General

Copies of previous examination papers are available from the Registrar of the Worshipful Company of Farriers upon the payment of a small fee. Details are available in Annex H, or from the Company web site at www.wcf.org.uk/exams/fees, or from the WCF Registrar. The time allowed for the written test is 2 hours and 30 minutes and the paper will consist of five questions, all of which should be answered. The scope of the questions will be:

• Any aspect of the principles of farriery as applied to different types of equine.
• The anatomy of all the structures of the fore and hind limbs, with special attention to the lower limb from the carpus and tarsus to the hoof, including its contents.
• The functions of the joint-capsule, synovia, tendons, ligaments and cartilage.
• Aspects relating to equine diseases and conditions that affect the lower limb and foot.
• Some aspects of surgical, remedial and corrective shoeing recognised in the syllabus as a standard textbook.

In addition to written text, diagrams may be required as being beneficial to the answers. The allocation of marks will be indicated on the question paper.

Invigilators and Invigilation

The written test is invigilated by the invigilators appointed at the approved examination centre. Invigilators are responsible for the conduct and integrity of the examinations, the accurate observance of the time allotted for the examination, and the absolute compliance with all regulations relating to the conduct of the examinations. Invigilators must give their whole attention to their duties and must not undertake any unrelated tasks during the course of the examination.

There will be sufficient invigilators for the effective management of the examination, and one will be designated as the Senior Invigilator. None of the invigilators shall have been involved with the tutoring of the candidates. The invigilators will from time to time walk between candidates to ensure that the examination regulations are being observed.

Where a candidate wishes to leave the examination room temporarily, he/she should raise his/her hand to attract the attention of an invigilator. He/she will then be accompanied to the toilet facilities by an invigilator of the appropriate gender.

If there are Reasonable Adjustments in place with a reader and/or scribe involved, the invigilation of the candidate must be in another room. This is usually close to the examination room.

Timetable for the Examination:

The agreed timetable must be followed.

Safe Custody of question papers and examination stationery for the written examination

The question papers and examination stationery are forwarded to the Examinations Officer at the examination centre and these are to be locked in a secure place, ideally in a safe. The Company’s Registrar must be informed immediately if the security of the question papers is put at risk by theft, loss, damage, fire, unauthorised disclosure or any other circumstance.

Examination stationery and any other related material must also be stored securely at all times, and only authorised persons should have access to them. The packet containing the written question papers and any other examination materials must not be opened until the time appointed for the examination, and then only in the examination room and in the presence of the candidates.

EXAMINATION PRELIMINARIES

Candidates should be in the examination room at least 15 minutes before the start of the written examination in order to complete the necessary examination documentation, and for the Senior Invigilator to read the invigilation rules. Only persons authorised by the Senior Invigilator are allowed in the examination room.

The Senior Invigilator should ensure that only the official examination stationery, including supplementary plain paper and any proforma diagrams, are issued to candidates.

An examination is deemed to be in progress from the time the candidates enter the room until candidates are authorised to leave the examination room by the Senior Invigilator. The Senior Invigilator will be responsible for the start and finish times of the examination. He/she will formally state the time at which the examination starts and write both the starting time and finishing time on a board that is visible to all candidates in the examination room. Copies should be produced locally using the format at Appendix 8.

The Senior Invigilator should introduce him/herself and explain that there are a number of preliminaries to be dealt with before the question papers are handed out.

Identification of Candidates

The Senior Invigilator must be satisfied as to the identity of all candidates attending each examination session and all candidates must be able to produce a form of identification, if requested to do so. It is usual for the college tutor who has taught the candidates to confirm to the Senior Invigilator the identity of the candidates.

Private candidates, who are not known to the staff at the examination centre, are required to present documentary evidence that they are the same person who made the application to take the examination. Such candidates should bring with them photographic identification in the form of a passport, or driving licence with photograph.

Before the written examination commences

The Senior Invigilator must ensure that candidates are seated in accordance with the prescribed seating arrangements. The Senior Invigilator should ensure that candidates bring to the examination room only those articles that are expressly permitted in the Examinations Regulations i.e. Fountain pen, ballpoint pen, pencils, ink, crayons, or coloured felt tip pens, an eraser and a ruler. Candidates will be notified in advance if additional aids are to be permitted. Calculators are not permitted in the examination room.

Candidates may not bring in to the examination room: bags, pencil cases, manuscript, books, paper, blotting paper, computerised watches, or other electronic accessories including mobile telephone. If unauthorised material has been brought into the examination room, the Senior Invigilator should ensure that such articles are placed out of reach of the candidate before the start of the examination.

The Senior Invigilator should read to the candidates the “Examination Rules for Candidates” (Appendix 9); then he / she will open the sealed package of envelopes in the presence of the candidates, and distribute these to the candidates. Each candidate is supplied with an unsealed envelope containing the following:

• Place card with candidate number
• Attendance sheet
• Answer Book with candidate number
• 3 spare lined sheets with candidate number
• 4 spare blank sheets with candidate number
• Examination Question Paper (pink) with candidate number
• Diagrams A to F (not for all examinations)

Candidates must not remove the contents from the envelope until instructed to do so. Each Candidate must sign their Attendance Sheet and this is then collected by the Senior Invigilator. When collected, the Attendance Sheets are placed in a sealed envelope, and forwarded to the Registrar. Each candidate should display the place card with the candidate number in a conspicuous place on his / her desk.

Answer Books

• The candidate number and the date are the only identifying details on the front page of the answer book.
• The name of the candidate must NOT appear on the answer book, or on any other sheets submitted to the examiners.
• Both sides of the paper provided in the answer book should be used for written answers.
• Question numbers should be written in the left hand margin of the pages in the answer book.
• The right hand margin is not to be used by the candidate.
• Written answers can be in ink or ballpoint pen, and diagrams may be drawn in pencil, coloured crayon or coloured felt tip pen.

Additional answer books will be available in the examination room together with loose sheets of plain paper. The front page of supplementary answer books should be completed in the same manner as the first, and be attached to the first answer book. If additional answer books or sheets are used, and if diagrams are used, candidates must write their candidate number on each sheet.

Issue of the Question Paper

Candidates should be informed that they may remove the question paper and documents from the envelope. They should be advised to read the ‘Instructions to Candidates’ at the top of the paper before they read the questions. Candidates then have 3 minutes to study the questions before the examination starts. After 3 minutes, the Senior Invigilator will tell the candidates that they may start writing and that they have two hours and 30 minutes in which to complete the paper.

LATE ARRIVAL OF CANDIDATES

Where a candidate arrives after the appointed time for the start of an examination, he/she will be allowed to enter the examination room and to sit the examination but will be warned that the Examination Board reserves the right not to accept the script. In determining whether to accept any of the work completed by a candidate who arrives late, the Registrar and/or the Senior Examiner will pay particular attention to the extent to which it can regard the security of the examination as having been preserved.

A candidate who arrives after the scheduled starting time of the examination may be allowed the full time for the examination, however this will depending upon the individual circumstances as described below. In cases where additional time is allowed, the candidate’s script must be marked to indicate the point reached at the time when the examination was due to finish. In cases where a candidate’s lateness has been caused by exceptional circumstances beyond his/her control, such as sudden illness, transport difficulties, and provided that the Registrar and/or Senior Invigilator is satisfied that there has been no breach of examination security, the work will be accepted. This will include all work completed in the examinations, including that completed in the additional time allowed to compensate for the late arrival.

In all other cases, additional time will NOT be allowed in order to compensate for late arrival. Details of the action to be taken if candidates are late for the practical or for the oral parts of the examination are given under the appropriate sections.

DURING THE WRITTEN EXAMINATION

Invigilators must supervise the candidates during the whole of the time that the examination is in progress in accordance with the Board’s Invigilation Instructions as detailed previously in Section 16 (‘Invigilators and Invigilation’). They must give complete attention to their duties.

After one hour, and at 30 minutes, 15 minutes, and 5 minutes before the end of the examination the Senior Invigilator will inform candidates of the time remaining. No candidate is allowed to leave the examination room during either the first 30 minutes or the last 30 minutes of an examination.

A candidate who has completed the examination paper before the finish time and wishes to leave the examination room should indicate this to the invigilator by raising his/her hand. All the papers should be assembled in order and placed in the envelope provided. The candidate should then leave the room quietly. He/ she will not be re-admitted to the examination room.

It should be remembered however that no candidate is allowed to leave the examination room during either the first 30 minutes or the last 30 minutes of an examination. Where a candidate leaves the examination room without permission or unescorted, he/she will not be allowed to return. In such cases, the invigilator will seal all the papers on the candidate’s desk in the envelope provided and endorse the envelope with the time that the candidate left the examination room.

AT THE END OF THE WRITTEN EXAMINATION

When the examination is declared to be completed, the Senior Invigilator should instruct candidates to stop writing, and to place their writing instruments on the desk. Candidates must remain seated and in silence until the candidates’ envelopes are collected.

The Senior Invigilator will instruct the candidates to ensure that their Candidate Number is on all paper. The name of the candidate must not appear. Candidates are then to pin together, with the brass paper-fastener, their Examination Question Paper, Answer Book, with all paper (whether written on or not) placed inside the back cover, and finally the Place Card, which must be on top. All these items are to be placed in the envelope and the envelope sealed. Each candidate is responsible for ensuring that all the papers on their desk, as well as their place card, are put into the envelope provided, which the candidate must then seal. The invigilators will collect all the envelopes in numerical order and check that candidates have correctly stated their candidate numbers.

Candidates must not remove from the examination room any papers, including the printed question paper. Question papers are placed in the candidate envelope together with the completed scripts and other papers. Only when all the envelopes have been collected will the Senior Invigilator, inform the candidates that they may leave the examination room.

Candidates who do not wish to submit an answer book must sign a declaration to that effect and write “No answers submitted” on the front of the answer book. Such scripts will be collected in the normal manner.

Where a candidate who arrived late is permitted the full working time to complete the exam, he/she should be allowed to continue after the normal finishing time and be told to stop writing after the additional time allowed has expired.

Envelopes containing the completed scripts should be retained by the College in a safe until they are handed to the Registrar. Scripts are confidential to the candidate, the invigilators, and the examiners. They may not be read, photocopied, or otherwise reproduced by any unauthorised person. The Registrar and/or Senior Invigilator must take every care to safeguard the candidate envelopes prior to the marking of the scripts.

The answer books, together with all supplementary papers, will be destroyed after 12 months from the date of the completion of the examination. However, a number of answer books will be retained for a longer period to provide a sample of candidates’ work for comparative and statistical assessment.

Unused/Spare Stationery

All unused/spare stationery should be collected in the examination room and returned to the Registrar. It should be stored under secure conditions until required for a subsequent exam.

IRREGULAR CONDUCT

If a candidate is suspected of irregular behaviour, the invigilator concerned will firstly speak to the Senior Invigilator, outside the examination room if necessary. In any circumstances, there must always be at least one invigilator in the examination room. If the Senior Invigilator is satisfied that irregular behaviour may have taken place, the invigilator concerned will return and request the candidate to join the Senior Invigilator outside the examination room to explain his/her conduct to both of them.

If a candidate is discovered and/or admits to irregular behaviour, the Senior Invigilator will caution the candidate that the alleged violation will be reported in writing to the Examinations Board and that all his/her examination work may subsequently be disallowed. Where a candidate’s explanation of the circumstances, which lead to his/her removal from the examination room, is accepted as satisfactory, the Senior Invigilator has sole discretion to allow such additional time as he considers fair and reasonable to compensate for the temporary removal from the examination room and disturbance to the candidate.

It is the responsibility of the Registrar to ensure that all cases of irregularity or misconduct in connection with the examination are reported to the Examinations Board. The Senior Invigilator is empowered to expel candidates from the examination room, but such action should only be taken when it is considered that it is essential, or when the continued presence of the candidate would cause disruption to other candidates. Any infringement of these Regulations may lead to the disqualification of the candidate. See also Section 31 - Malpractice Procedure.

ACTION TO BE TAKEN IN THE EVENT OF AN EMERGENCY

The Senior Invigilators must use their discretion and take appropriate action in the event of an emergency, such as a fire alarm or bomb alert. The following recommendations should be taken as guidelines, but the safety of the candidates and invigilators and / or examiners must always be the first priority.

1. Evacuate the examination room in accordance with the instructions given by the appropriate authority.
2. Ensure that all question papers and answer books are left in the examination room (subject to sub-paragraph g. below).
3. Ensure that the candidates are supervised as closely as possible whilst they are out of the examination room to ensure there is no collusion.
4. When all candidates have returned to the examination room and before the examination is resumed, the invigilator should indicate on the candidates’ work the point at which the interruption occurred.
5. Note the time and duration of the interruption.
6. At the discretion of the Senior Invigilator, candidates can be allowed such additional working time as is considered reasonable to compensate for the disruption caused by the emergency.
7. In the event of there being only a small number of candidates, the Senior Invigilator should consider the possibility of moving the candidates, with the question papers and answer books, to other accommodation in the same location in order to complete the exam.
8. Make a full report to the Registrar on the circumstances of the incident and of the action taken.