After a tough year, the Education Minister Chris Hipkins is wishing students well for their upcoming NCEA and New Zealand Scholarship exams.

'The last few months in particular have been a challenge, and I encourage students to do their best with exams – the last milestone before a well-earned summer break,” says Hipkins.

'I congratulate students for their hard work throughout the year, but especially in the second half of Term 3 and start of Term 4, which have been disrupted by COVID-19.

'My advice is stick to a study plan, remember to build in breaks for exercise, rest and relaxation and talk to someone if the pressure is getting too much.”

There are a range of measures in place to make sure students will have a fair opportunity to attain NCEA and continue on to further study or work, despite the impact of COVID-19.

'These include the 2-week delay to exams and most portfolio submission dates, and reintroducing Learning Recognition Credits,” says Hipkins.

'For students in Auckland, Northland and those parts of Waikato which were in Alert Level 3 at the start of Term 4, amended thresholds for endorsements and University Entrance will apply, and they will be eligible to receive Unexpected Event Grades if they are unable to attend their final exams due to disruption.”

Exams end on 14 December, by which time around 140,000 students will have participated in 129 NCEA and New Zealand Scholarship exam sessions.

'Over 50,000 students from around 350 schools are entered to sit some NCEA exams online. This year, 69 online exams will be available across NCEA Levels 1, 2, 3 and one NZ Scholarship subject,” says Hipkins.

'The increase of more than 25,000 students compared to the number who sat a digital exam last year shows that schools and students continue to gain confidence in shifting away from pens and paper.”

NCEA results will be released in the third week of January, with New Zealand Scholarship results following in February.

Information for students, including resources to help manage exam pressure, study tips and details about the health and safety measures in place around exams, can be found at www.nzqa.govt.nz/exams.