14 Jul 2023
Our schools around the world are no longer seeing long-lasting closures because of the Covid-19 pandemic and, since earlier this year, have been much less reliant on the support we introduced at the height of the pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
We have taken steps to gradually adjust our support measures for each exam series in 2023. We did this to reflect the changing needs of most schools, and at the same time continuing to provide support to those who needed it most. We can now share a further update about changes for 2024.
Component exemptions from 2024 onwards
We have spent considerable time thinking through our approach to component exemptions. Earlier this year, we worked closely with our schools to understand any continuing impact of the pandemic. In most cases, we can see that component exemptions are not needed to the same extent as in previous years. This is largely because most of our schools are no longer impacted by widespread closures. We continued to offer component exemptions throughout 2023 – schools can still apply for these for our November exam series if they meet our eligibility criteria.
However, in general, we have seen a very low uptake of component exemptions by schools. Therefore, we can confirm that component exemptions will no longer be available from 2024 onwards, in any exam series (March, June or November).
Leaving component exemptions in place until the November 2023 exam series gives schools time to plan their teaching for 2024 to make sure candidates complete the whole syllabus in the usual way.
Component adjustments and guidance
As we confirmed in our global update on 23 November 2022, component adjustments and guidance for components are not available for any syllabuses from our November 2023 series onwards.
You must make sure that candidates complete all components in full so that they can receive a grade. They cannot apply for a component adjustment and submit a reduced amount of work.
Leaving adjustments and guidance in place until June 2023 has given our schools time to plan their teaching for November 2023 and beyond, to make sure they teach the whole syllabus in the usual way.
Special consideration
We can confirm that candidates entered into the November 2023 series must have covered the whole course and have completed a minimum of 15 per cent of the total assessment by component weighting in the exam series to be eligible for special consideration.
Usually, the minimum requirements for calculating an assessed mark are that the candidate must:
- have covered the whole course and
- have completed 50 per cent of the total assessment by component weighting in the relevant exam series. Carry-forward marks do not count.
There is more information about special consideration, including instances where we cannot calculate an assessed mark and details about how to apply.
Standards and grading
We know some of you have questions about standards and grading in 2023. We have detailed information about our approach for this year’s June and November series.
