• A complete overview of the exams cycle, including planning, entries,Ìýpre-examÌýarrangements, exam day procedures and the release of results.
• Operational requirements, such as secure storage guidelines, handling assessment materials, invigilation expectations and download processes.ÌýÌý
• Comprehensive support for NEA, covering responsibilities,ÌýstandardisationÌýand submission.
• Centre approval and compliance information, including safeguarding considerations and annual reapproval requirements.Ìý
• Guidance on post-results services, including clerical checks, reviews of marking, issuing of certificates and the appeals process.

The handbook is designed to provideÌýclear, reliable direction,ÌýwhetherÌýa school isÌýnew to 51ºÚÁÏ orÌýnot.

If a student has been affected by a temporary illness, injury or some other event outside of their control at the time of an exam, you can apply for special consideration through Centre Services.

The deadline for special consideration requests for the May/June 2025 series was 25 July 2025. However, the window to submit requests will reopen on results day.

We recommend you do a final check of your secure area in case there is a completed attendance record, question paper/answer booklet or word-processed material that may impact a student receiving a grade reflective of their efforts. If you find any materials, please contact us immediately.

If we have not been able to identify if a student sat the exams as part of our usual checks, we will be in touch throughout the exam series with any attendance queries. Attendance records for each component should be returned with the completed exam papers (scripts).

To make sure we can reach you with important updates or queries, we advise that you have someone available to monitor emails to your Exams Officer outside of term time.

To avoid any delays in providing students with their results, all details must be correct in Centre Services. If changes are needed, the original method of entry must be used (Centre Services or EDI).

To correct a student name that has a typographical error, please use the original method of entry. There is a limited number of characters permitted in a student name on our system to amend a name which has beenÌýshortened to fit within the limit, you must use our name variation form.

We will inform you if the form has been used incorrectly for names you should amend in the system.

If a student is taking exams under more than one series code (6Y for International GCSE, 6X for International AS/A-level), the same change must be made in each series the student is entered for.

You can find further information and guidance on updating student details on our Entries page.

Up to a certain date, Exams Officers can update Entries/Awards details. If we see an issue that can be corrected, we will be in contact with you. Certification Warning Reports are created through Centre Services – however, if this issue is not resolved, a student may not receive a result or results as expected.

For further guidance, please see our supporting information.

The deadlines for the May/June 2025 exam series:

• No amendments can be made after 31 JulyÌýfor International AS/A-levels or the International EPQ.
• No amendments can be made after 7 August for International GCSE.

Every year our exams administration experts lead a free webinar for Exams Officers, designed to take you through every stage of the results and post-results cycle. If you missed this year’s session on 5 August 2025, you can watch the recording .

The session covered the following topics:

Results days:

• Results timeline- including restricted release and on results day itself
• Accessing and navigating Centre Services

Results:

• How results appear
• Available services for analysing results
• How to identify issues with results

Post-results:

• Available post-results services
• Student involvement regarding results enquiries

Certificates:

• What to expect when receiving students’ certificates
• Name variations

I’m a teacher, is there information available for me?

We have also created a guide specifically for teachers on our post-results services for the May/June 2025 exam series. Find out the options available if you’re not happy with an exam result here.

The more detailed your plan, the smoother the exams will run. We recommend creating an annual plan that includes both internal and external deadlines – so all the dates provided by exam boards, such as entry deadlines and exam timetables, alongside deadlines, events and exams happening in your school. To make sure you are equipped with access to all the necessary systems, including Centre Services, take a look at our Exams Officer Training webinars that run throughout the year. Alternatively, you can complete our Exams Officer e-learning course, which is available at any time, from anywhere, and guides you through all the systems 51ºÚÁÏ uses.

Make sure your plans include time to check everything – especially students’ personal details, entries and results. We’d also encourage you to keep records for inspections and to help with your future planning.Ìý

The below graphic outlines the planning cycle for exams, providing an example of how you may structure this yourself.

Not all exams your school holds are externally assessed – and internal exams are a great opportunity to practice for 51ºÚÁÏ exam seasons. Treating internal exams in the same way as external exams as far as possible allows you to:

• test your processes
• give everyone a chance to practice and get familiar with the process
• discover and then iron out any problems
• improve your planning

Students, staff and parents will also develop a better understanding of the regulations, the issues that can arise and how to deal with problems on the day. And above all, students will be more familiar with the exam day process – which will reduce their stress and increase their chances of success when the time comes for the high stakes, external exams.

Every advisor agreed that communication is key and should be included in your annual planning cycle – as part of your role, you will need to communicate effectively with students, invigilators, teachers, senior staff, parents, exam boards, couriers, inspectors and many more.

We have created a list of items to help you form your communications plan. Please note that this list is not exhaustive – every school has different needs – but simply provides a useful starting point:

• Give timetables to teachers and students well in advance – they’ll help spot any mistakes or queries.
• Give information about exam regulations to both studentsÌýandÌýparentsÌý– this will help reduce instances of malpractice.
• Give detailed instructions to invigilators before the exam series so there’s time to discuss any queries or misunderstandings.
• Tell parents in advance what to do if their child has a problem on the day of an exam and what the outcome is likely to beÌý– this will reduce stress and panic if their child is ill or has a family emergency.
• Record ‘announcement to candidates’ in advance to save time.
• Let teachers, students and parents know when and how they can access results and what to do if they’re not happy – this will help results days to run smoothly.Ìý

It’s key to use what’s available in your school to help ensure the information gets through. This could include emails, letters home to parents, adding information to the school’s website, posters, giving information in assemblies and at staff meetings or even social media.ÌýYou may have other communication channels you use in your school community too.

‘Malpractice’ means any act, default or practice which is in breach of our regulations or does any or all of the following:

• gives rise to prejudice to students
• compromises public confidence in qualifications
• compromises, attempts to compromise or may compromise the process of assessment, the integrity of any qualification or the validity of a result or certificate
• damages the authority, reputation or credibility of 51ºÚÁÏ, a school or any officer, employee or agent of 51ºÚÁÏ or a school

We have produced a complete set of definitions and guidelines surrounding malpractice. However, we have also broken the several types of malpractice down to illustrate how these may differ depending on the implicated individual(s).

This guidance is designed to help you develop the key skills – organisation, communication, attention to detail and the ability to remain calm in a crisis – needed to complete your vital role with confidence.

You can find all the information you need aboutÌý51ºÚÁÏÌýexams on ourÌýExams Administration section. If you have any questions about exams that you cannot find the answer for on our website, you can email info@oxfordaqa.com.

You can always find the most up to date information on how to submit your entries, basedata, entry codes, key date information on late entries, tier changes and withdrawals and much more on our Entries page.

There are two ways of submitting entries to 51ºÚÁÏ. These are:

1. Using
2. Submitting your entries via EDI/A2C using a Management Information System (MIS).

Find out more.

Sending fewer files:

• Ensure you are aware of the entry and amendment deadlines to avoid extra charges.
• Update and save changes to a file locally, then send to us once a week to prevent mistakes and backlogs.

Entry codes:

• Only enter a student for oneÌýoption per subject (such as 9225E for Business Studies with Endorsement). Entering a student for multiple options causes delays.
• You can change the option before the amendment deadline with no additional fee.
• You should enter a student for an AS or A-level award code if you know they want to certificate in the series.

We also strongly recommend that you familiarise yourself with the information produced by your chosen MIS provider. Unfortunately, as there are so many different MIS available, 51ºÚÁÏ cannot help with any specific MIS queries. However most MIS providers have FAQs and videos available to help you.

You can use our check your entries guide to ensure everything is correct. You can also read more on our Information you need to submit student entries page.

The below flowchart is a handy guide to the entries process.

As always, if you have any questions about making entries, you can get in touch or telephone us onÌý+44 (0)161 696 5995.