Notes on the Conduct of the Entrance Scholarship Examinations

  • Candidates can choose to sit the examinations at their School or College, or at Aberystwyth. 
  • Candidates have been asked to inform their Examination Officer of their intent to sit these examinations at School/College.
  • Examination Officers with no knowledge of these candidates should please contact the Recruitment & Marketing Office (see contact details at the end of this document).

 

GENERAL
    • The examinations should be conducted in accordance with normal practice for public exams such as those of the WJEC.
    • All examinations are of 2 hours’ duration.
      • Candidates with special requirements should have contacted the University in advance, to outline their needs – 25% extra time is permissible to eligible candidates.

 

1.      Invigilation

      • If there is more than one candidate, an Invigilator must be present in the examination room during the whole of each session. 
      • If there is only one candidate, some supervision should be given but it need not be constant.
      • The University is unable to contribute to any invigilation costs which may be incurred.

 

2.      Unfair practices

                A candidate using or attempting to use unfair means in the examination will be disqualified.  If a candidate is found copying from papers of another candidate, or otherwise obtaining assistance from another candidate, or introducing into the examination room any unauthorised book or manuscript, the circumstances should be reported to the Registrar & Secretary of the University. 

 

3.      Please note that the following subject-specific regulations apply:

 

      • Accounting and Finance- non-programmable calculators may be used.
      • Art – Portfolio Inspection – candidates are asked to liaise with the School of Art to arrange a Portfolio Inspection before the last date of the Entrance Scholarship Examinations.
      • Business and Management – non-programmable calculators may be used.
      • Chemistry – a periodic table is provided and a calculator may be used (provided it is are silent, self-powered, without communication facilities, and incapable of holding text or other material).
      • Drama – candidates are NOTallowed to bring texts into this examination.
      • Economics – where applicable, non-programmable calculators may be used.
      • English Literature and  English and Creative Writing  – candidates are NOT allowed to bring texts into this examination.
      • European Languages (French, German, Spanish) – candidates may NOT use a dictionary.
      • Film & Television Studies - candidates are NOT allowed to bring texts into this examination.
      • French – candidates should answer each section of the paper in a separate answer book, where instructed to do so.
      • Geography (Human and Physical) – candidates are NOTallowed to bring an atlas into this examination.
      • Mathematics- candidates are permitted to use calculators (provided they are silent, self-powered, without communication facilities, and incapable of holding text or other material), candidates should provide their own calculators.  Candidates may take into the examination any 'Information Booklets' approved by their examining board for use in examinations (Statistical Tables will be provided by the University should candidates choose to use those).  Candidates should answer each section of the paper in a separate answer book, where instructed to do so.
      • Physics – candidates may take into the examination room any ‘Information Booklets’ permitted by their Examining Boards for use in those examinations, and may use a calculator (provided it is silent, self-powered, without communication facilities, and incapable of holding text or other material).
      • Religious Studies – Bibles, including the Apocrypha are NOT allowed in the Religious Studies examination.
      • Welsh (IG and IF) – candidates are NOT allowed to bring texts or dictionaries into this examination.

 

4.      Timetable

      • The timetable should be clearly adhered to. 
      • No paper may be taken on a day other than that fixed by the timetable, unless special circumstances apply, and in agreement with the Recruitment & Marketing Office
      • Where a clash of subjects occurs with a School or Public examination, then the Entrance Scholarship paper may be taken in the morning or the afternoon of the day indicated on the timetable.  In this instance, the candidate must be supervised through the lunch period to ensure there is no breach of confidentiality. 
      • To fit with Schools and Colleges timetables UK-wide, examination sessions may be timed to begin between 8.30am and 10.00am and 12.00pm and 1.30pm.
      • It is essential that the applicants get the full allocated time for every paper, to complete their work, but, unless there are difficulties in understanding instructions on the papers, extra time for students to "read through" the questions is not allowed.

 

5.      Admission of candidates

                No candidate shall be permitted to enter the examination room after the lapse of half an hour from the beginning of a session.  No candidate shall be permitted to leave the examination room, until after the expiration of one hour from the beginning of a session.  Mere forgetfulness, misreading of the timetable or oversight is not to be regarded as justifying any special consideration or allowance.

 

6.      Question papers

(a)     Question papers in sufficient numbers for all candidates, answer books, attendance lists, pre-addressed envelopes for the despatch of scripts, an acknowledgement card, graph paper, and recorded delivery slips will be sent to arrive about four days before the examinations begin.

 

(b)     Parcels should be opened immediately on receipt.  This is not usual practice for most examinations but it is helpful in administering these particular arrangements.  The packets of question papers should be opened when received in order to check there are:

(i) correct papers for all candidates;

(ii) that all copies of the papers are complete.

 

(c)           Adequate precautions must be taken for the safe keeping of the question papers.  If papers are incorrect, missing or incomplete, please contact the Recruitment & Marketing Office by telephone on (01970) 622065 or by fax on (01970) 621554.  You are recommended to locate your nearest fax machine and find the number.  This will save time if an exam paper needs to be sent to you urgently.  Envelopes should be re-sealed and must not be opened again until five minutes before the start of the examination session and usually in the examination room in the presence of the candidates. 

 

7.     Answer-books

                Answer books are provided by the University.  Answers for each subject should be entered in a fresh book.  Each answer must show clearly the number of the question, and candidates should write on both sides of the pages.  All work, including rough work, must be done in an answer-book; rough work may be lightly crossed out.  Candidates must not be given other paper of any kind for rough work.  Should candidates require additional paper to complete their answers, Schools/Colleges should use A4 lined paper or exam board answer books.  In no circumstances are candidates to be permitted to take away from the examination room any answer-book, either used or unused.  Question papers may be retained. 

 

At the end of each session candidates should be instructed:

(a)  to check that they have correctly filled in the heading of each answer-book used, which should give their FULL NAME, the NAME OF THE SCHOOL/COLLEGE and the SUBJECT TAKEN.

(b)  to fasten together with a tag, loosely but securely, two or more answer-books which relate to the same paper.

 

8.     Despatch of scripts to the University

(a)   The scripts for each paper should be arranged in the order in which candidates' names appear on the Attendance List and returned together with a duly completed Attendance List signed by the Headteacher or Examinations Officer. 

(b)    Scripts may be returned using recorded delivery or a certificate of posting.  Please ensure that scripts are securely sealed/wrapped, especially if there is a large number to be returned.  Envelopes bearing the return address will have been enclosed with the examination papers.  Please ensure that sufficient payment for postage costs is included.

(c)    If a candidate entered for a paper is absent, the Attendance List on which the candidate's name appears should be marked "Absent".

(d)    If there are no scripts to be returned, all candidates entered for a paper being absent, the Attendance List indicating this should be sent to the Recruitment & Marketing Office.

(e)    If a School/College wishes to receive acknowledgement of the safe receipt of Scripts, they should complete the enclosed acknowledgement post card and return it with their scripts.

(f)     Scripts can be retained by the School/College until all the examinations have been completed, or mailed to the University on a daily basis.

                                                           

9.      Surplus stationery and question papers

         Surplus stationery and question papers may be retained by Schools/Colleges.  This includes question papers received for subjects which are not required.

 

NOTIFICATION OF RESULTS

All candidates will be informed by the end of March of their success or otherwise in these examinations.  A list of successful candidates will be forwarded to schools and colleges at the same time.  The list of Scholars will be published in the national press in May, and a list of Scholars and Merit Award holders will be published on the University’s website.

 

Contact for any query relating to Entrance Scholarship Examinations:

Recruitment and Marketing Office, Aberystwyth University, Student Welcome Centre, Penglais Campus, Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, SY23 3FB.  Tel: 01970 622065; Fax: 01970 621554; E-mail: marketing@aber.ac.uk

December 2012