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Dear Stephen At Newcastle we have quite recently introduced the option for students with an address outside of the UK to sit exams in their home country. This was in response to the growth in overseas student numbers and a desire to improve services offered to students generally. It is interesting to me that many institutions seem to be moving in the opposite direction and have recently stopped this provision. The circumstances are limited in that applications are accepted for resit exams (during term time all students are expected to be in Newcastle) and a small number of exams are exempt for practical reasons. The vast majority of overseas exams are held during the August resit period. British Council Offices are used to host and we have found them to be very professional. We now have a list of established contacts and have had very few problems with communication or the conduct of exams. In the countries without a BC office, the British Council has recommend an equivalent organisation. Exceptions are the USA and Australia where we tend to use Universities. All hosts are issued with detailed guidance of how to conduct the exam and must sign an agreement identifying a named contact. Exams are held simultaneously with the exam taking place on campus or, where this is impossible, an alternative paper is provided by the department. We administered over 350 exams off campus during this August. We charge an admin. fee for the service and make a modest profit. If you would like any more information, just get in touch. Regards Liane Liane Brierley Academic Administration Manager Student Progress Service Student Services King’s Gate Newcastle University NE1 7RU tel 0191 2226084 Your views about the service we provide are very important to us and will help us make improvements where required. Please use this form to make any comments about the service you have received from us http://forms.ncl.ac.uk/view.php?id=368 -----Original Message----- From: ARC Assessment Practitioners Group [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Steven Nelson Sent: 30 August 2011 17:24 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: overseas examinations All We are reviewing our examination procedures in response to an increase in the number of students wishing to undertake examinations, particularly during the main undergraduate reassessment period, overseas. I'd be extremely grateful if you were able to answer the following questions. I will of course circulate responses as requested: 1. Do you allow students to take examinations overseas and if so do you limit the circumstances under which this would be permitted? 2. Do you insist this is facilitated via the British Council or (I understand they do not offer this service in some countries) do you also allow students to sit exams at a Higher Education institution or other body? What measures do you put in place in order to ensure the security and quality of the exams? I'm particularly interested in the quality assurance aspect so would welcome examples of good practice elsewhere. Many thanks Steve Nelson Deputy Director of Registry Services and Head of Student Administration University of Chester 01244 511513 (Chester) 01925 534307 (Warrington)