West African Examinations Council - Examinations Conducted

Examinations Conducted

The council conducts four different categories of examinations. They are International Examinations, National Examinations, Examinations conducted in collaboration with other examining bodies, and Examinations conducted on behalf of other examining bodies. The International exams are exams taken in the five countries with the WAEC ordinance. It consists of:

• WASSCE (West African Senior School Certificate Examination):
• SC/GCE O’ levels, and
• HSC/GCE A’ levels.

The National examinations are taken in individual countries. They include:

• the Junior Secondary School Certificate for Nigeria and the Gambia,
• Junior and Senior High School Certificate Examinations for Liberia,
• National Primary School and Basic Education Certificate Examinations for Sierra Leone,
• Basic Education Certificate Examinations for Ghana, and
• Senior School Certificate Examinations for Ghana.

The council also coordinates examinations in collaboration with some trustworthy examination bodies. These include:

• City and Guilds of London Institute
• Royal Society of Arts

The council also conducts examination in West Africa on behalf of international examination bodies. These include:

• University of London GCE
• Scholastic Aptitude Test and Graduate Record Examinations for Educational Testing Service, Princeton, USA, and
• JAMB (Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board) examination in countries outside Nigeria.

The council issues credible and reliable certificates to candidates that participate in the Examinations. And the standard of this certificates matches with that of the United Kingdom. This is because the WAEC Ordinance empowered the council to conduct Examinations and award certificates, provided the certificates don’t have a lower standard compared to their equivalent certificates of examining authorities in the United Kingdom.