examinations
awarding organisation information
Awarding Organisations, also known as awarding bodies or exam boards, are institutions responsible for designing, developing, and administering qualifications and assessments. There are over 160 Awarding Organisations in the UK, the vast majority of which provide vocational qualifications and certifications in specific sectors or industries.
However, there are only five Awarding Organisations in England/Wales offering academic qualifications, namely A/AS Levels, GCSEs, International GCSEs and International A/AS Levels
AQA is an independent education charity that accounts for over half of all GCSEs and A Levels sat every year, making them the largest provider of academic qualifications taught in schools and colleges.
The only international ’exam board’ that is wholly owned by a world leading university, the University of Cambridge. It is also part of Cambridge University Press & Assessment – an organisation providing world-leading academic research, learning and assessment globally, that is also the umbrella organisation for OCR.
Operating in 160 countries in the worldwide, they are primarily known for the delivery IGCSE and International A/AS Level qualifications in the UK.
Eduqas is a core component of WJEC, Wales’ largest Awarding Organisation and registered charity. Eduqas was launched in 2014 to differentiate its Ofqual reformed qualifications, designed specifically for secondary schools, academies and colleges in England, from those qualifications offered by WJEC serving education institutions in Wales.
Edexcel was formed by the merger of the Business & Technology Education Council (BTEC) and London Examinations (ULEAC), which administered GCSEs and A Levels. It was subsequently acquired by Pearson, a multinational educational publishing and assessment service company, in 2005. It offers GCSEs, A Levels, International GCSEs and Functional Skills qualifications.