Ongoing Standardisation: Ensuring Consistency Across the Globe

Intensive Annual Standardisation and Training at HQ: All examiners, from first-time recruits to seasoned professionals, gathered at RSL HQ for intensive annual standardisation and training events. This process ensures that examiners consistently apply the same standards, regardless of instrument or grade.

Blind Marking Exercises: Examiners participated in blind marking sessions, reviewing candidate performances without prior scores to align their assessments with agreed standards. Any discrepancies were addressed through collaborative discussions, refining accuracy before grading began.

On-Demand Training Resources: To maintain consistency throughout the year, examiners had access to a library of training materials, allowing them to refresh their knowledge of RSL’s grading criteria before every exam session.

Supportive Leadership: Guided by Chief and Senior Examiners

Regular Training Conferences: Chief Examiners in Music and Chief and Senior Examiners in Performing Arts held discipline-specific training and standardisation sessions throughout the year for the respective panels. These included full-day conferences and evening twilight sessions to provide ongoing support and guidance.

Accessible Support: During marking sessions, examiners had direct access to The Chief and Senior Examiners for PAA and Chief Examiners in Music for advice and clarification, ensuring confidence and precision in every grade awarded.

Maintaining Excellence: Monitoring and Reviewing Candidate Performance

Data-Driven Insights: At RSL HQ, our team carefully monitored candidate performance across all disciplines and grades. This global analysis ensured that high standards were consistently maintained, regardless of location.

Global Consistency: By reviewing examiner activity worldwide, we remained confident that every candidate, from Australia to Vietnam, received accurate and fair results that reflect their hard work.

Maintaining Standards: In December the team at RSL HQ dedicated a day-long session to interrogate quantitative statistical information alongside expert judgement to ensure that all grades are accurate. These Maintenance of Standards events are held throughout the year to ensure that all grades are awarded fairly.

Looking Ahead…

As we celebrate another successful year, we’re immensely proud of the achievements of our candidates and the dedication of our examining team. At RSL Awards, our commitment to excellence drives everything we do, and we look forward to continuing to support aspiring performers around the world in 2025.

Thank you to all the candidates, teachers, and examiners who made 2024 a year to remember. Here’s to even greater success in the year ahead!

Become an RSL Examiner!

At RSL, we have over 130 examiners across our two examiner panels, Graded Music and Performance Arts.

Our examiners are the face of our business, providing a friendly and professional exam experience to over 100,000  candidates in more than 60 countries worldwide. Being an examiner is a unique role that can be added to an existing portfolio career, or complement full-time work.

The role is flexible enough to fit with different lifestyles and alongside a variety of other commitments.