O Level exams in Pakistan to begin on May 15

The schedule has been revised

The Cambridge International Examination board has confirmed that O Level and IGCSE exams in Pakistan will start on May 15.

The exams were scheduled for April 26 and have been rescheduled at the request of the education ministry.

“We agreed with the Pakistan government that we will only hold exams in Pakistan from May 15 for Cambridge O Level and IGCSE exams. We are now looking urgently at how best to make this work, ” a statement issued by the board read.

“We are working hard to support efforts by schools and authorities in Pakistan to keep students safe and help them progress with their education,”

The board promised that it will not switch to school-assessed grades this year. We will further update schools regarding this soon, the statement added.

Exams for As and A Level will, however, be held as per schedule “so that students can progress to the next stage of their education”.

Earlier this week, Federal Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood said that the government will be holding a meeting to discuss O and A Level exam schedules with the international board.

Students across the country have been demanding an extension in their exams citing that the syllabi of the majority of their courses are not complete yet.

On March 25, he tweeted that the board has agreed to extend the exams, but only for O Level students.

Matriculation and Intermediate exams for classes nine, 10,11, and 12, on the other hand, will be held as per schedule.

Mahmood said that last year the government passed students without exams but the same won’t happen this year. “We don’t know what the coronavirus situation will be in the future but for now we are determined to hold exams.”