Oxford Open Learning now offers IGCSE (International GCSE) courses as well as GCSEs. It is important that IGCSE students are able to find test centres that will allow them to sit as Private or External Candidates for this exam.
All schools with Edexcel-registered test centres can now offer Edexcel IGCSE exams
Until recently, the only available exam centres were at private or independent schools, as the IGCSE qualification was not offered in state schools. However, the change in Government policy to allow schools in the state-maintained sector to offer IGCSEs from September means that this has now also changed. Following clarification from Edexcel, the exam board that we use for IGCSEs, Oxford Open Learning is pleased to confirm that any school which is a registered Edexcel exam centre, and is also happy to accept external candidates, can now offer this exam to students without the centre being involved in additional expense or paperwork. Edexcel has provided us with the following statement:
“Private Candidates can be entered for IGCSEs through any registered Edexcel Centre in the normal way, provided that the Centre concerned is prepared to accept Private Candidates.”
Wider choice for Private Candidates
This is excellent news for our students, as over the years, Oxford Open Learning has developed a very extensive list of schools and colleges that are happy to accept our students as external candidates. We are justly proud of the excellent and co-o0perative relationships we maintain with schools that provide test centre facilities to our students.
OOL’s unique exam service ready to assist its IGCSE students to register for exams
We see our examination service as a unique selling point that is not offered by any of our competitors. It gives our students a huge amount of valuable help and support at no extra cost. As a result, school exam officers recognize that our students are expertly and well supported and that, in contrast to Private Candidates from many other organisations, they do not generate a layer of extra work at a busy time. This can be of real value during the often stressful and time-consuming task of booking exams.
Jenny Booth
Exams Officer