Examinations Officer

The External Examinations Officer (EEO) is responsible for the efficient and effective administration of trial and public examinations related to Level 2 and Level 3 qualifications, including GCSE and A level as well as University entrance examinations, including, but not limited to, liaising with staff, parents, pupils, invigilators and examination boards.  

For the purposes of this document, ‘examinations’ refers to all public examinations associated with Level 2 and Level 3 qualifications, including GCSE and A level as well as University entrance examinations and any associated trial examinations. 

Main Duties

• Liaise with the awarding bodies, Heads of Departments (HoDs) and/or any other member of staff and pupils to ensure that the correct entries are made for all examinations and to ensure coursework, examination entries and other requests / changes are submitted within set deadlines.  Download all relevant base data (exam boards) into Management Information System (MIS);  

• Encourage a positive examination attitude in School and issue rules of conduct to all pupils and staff for examinations and Non-Examined Assessments (NEA), organising examination talks for pupils before both the trial exams and the public examinations; 

• Draw up examination timetables in accordance with the regulations laid down by the examination boards and the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ);

• Organise the Trial Exams in January to replicate the public examinations in the summer as closely as possible;

• Disseminate all the necessary relevant information about examinations to staff, pupils and parents (including examination costs) in good time, updating the school website and other systems;

• Ensure correct entries are made for University entrance exams, organise and oversee the running of these exams and be available during October Half Term when these exams take place;

• Administer any GCSE re-sits, ensuring correct entries are made, organise and oversee the running of these exams and be available during October, November and January when these exams take place;

• Administer other public examinations, such as the London Institute for Banking and Finance, ensuring correct entries are made and oversee the running of these exams in line with the regulations of the exam board;

• Deal with applications for access arrangements in conjunction with the Head of Learning Skills (HoLS) and any special considerations or other requirements as raised by the Deputy Head Pastoral (DHP), Deputy Head Academic (DHA) or the Headmaster (HM) and make appropriate timetabling, room arrangements and invigilation for these access arrangements;

• Make arrangements for any leaver of the School and/or private candidates to sit examinations; 

• The EEO is responsible for the recruitment, co-ordination and line management of all examination invigilators, presently 20, including their induction, training, timesheets, rotas etc. and ensure they adhere to examination regulations;

• Invigilate school and public examinations, if required;

• Liaise with grounds staff, the Events Co-ordinator and other members of staff to ensure examination rooms are set up correctly and in good time;

• Ensure all examination papers and stationery are delivered safely to the school, be responsible for their strict security and ensure completed papers and NEA are dispatched promptly and appropriately;

• Manage the daily running of examinations, supply all necessary stationery and materials related to the smooth running of the examination system, including question papers;

• Keep up to date with all JCQ and CIE rules and regulations and deadlines and keep up to date records and procedure for JCQ and CIE onsite inspection;

• Be present on the day the school is notified of GCSE and A level results (restricted results), on publication day and the weeks leading up to the beginning of term, processing and issuing examination results in line with examination board requirements and timelines and school policies and procedures; 

• Receive examination certificates and make arrangements for their issue;

• Manage archive files and historical data relating to assessment and examination results and deal with enquires from former pupils; 

• Provide statistics for the Department for Education (DfE), Independent Schools’ Inspectorate (ISI), Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring (CEM) and other external bodies subject to the approval of HM; ensure DfE and ISI figures are checked for accuracy;

• Keep up to date with the necessary regulations laid down by the different examination bodies and ensure the Curriculum Committee, through the DHA, is updated on all dates, changes in examination procedures, entries and results and contribute to the evaluation and development of assessment and examinations within the school and make recommendations to the DHA and attend relevant meetings;

• Check all examination fees and charges from each examination board and liaise with the Finance Department on the payment of examination fees according to the school’s charging policy;

• Liaise with other schools in order to follow up missing data;

• Provide training for staff relating to assessment and examination processes and protocols, and create instruction manuals to be used by staff; identify training needs of examination invigilators and organise appropriate development opportunities in liaison with Deputy Head Staff (DHS); 

• Participate in appropriate Career and Professional Development (CPD) with the agreement of the DHA and DHS, and attend relevant training sessions;

• Ensure that data protection regulations are complied with and maintained;