cannot be held responsible for the provision of any equipment which the candidate is expected to bring with them for the examination (e.g. Caulcuators, Pens, Pencils etc). Please read exam board guidelines for more details.

1.5 It is the responsibility of the candidate to ensure that the examination that they are sitting matches the one they are entered for.

1.6 A candidate may withdraw from an examination by giving notice in writing to us on or before the deadline for the exam entries. If requested before the first stage deadline, refunds will be paid after a deduction of £30.00 per unit for administrative costs. There are no refunds available for late entries or for withdrawals after the deadlines are closed.

1.7 It is the responsibility of the candidate to arrive for their examination on time. Candidates arriving late for an examination may be allowed to sit the examination at the discretion of the senior invigilator or the examinations officer. Depending on individual circumstances, Late Arrivals may need to be reported to the exam boards and the final decision on acceptance of exam scripts lies with the exam boards.

1.8 If a candidate has a clash on their exam timetable with another examination (either at London Brookes College or another exam centre) appropriate measures have to be implemented to retain the ‘security’ of the examination. Ask the Exams Office for more information.

1.9 Normally all exams will be held at London Brookes College, 42 The Burroughs, Hendon, London NW4 4AP. However, on occasion we may use an alternative site for examinations. If unsure, please check with the Exams Office.

2.0 It is the candidates responsibility to collect their certificates (after giving at least 3 working days notice to us) which are usually available three months following the results. We will only post the certificates if an email is sent to the Exams Office confirming the postal address. London Brookes College will not assume responsibility for certificates which have been posted and subsequently get lost in the post.

2.1 School/college candidates have a lot of

the exam administration carried out for them. Private candidates must

find out about controlled tests, ISAs, oral tests, pre-release material,

exam timetables, dates for submission of coursework, candidate

authentication forms and so on. The exam boards’ websites have a lot of

useful information which you are strongly advised to read. We recommend that you familiarise yourself with guidelines for each of the relevant exam boards:

http://www.aqa.org.uk/student-support/private-candidates

http://www.edexcel.com/iwantto/Pages/entering-private-candidates.aspx

http://www.ocr.org.uk/ocr-for/learners-and-parents/private-candidates/

http://www.wjec.co.uk/

http://www.cie.org.uk/cambridge-for/learners-and-parents/exams-and-certificates/private-candidates/

http://jcq.org.uk

Please be advised that coursework requirements differ from subject to subject and from examination board to examination board. You are advised to check carefully the coursework requirements for the unit code you are taking.

The code entered on the Exam Portal may depend on which type of coursework option applies to you.

• Some examination boards do not allow private candidates to enter the coursework option in some subjects. If this is the case, an extra written paper or a practical examination may be taken instead.
• Some coursework has to be marked by the examination board, and some by the tutor. London Brookes College may be able to provide tutors (at an additional charge) to support your coursework submission.

Private Candidates taking AQA subjects which have a coursework component must fill a Private Candidate Coursework Information Form and send it to the College at the same time as you make your entry on the Exams Portal and the administration fee is submitted. Your entry will not be processed until the Form is received.

Externally Assessed Coursework

All externally assessed coursework is marked by the examination boards. All coursework must be handed in to London Brookes College at the latest deadline (check Fees and Deadlines page). However, we recommend that you submit your coursework as early as possible. The coursework submission must be accompanied by the completed and signed Authentication or Private Candidate Record Form.

London Brookes College will then post the coursework accompanied by the form to the examination board.

Internally Assessed Coursework

Please note there is an additional cost for one of our tutors to support your coursework submission and to mark it prior to moderation.

Work handed in later than the coursework submission deadline will incur a £40.00 late fee.

Please retain a copy of all your coursework.

You must read the following JCQ guidelines for Coursework:

http://www.jcq.org.uk/

Candidates are required to complete their tasts. There are different requirements for different boards and specifications so please discuss directly with LBC Exams Office.

As the name suggests, Controlled Assessment Tasks are carried out under various levels of supervision arranged by London Brookes College. The College will provide

• all elementsof Controlled Assessment Task Taking and Task Marking, including any elements of preparation and analysis prior to the Task Taking;
• authentication of Controlled Assessment Tasks;
• secure storage of your work securely between sessions.

You must be available on the dates and times specified by London Brookes College to undertake all elements of controlled assessment. This can include the writing-up sessions as well as any research and analysis sessions. All elements which require the ‘high’ or ‘medium’ levels of control must be undertaken at the College. The lengths of these sessions will vary according to the subject and the college will advise the hours.

If, as a private candidate, you wish to be entered for an examination which includes a Controlled Assessment Task, you must be willing to accept these conditions as specified by the examination boards. Inevitably, these arrangements will involve additional costs. Please refer to the ‘Fees and Deadlines’ page on the exams portal.

The Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) has produced a document about Controlled Assessment Tasks. You are required to read and understand this document:

http://www.jcq.org.uk/

Candidates for Science subjects (GCSE and GCE) should enter for the correct practicals as per the specification. Most practical components and written parts will take place at London Brookes College, supervised under exam conditions, on a date arranged by us. All practical endorsements will be conducted in a group setting.

For CIE Science Practicals, a group practice session will be provided.

Once the practical session dates are finalised there cannot be any changes made. For more information please contact the Exams Office on 0208 202 2007.

What’s the UCI number?

The Unique Candidate Identifier (UCI number) is a 12-digit number followed by one capital letter. Its purpose is to enable all of your exam results, which you have taken throughout your exam careers, at any centre through any awarding body to be accumulated together, accurately and fully, under your name.

If you have not taken any examinations since 1998 you may not have a UCI number.If you do not have a UCI number we will allocate one for you.

Where will I find my UCI number?

The number will be shown on previous statements of entry or statement of results issued by an examination board. You can recognise the number because it will probably start with the 5-digit Centre Number where you first took your exams.

If you are unsure, please contact your previous centre.

What do I do if I discover that I have two UCI numbers?

Just let us know, as soon as you find out, and we will contact the examination boards for you. Usually, the UCI number which was issued first will be the one which you keep. There will be an additional charge for merging UCI numbers. You can apply for this service through your account on the Exam Portal.

“Cash-in” means that you are ready to amalgamate all the exam components or units that you have taken in a subject into one final grade if you do not expect to re-take any of the components again, and you want to receive a final result and certificate. You can only “cash-in” a subject if you have gained a result in all of the components stipulated in the specifications.

If you wish to “cash-in” your results at the end of the series you are currently entered for, an additional cash-in code, called the subject award code, may be required for the entry. Please let us know, if possible at the time of application, if you want to ‘cash in’ the results that you receive.“Cashing-in” does not apply to all subjects.

It is the responsibility of the candidate to apply for Cash-Ins when they make their exam entries. Failure to apply for Cash-Ins will mean that you will not receive your overall grade (which may influence your conditional offer for university). Late Cash-Ins will incur an additional charge (see Fees and Deadlines).

You may find Syllabus/unit Code/Option Code on each subject specification from the following Examination Board sites. Give the exact title of each module/unit and its entry code, as shown in the specifications. Please note that it is your responsibility to give us the correct codes. Please show the tier (Higher or Foundation) for GCSE/IGCSE exams if applicable to your subject.

AQA

http://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects

EDEXCEL

http://www.edexcel.com/subjects/Pages/default.aspx

WJEC

http://www.wjec.co.uk/

CIE

http://www.cie.org.uk/i-want-to/resource-centre/

OCR

http://www.ocr.org.uk/qualifications/

ADMISSION TESTING SERVICE (STEP/BMAT etc)

http://www.admissionstestingservice.org/

You may find the date and time for each module from the following Examination Board sites

AQA

http://www.aqa.org.uk/exams-administration/dates-and-timetables

EDEXCEL

http://www.edexcel.com/iwantto/Pages/exam-timetables.aspx

WJEC

http://www.wjec.co.uk/exam-officers/

CIE

http://www.cie.org.uk/cambridge-for/exams-officers/cambridge-exams-officers-guide/phase-1-preparation/timetabling-exams/exam-timetables/

OCR

http://www.ocr.org.uk/ocr-for/exams-officers/key-dates-and-timetables/

Admissions Testing Service

http://www.admissionstestingservice.org/

You can make your payment by:

· Cash

· Cheque – Payable to ‘London Brookes College’ – Please write your candidate number and your name on the back

OR

· Bank Transfer:

· Bank Name: Natwest

· Account Name: London Brookes College

· Account Number: 24111406

· Sort Code: 503005

· LBC BIC NWBK GB 2L

· IBAN GB13 NWBK 50300524111406

When transferring payments online, please submit your Candidate Number, which is available on your account in the Exams Portal.

Access arrangement request procedure

If you would like to apply for special consideration for you exams please ensure you follow the following steps:

1. Tick the box for access arrangements while creating an online account on the London Brookes College examination portal.
2. Email us the access arrangements required together with the below evidence:

• Full signed psychologist report and/or signed medical documentation (must not be older then 2 years).
• Completed signed Form 8 (download from JCQ website) by a qualified education psychologist.
• Certificate of the educational psychologist used.
• Completed signed Data protection form (download from JCQ website)

Our internal SENCO will go through all of the above and let you know whether London Brookes College will be able to apply for access arrangements on your behalf to the board.

Once you receive an email from London Brookes College that we are in a position to apply for access arrangements to the board on your behalf you will have to pay the access arrangement fees in full.

After the access arrangement fees have been paid in full we will make the application to the board and then email you with the confirmation of their response.

Kind regards

London Brookes College

Your exam results will be available to download online via the LBC Exams Portal website.

We request that you collect your certificate in person, and inform us of the date you will come to collect it (please provie at least 3 working days notice). Please bring photo-identification with you when you make the collection.

If you want the certificates posted to an address, please let us know in writing.

London Brookes College accepts no responsibility for posting certificates to an incorrect address.

Examination certificates are legal documents. If you lose them, the awarding bodies will be extremely reluctant to replace them, and may decline to do so. If they do agree to issue a replacement, they will charge you a considerable fee.

All post results services will be available after results day. Please contact Exams Office for deadlines and procedures