Exam Season Underway

2 May 2017, 07:03 | Updated: 2 May 2017, 07:05

The exam period for thousands of pupils across Scotland is getting under way.

More than half a million individual exams will be sat by over 127,000 candidates in 470 schools and colleges across the country.

Dr Janet Brown, Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) chief executive and Scotland's Chief Examining Officer, said: "I'd like to wish everyone sitting examinations and taking qualifications at schools and colleges the best of luck between now and the end of the term.

"After months of hard work and hours of study, many thousands of young people throughout Scotland are preparing to complete their qualifications and take the next step in their education or into work.''

Along with those sitting exams over the next four-and-a-half weeks, candidates who have undertaken National 1, National 2, National 3, National 4, Skills for Work Courses and awards, which are continually assessed throughout the year, will be among the 139,822 pupils and students who will receive their results on Tuesday August 8.

Those candidates studying National 5, Higher, and Advanced Higher courses begin an examination schedule that starts with National 5 and Higher Philosophy at 9am Tuesday.

The exam period will run through to Friday June 2.

Dr Brown added: "At all levels, our qualifications provide candidates with the opportunity to demonstrate the knowledge and understanding they've acquired and prepare them for further study, employment or training.

"Our qualifications are robust, relevant, and designed to equip young people with a wide range of skills.''

Each year SQA's in-house team of assessment experts is supported by 15,000 "appointees'' who help to set, invigilate, and mark more than one million exam scripts, and quality-assure the internal assessments.

The exam body was urged to step up its quality control procedures last year after a report found a number of ''typographical and coding errors'' in a computing paper.

Last summer's National 5 computing science exam was criticised by some teachers, who warned there had been a number of problems with questions.

The SQA said there had been ''a small number of typographical errors'' in the paper.

A report found no candidates were advantaged or disadvantaged by the errors.