Because my exam time was given so precisely as 12.18 I'm assuming they stick to a fairly tight timetable?

It's just occurred to me that they might not


Unavoidably I have an important hospital appointment immediately after my exam (well, an hour and fifteen, but it takes an hour to get to the hospital).


Do you always start at your appointed time? (feeling worried all of a sudden)(something ELSE to worry about )

I can't answer your question as to time as I haven't done an AB exam in years.

But just wanted to wish you good luck!

Mine started 10mins late a couple of years ago lottie..... Sorry

As the day progresses, the potential for late running increases.

However, might be worth getting there earlier than planned, just in case any candidate doesn't turn up and you could be "slipped in".

Make sure to tell the steward that you have an appointment afterwards if they are running late, as sometimes they can be flexible with tea breaks etc.

Best of luck.

Myself and my kids have done 17 abrsm exams between us over the last 8 years, and none have ever run more than 5 mintues late. I've had the opposite problem of being told they are early and would I like to go in early.
I can understand your worry though! Speak to the steward, they are usually very kind.

The first thing is to say don't panic - either way, there's nothing you can do at this point in time, so save your energy

As andante_in_c says, here the steward is your friend! When you arrive ask the steward "are we running to time?" If the steward says yes, then you can smile and say "oh wonderful, I have a hospital appointment afterwards, so I shouldn't be late for it".
If the steward says "no we're X minutes behind time", still don't panic Firstly listen, because if they say '3 minutes late' you likely have nothing to worry about
But, if it seems it might be a problematic running late, this is where you can say "oh dear, I have an appointment at X-place at Y-time, do you think I'll make it?" At this point the steward will doubtless do helpful stewardly things about the flexibility where possible.
I think it is important to say it is a hospital appointment, because then you can get together and roll your eyes at how these things always happen on the same day at the same time, and how hard it is to get hospital appointments anyway, and would you believe how long it takes to see my GP these days, and so on (none of which may be true, but there's nothing like a bit of bonding to get people more inclined to help you out!! Hopefully you won't have a young steward who's never had a days illness!!)

The hospital will likely be running a couple of hours late, so don't stress about it. Good luck!

Best of luck, lottie! Generally, the later in the day, the more likely it is that they'll be running late, but I've never had a delay of more than 15 minutes.

And do read Maizie's post - it's very good

I was thinking something like that though maybe you are lucky and have hospital appointments that run to time or very close.

He was four minutes early


... and he rattled through my exam in less than the allotted time I'm sure.

More details on the 'A session' thread.....

The exams I've taken seem incredibly fast; I think they took about the right time but the certainly felt about two minutes long

They always feel a lot longer when you're waiting outside for pupils to emerge from them...

"Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. THAT'S relativity" - Einstein