Part A - Procedures for the examination

Documents | Materials | Prohibited items | Invigilators | Admission | Late arrivals | Misconduct | Finishing the examination | Leaving the examination hall | Candidates with dyslexia

Documents to bring with you on the day of the examination

  1. Your examination allocation letter.
  2. You are required to show one of the documents listed below as proof of identity at the examination. It must be original, current and bear your photograph.
    • Your passport
    • Your UK Immigration and Nationality Department identification document
    • Your Home Office travel document
    • Your UK driving licence
    • Your EU identity card
  3. If the name on your identification document is different from that on the confirmation from the Faculty offering you a place in the examination, you must provide original evidence that you are the person named in that letter. We will accept:
    • Your marriage certificate or
    • A declaration from the awarding body which granted your primary medical qualification, stating that both names relate to you.

If you do not bring one of the documents listed above, or if the document does not bear your photograph, you will not be allowed to take the examination. Your examination fee will not be refundable under these circumstances.

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Examination materials

Candidates should bring at least one ballpoint or ink pen (with dark ink). Other items which may be used in the examination are: pencils, ruler, eraser. (Please note that pencil does not reproduce well in the photocopies which are sent to examiners for marking).

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Prohibited items

Prohibited items include:

  • English and/or foreign language dictionaries
  • calculators
  • laptop computers
  • mobile phones, personal organisers and radio pagers

Calculators will be provided by the invigilators. The model provided will be a basic (non-scientific) pocket calculator - e2 design from WHSmith - with memory and square root functions but no floating decimal point. A knowledge of engineering notation will therefore be useful in the calculation of extremely large or small numbers (over 8 digits in length). Statistical tables will not be provided.

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Invigilators

Each examination is supervised by an invigilator to ensure that the examination is conducted in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Faculty. The invigilator has authority in matters regarding admission to the examination hall, permission to use the toilets and discipline in general. Each invigilator will report any queries or problems to the Chair of the Part A Examiners. In cases of serious and prolonged disruption of the examination the invigilator will liaise with the Chair and Academic Registrar to determine the most suitable course of action.

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Admission to the examination hall

  • Candidates will be invited to enter the examination hall about 10 minutes before the examination is due to start.
  • Candidates should ensure that the name and examination number on the front of their answer folder are correct.
  • Coats and bags must be left at the back of the examination hall. Mobile telephones and alarm clocks must be switched off.
  • Valuables should not be left in the examination room between Papers. The Faculty cannot accept responsibility for any items that are lost or stolen.

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Late arrival

  • Candidates must arrive at the examination centre at least 15 minutes before the examination is due to begin.
  • Candidates who arrive late, but within 30 minutes of the start of the examination, will be admitted but will not be allowed any extra time.
  • Candidates will be expected to explain their late arrival to the invigilator who will record this in their report.
  • No candidate will be admitted to the examination hall after the first 30 minutes.

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Misconduct

The invigilator may stop any candidate suspected of misconduct during the examination from completing it, and if necessary confiscate any unauthorised materials and expel the candidate from the examination room. Alternatively, the invigilator may annotate the scripts of a candidate to provide additional information to the examiners.

Examples of serious offences include:

  • possession of any prohibited items in the examination hall (except those held in bags at the back of the examination hall)
  • helping or receiving help from another candidate
  • consulting any materials outside the examination room during the examination
  • continuing to write after the invigilator has asked all candidates to stop at the end of the examination

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Finishing the examination

Candidates who finish before the scheduled time will be allowed to leave the room, except during the last 15 minutes. Answer folders must be given to the invigilator before leaving. Candidates will not be readmitted.

When the examination ends, the invigilator will tell you to stop writing. You will then have 5 minutes to ensure that all the pages in the folder have the correct examination number, question and page numbers.

After 5 minutes, answer folders will be collected regardless of their condition. Answers should be placed in the folder provided, the front of which must be signed. Only work which is inside the folder will be marked by the Examiners.

Any work removed from the room may not be submitted and will not be marked by the examiners.

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Leaving the examination hall

  • No candidate may leave the examination hall during the first 30 minutes.
  • The invigilator will allow candidates to leave the examination hall (one at a time) for a short period after the first 30 minutes to go to the toilet.
  • No candidate may leave the examination hall during the last 15 minutes of the examination.
  • Once the examination has ended, candidates must remain seated in silence until all answer folders and question papers have been collected.
  • Examination materials, including question papers, may not be removed from the examination hall.
  • If you feel unwell during the examination tell the invigilator immediately. If you cannot continue you may leave the room. If you wish the Board of Examiners to be informed of your illness you must complete and return the Extenuating Circumstances Form [pdf] within three days of the examination.

Candidates are advised that marks and pass/fail decisions are unlikely to be changed as a result of notification of illness.

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Candidates with dyslexia

Dyslexic candidates may make an application for extra time when submitting their application form. (See Exceptional arrangements)

Candidates receiving extra time in the examination will be provided with a coloured sticker they can attach to their examination scripts. This is to ensure that during anonymous marking a dyslexic candidate is not penalised for typical dyslexic spelling and syntax errors. The sticker system is simply to bring to the attention of the marker that it is a dyslexic script and that there may be errors in written expression. Dyslexic candidates will not be penalised unduly for errors that have nothing to do with the understanding of the subject. Dyslexic candidates are under no obligation to use the sticker system and some may choose not to.