Receiving question paper despatches

4.3 Receiving question paper despatches

We send you question papers and exam materials before the exam period begins. We send despatches to Cambridge Associates. Associate Centres receive their question papers and exam materials through their Cambridge Associate according to local arrangements.

This section explains the regulations you must follow when you receive confidential materials.

Security of question papers

Cambridge International is responsible Centre is responsible for for security of question papers

security of question papers

You make your

Question papers entries.

We confirm your

Question papers

entries.

collated and packed

despatched by

for despatch.

courier.

We send email with tracking inumber to confirm despatch. immediately check you have

With another member of staff, We send email with tracking

Question papers arrive at

number to confirm despatch. all the boxes and question paper packets listed on the

your Centre.

despatch note. Follow the instructions in section 4.3

At the end of the exam, packets under secure

Store question paper

Immediately before the

collect all question papers. conditions as described in

exam, transfer the

Store securely for 24 hours section 4.4 of this

question paper packets

after the end of the exam or handbook.

securely to the exam

room. Open packets in

the Key Time, whichever is

front of candidates.

later. Follow the instructions for despatching scripts in section 5.4 of this handbook.

(a) The Head of Centre, or Cambridge Associate, is (c) Once the despatch has been received and the initial responsible for making sure an authorised member

checks completed, the Head of Centre, or the exams of staff is available to receive question paper

officer, should immediately be contacted. If they deliveries; this may include security staff outside

are not available, for example if your despatch has of your centre’s opening times. The Head of Centre

arrived when your centre is closed, the despatch must make sure the member of staff receiving the

must remain sealed and be kept under secure despatch (for example, a security guard) is suitably

conditions.

trained to check the despatch; they must not open (d) The Head of Centre, or exams officer, in the presence it. You must have a procedure in place to make sure

of another member of staff, must then carefully the despatch is kept securely as soon as it arrives

check the contents of the despatch. The second at your centre.

member of staff needs to understand our question procedure.

You must keep a record of this

paper regulations but does not need to be a senior (b) The following checks must be made in a secure area

member of staff. It is up to the Head of Centre or when a despatch arrives:

exams officer to choose an appropriate member of staff for this task. At this stage you must check to

(i) that the correct centre number and address are make sure you have received question paper packets shown on the outer packaging for all components for which you have made entries.

(ii) that the correct number of boxes have arrived You are not checking the number of question papers. (iii) that the outer packaging is intact and there is no

The question paper packets must remain sealed

sign of damage, tampering or opening.

until the start of the exam.

76 4 Before the exams Cambridge Handbook 2018 (International)

(e) You must keep a record of this check either by:

Administrative forms

(i) ticking next to the listed materials on the despatch note, or

Forms available from

(ii) creating a list of all materials received in each

www.cambridgeinternational.org/forms

delivery. • Missing Question Paper Packet: Before the (f) Records must be dated and signed by the Head of

Exams – Form 2

Centre or exams officer, and by the member of staff • Damaged or Opened Question Paper Packet: who witnessed the delivery being checked.

Before the Exams – Form 3

(g) You must keep the records until we have issued certificates, and you must make the records available if we ask to see them.

(h) You must tell us immediately if there are any problems, for example if:

• there seems to have been an excessive delay in the delivery of the question papers • the confidential despatch does not show the correct centre number and address. If this is the case, do not open the outer packaging. • the material has been damaged in transit

• the material is for another centre or does not meet your requirements • there are discrepancies between the material received and the despatch note • the seal of any question paper packet is not intact, or if there is any indication of tampering

• a question paper packet has been opened before the exam.

If any of the question paper packets listed on the despatch note are missing, complete and return Before the Exams – Form 2.

If the despatch has been damaged, opened in transit or shows any signs of being tampered with, photograph the despatch as evidence and then complete and return Before the Exams – Form 3. Follow the instructions on the form and send the photographs as evidence with the form.

(i) Cambridge Associates must check the deliveries and report any issues on behalf of their Associate Centres.

(j) You must keep the confidential materials secure during these checks, until they are transferred to secure storage. See section 4.4 for more information.

Cambridge Handbook 2018 (International) 4 Before the exams 77