What happens if students cannot complete the Practical Endorsement?

What happens if students cannot complete the Practical Endorsement?

It is a regulatory requirement that centres entering candidates for Science A Level qualifications make reasonable provision for their candidates to access the Practical Endorsement. ‘Reasonable provision’ could be carrying out practical work at your centre or having an established agreement with another centre, where students can carry out the practical work necessary to obtain the Practical Endorsement.

Centres which do not make reasonable provision for their students to access the Practical Endorsement cannot enter them for the qualification. If they do so, they will be in maladministration. This will result in penalties for the centre, with consequences including being barred from making any AS or A Level entries until the centre is compliant with the regulatory requirements.

Special consideration can be requested on an individual candidate basis for exemption from the practical work.

What happens if a student transfers halfway through the course? 

If a student moves centres halfway through a course then they can take their current lab work with them as the practical endorsement is a cross-board requirement. The former centre should make arrangements to transfer their record of judgements to the new centre. Their new centre may require the student to undertake some further competences in their practical activities to ensure that the student has routinely and consistently been observed displaying such skills and techniques.

If a student wants to retake their A Level exams will they have to redo all the Practical Endorsement activities? 

No, the Practical Endorsement will not contribute to the A Level grade and will be reported as Pass or Not Classified. This will remain the same whatever your final A Level grade. A pass in the Practical Endorsement may be carried forward and used alongside the grade achieved in re-sitting the exams, even if this is with a different exam board (using the appropriate entry code).

How will a Not Classified in the Practical Endorsement affect students' university applications? 

The majority of universities will ask for a Pass at offer stage for STEM subjects and this will be made clear in their entry criteria for a specific course. Admissions requirements are under the control of universities and vary by course and institution. The universities will take on students at their own discretion and this should not be a deterrent to students when applying.

Can a student choose not to do the Practical Endorsement? 

The Practical Endorsement is a required component of the qualification and all students will be entered for it, although the grade for the Practical Endorsement is reported separately from the written exam grade on the student’s A Level certificate. A student cannot choose not to enter the Practical Endorsement nor can they waive their requirement to complete this component. Special consideration can be requested on an individual candidate basis for exemption from the practical work.  

If my school does not have the facilities to offer the Practical Endorsement, can we still enter private candidates for the qualification? 

Candidates cannot waive their right to access the Practical Endorsement, and subsequently there are no circumstances under which a centre can avoid making reasonable provision for candidates to access the Practical Endorsement.