Reading Time

Have the rules around reading time changed? One of the ActEd tutors mentioned that for the written papers, we now get the full 3h 15m to write in the answer booklets, instead of the previous 3h (with an additional 15 mins to read/plan answers on scrap paper). I haven't read this anywhere, so could someone please confirm the rules?

Thanks,

Steve

 

Haha, on the exam permit it does say that we get 3h 15min to complete our papers, no additional "reading time"... on the front page. Strangely, on the back it still uses the reading time definition as per the 2018 papers.

 

So the examination time has essentially increased. When did this happen? The IFOA are meant to be reducing qualification time, not increasing it via longer examinations. Well this is quite a revelation....please provide the link to the announcement.

 

Any correlation between abolishing the requirement to ‘read’ for 15 minutes and the length of qualifying must surely be statistically insignificant...

 

You’re forgetting the exams were three hours long before. So they’ve actually gone up from 3 hours to 3.15 via this sneaky short lived implementation of reading time. Also the IFoA have specifically said there would be no increase in number examinations (lie) examination hours (now a double lie), study hours (lie) and time to qualification (lie). The main difficulty in the ifoa exam exams is the time to qualification. Increasing the examination hours doesn’t help. For a “professional” qualifications body to lie like this and not even bother to properly inform people a month before the exams is inexcusable. There was no mention of this in the curriculum 2019 documentation which was doctored several times over. The first curriculum 2019 exam hasnt even taken place yet and the goal posts have been moved again. IFoA/Acted troll onslaught, modifications of my posts please commence...

 

Infinity,

I think you do yourself a disservice by diluting some valid concerns you’ve raised elsewhere on this forum with more tenuous points such as this.

For the avoidance of doubt, I’m not criticising / having a go at you. Your frustrated, I get it and I genuinely empathise with you.

But the length of time candidates are sat doing the exam hasn’t changed. Students can still spend the first 15 minutes reading the questions. All that has changed is that they are no longer compelled to do so.

 

Mugono, my previous complaint(s) relate to examination hours increasing due to these double exams being introduced which obviously meant extra exam hours.

The OP has now stated that the examination time is no longer 3 hours but 3 hours 15. I have never been informed about this and it is about a month to exams. This is an increase in the hours I am examined for and it is another contradiction of the IFOA statement that examination hours will not increase.

It is not a dilution of my previous points. It is another example of lies which have been published by the IFOA. The lack of communication should be something which would fall under the IFOA’s ridiculously limited complaint policy and also something which the defunct oversight body will have to consider.

All I have asked for is the link to where this has been stated. I would appreciate if someone can point me to this before the IFoA put something up on their website and claim it was there all along. I would like to complain to the FRC and also start another court case against the IFOA. You are doing other students a disservice by making some suggestion that my question is illegitimate.

You have seen that there are a number of other complainants on here. Many get removed, like the guy who complained that he didn’t enough time to practice his religious faith due to the onerous exam requirements.

 

The length of all exams is stated in the 2019 guide:
https://www.actuaries.org.uk/studying/curriculum-2019

But like mugono says, all that is happened is that 15 mins reading time is now part of the main exam. Expect most welcome this, not complain about it. And anyway, it's only 15 minutes.

However, I too am surprised that this hasn't been emphasised in IFoA communications. Some might find out about it at the start of their exam. Glad I know now.

​

 

Annuitydue, thanks although the link doesn’t work. Could you point me in the right direction?

Yes you’re taken by surprise and I will also argue examined for a longer period of time. It’s not just this change, it’s others too, like introducing extra exams, cancelling exams, changing the dates at the last minute etc etc. They are completely disorganised.

You’re still missing the point the exams are now 3.15 long. They used to be 3 hours. It’s an increase. Why don’t they reduce the content of the exams? The exams on the continent are 15 minute long in total

Have you passed your exams annuitydue? You always seem to stick up for the IFOA and Acted. Are you actually impacted by the changes?

 

I found it here since last December. Although you actually need to read through the FAQs yourself to see that the exams are to be the same length except you can now write in the 15 mins if so desired. And of course I am impacted by the changes with CM2 and CS2, even though I get to sit for CT6 in NTU this May as I only get one chance at that paper. Not that it's entirely a bad thing, just that learning R and other software could have been a PPD requirement I suppose instead of exam (as it's needed in the workplace).

 

Your link doesn’t work either. Can you send the full link? Thanks

 

And how many times should I read the 2019 guide? Why do the incompetent people at the IFOA need to incessantly change things on an almost daily basis and not even notify us?

Does disguising the change in a similar looking document constitute notification?

 

Infinity is not doing himself a disservice whatsoever. He has correctly observed an increase in exam time. Your last two sentences are misleading.

 

so it starts.... my posts get deleted, the IFOA website is mysteriously offline... conspiracy theory right? who is moderating the posts on a sunday evening at 2138 in the UK? Am I being watched?

Why was the whole post deleted and not just edited for the supposedly offensive part?

Moderator edit: we deleted your post because it suggested that ActEd was somehow responsible for the change with reading time.
The IFoA website seems to be working for us.
We think this thread has run its course - given the original question has been answered.