Edexcel exams are taken across the world. This means that people in one country might have finished an exam that hasn't even started somewhere else. For that reason, we'll close any threads created about Edexcel exams that might give people an unfair advantage.

To make things easier for everyone, the rule is very simple: no discussion of the exams is allowed during the specified times – not even "I found it hard/easy". The line between
  • "I found it hard" and
  • "I found question 2 hard" and
  • "I found question 2 about <insert subject> hard"

is very blurred. What starts as a straightforward discussion can easily turn into (unwitting) disclosures of exam content. Here are the guidelines:
  • For Edexcel: for morning exams, please wait until midnight (UK time) before starting any discussions. For afternoon exams, wait until 4:30 am (UK time). There are different guidelines for Edexcel ICT exams as these can be sat over several weeks (see below for more on this).
  • For STEP and IB: allow 24 hours to pass from the end of each exam before any discussion.
  • Oral exams: No discussion until the end of the exams season.
  • Exams from the examination boards AQA, OCR, CCEA, WJEC and CIE (other than orals and practicals) are fine to talk about straight after the exams. In any situations where exams from these boards are taken internationally, the exam board is satisfied that appropriate controls are already in place.
  • Applied ICT exams: No discussion is permitted throughout the window during which each exam takes place.

The Student Room is here to support all students throughout exam season and it's really important that we all follow the rules above. For this reason, members who break these rules will receive a 10 point warning and may even be banned from the site.

Please note: these rules apply to any form of discussion, anywhere on the site, including private messages (PMs).

More information:
Once the time restriction has passed, discussion of IB exams should take place in the IB forum.

Discussion of Scottish exams (for which there is no time restriction) should take place in the Scottish qualifications forum.

All other exam discussion should take place in the subject's exam sub-forum in Study Help. If there is no sub-forum for your subject then use the top-level discipline forum (eg Arts and Humanities) instead.

Please search the forum to first to see if a thread already exists before creating a new one. It's helpful for everyone if you make your thread title as descriptive as possible, stating the level (eg GCSE), subject, module, specification (where appropriate), exam board and date of the exam.

Discussion of ICT exams (Edexcel)
Some Edexcel ICT exams are sat over a period of days or weeks. Exam discussion for this subject is not permitted at all until the window has closed. While one candidate may have finished, another may not have started. The AS Applied ICT (6953) exam is sat over a five-day period. The A2 Applied ICT exams (6957 and 6959) are sat over a three-week period. Please do not discuss these exams for the duration of the exam season.

Discussion of practical exams
Practical exams in science subjects are taken by different groups of students across an extended period of time. This means that some people will have finished an exam that hasn't even been started by others. For that reason, and to avoid giving anyone an unfair advantage, we'll close any threads requesting specific details of practical exams and remove any posts disclosing specifics.

We realise you're probably going to want to talk about your exams once you've finished them, so it's OK to chat about the practicals on a general level. For example, asking others about the difficulty of the exams as a whole is fine. It's also OK to ask for general advice before you take your exam (such as how to draw graphs, experimental techniques or the meaning of specific words within questions).

However, either requesting or disclosing the specific questions (or suggested answers) to an exam is not allowed. Please don't break this rule as your post is likely to be removed and your account issued with a warning. This rule applies to private messages (PMs) as well as to posts in threads.

All discussion of practical exams should take place in the subject's exam sub-forum, just as for written papers. Please search the forum first, to see if a thread already exists, before creating a new one. Again, it's helpful for everyone if you can make your thread title as descriptive as possible, stating the level (eg GCSE), subject, specification (where appropriate) and exam board.

Good luck to everyone sitting exams! :D