SETTING YOUR EXAMS

THE EXAM MERRY-GO-ROUND

EXAM SESSIONS ALL YEAR
The Institutes ACA assessments comprise six
e-assessments and six written papers at Professional
Stage followed by three papers at Advanced Stage
(two Technical Integration papers and the Case Study).
Students can sit the e-assessments at any time while
the written Professional Stage exams are held in March,
June, September and December. The Advanced Stage
exams are held in July and November. So exams form
an endless cycle for ICAEW staff and for examiners as
well as for students.
EXAMINERS WHO THEY ARE AND WHERE THEY
COME FROM
The qualities needed of an examiner are numerous and
varied; they must be technical experts, experienced in
and concerned about education and assessment, and
keen to be involved in the future development of the
profession. They must be dedicated and have a lot of
energy as they also have demanding jobs in practice,
industry, the civil service or education.

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Many examiners begin as markers or advisors to a team

and so gain the necessary experience to take on a more
responsible role later. Some team members volunteer; others
are approached because of their involvement in related
activities; partners in firms are asked to recommend colleagues;
notices are included in Institute publications and adverts
placed in appropriate publications such as Accountancy
and the Times Higher Educational Supplement when new
examiners are required. Potential examiners may be asked
to produce sample questions, and interviews for all key
appointments are held with the Senior Moderator and
Institute staff before approval by the Assessment Committee.
Both the Professional and Advanced Stage exam teams are
led by a Senior Moderator (or chief examiner) who is
responsible to the Assessment Committee for the quality,
content and marking of all the papers at that level. There
are two members to each e-assessment team and between
three and eight members in all other teams. The Advanced
Stage papers, in particular, require examiners with a wide
range of experience and technical knowledge. Some
examiners have examining roles at more than one level or
mark at another level which helps ensure progression
between stages.

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We maintain large secure banks of e-assessment

and multiple-choice questions for written papers
which we review and to which we add new
questions regularly.
EXAM QUESTIONS AND PAPERS
HOW THEY ARE PREPARED
The exam processes have been developed and refined
over the years and are documented in OT Items for
E-assessment and for Written Papers and "Assessment
Procedures". By following these procedures, we ensure
that we produce questions and papers which are:
of high quality
consistent from session to session
appropriate to students' situations
match the Learning Materials and the syllabus
delivered on time to reach all the students in the
assessment centres and exam halls.
E-ASSESSMENT
We maintain large secure banks of e-assessment and
multiple-choice questions for written papers which we
review and to which we add new questions regularly.
We also produce 33 separate ACA exam papers with
our examiners per year. All questions and papers
are the result of a team effort which involves a large
number of people.

have to cover a number of disciplines. Similarly, the

members of the Case Study team work together in
researching a chosen industry sector. They then develop
a realistic scenario with plenty of background
information for the Advance Information, together with
additional information and a particular focus for the
actual exam paper.
Each paper undergoes at least three trial sittings by the
moderator, a technical moderator and most importantly
by one or two newly qualified volunteers under exam
conditions. In all, there are three proof stages before the
papers finally go to secure printers from where they are
sent directly to the exam halls.
This long and complex process ensures that we have
time to produce quality exams and mark schemes and
that there are reserve exams in case of any problems or
major changes.
We hope that the exams will give you the opportunity to
demonstrate to us and to the examiners what you know.
We will tell you about marking in the next issue.

New e-assessment and multiple-choice questions are

written by the exam teams and tested by up to 30
volunteers (students who have passed these modules)
at the computer and on paper. The questions are
developed further before they are ready for publication
and system testing. Further amendments, proof reading
and testing ensure they are reliable and valid.
WRITTEN PAPERS
The exam teams take around 912 months to produce
a written paper, during which it goes through:
an iterative discussion process within the team
testing by newly qualified volunteers and technical
experts
a review by all examiners during full-day Exam Review
Board meetings
proof reading by teams and ICAEW
approval at each stage by the Senior Moderator.
The process is particularly involved for the Technical
Integration papers at Advanced Stage where a large
team of examiners prepares relevant questions which

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