Special Consideration Policy
Special Consideration Policy
Special consideration is given in line with the circumstances and processes described in this policy to candidates who suffer temporary illness, injury or indisposition, or adverse circumstances at or near the time of the assessment. Special consideration will not result in an adjustment to marks and will not change the assessment criteria applied by the examiner for the exam.
An application may be made for special consideration either: When a candidate’s performance in an exam may have been affected by circumstances beyond their control, e.g.
- a personal trauma or upset shortly before or at the time of the exam, such as bereavement or family crisis
- a minor injury occurring immediately before the exam, such as a sprained wrist
- sudden malfunction of the instrument immediately before the exam
- serious disturbance at the time of the exam, such as noise from nearby building works
OR
When the exam is not completed due to circumstances beyond the candidate’s control, e.g.
- illness partway through an exam
- instrument failure partway through an exam
- disruption to the exam by external factors, such as fire alarm or power failure
- a sudden and unexpected malfunction of a computer (online Music Theory only)
These arrangements are intended to allow for those who suffer sudden minor illness or injury at the time of the exam and do not include those who are injured in advance of their exam or are ill at the time, for whom the recommended course of action is withdrawal and application for a refund on submission of medical evidence to ABRSM.
It is not advisable for a candidate who is unwell to attend an exam, nor for those experiencing illness or injury to be assessed under disadvantageous circumstances that cannot be taken into account by the examiner.
Where the illness or injury is very minor and rescheduling the exam within that session of exams is possible (i.e. a Practical exam more than three days away), we advise that the applicant reschedules the exam slot via their account on our self-service booking portal. If the original exam slot is within three days and rescheduling is not possible, we advise applicants to book a new exam slot for a time when the candidate will be ready, then request a refund for the original one. See Rescheduling exams on our website.
An application for special consideration must be made in writing as soon as possible after the assessment and not later than seven days after the exam before results have been issued. Customers in the UK should use Contact Us on our website.
Customers outside of the UK should contact their local representative in the first instance.
The application must be submitted by the applicant or the candidate and include evidence where appropriate, i.e. medical evidence or a statement from an involved party.
Should the applicant or candidate be unavailable in the seven days following the exam, an initial application may be made by another involved party (e.g. the accompanist or the parent) but must be followed by formal confirmation by the applicant or candidate as soon as possible after that.
An application for special consideration may delay the release of the exam result while an investigation is made.
Candidates can be assessed only on their performance during an exam and consequently an application for special consideration will not result in an adjustment to marks and will not change the assessment criteria applied by the examiner for the exam. Where a section of a graded exam is not attempted, marks for that section cannot be awarded, but a candidate may still be successful and be awarded a certificate provided that the marks awarded for the sections attempted meet the pass mark for that qualification.
The possible outcomes of a successful application for special consideration are:
- ABRSM will discuss the exam outcome with the applicant or candidate who may decide to accept the assessment as originally awarded, albeit with an acknowledgement that external circumstances may have affected the candidate’s performance. In this situation, ABRSM will record the outcome of the application for special consideration in writing, confirming that the candidate may have been disadvantaged but has decided to accept the assessment.
- Alternatively, the candidate may decide to invalidate the exam and then retake* the exam at the earliest opportunity, free of charge and within the same exam session if appropriate (Practical exams only). This may mean travelling to an alternative venue.
*If this is not possible, a refund may be offered to the applicant.
- Where an online exam has not been completed due to a computer malfunction, providing an option where ABRSM can re-book the exam at no cost to the customer, allowing a candidate to retake the exam at their nearest convenience.
