Session dates
Session dates
Find the next RAD exam session near you. Make sure you get your entries in on time to share in students’ success.
Approved Examination Centre Sessions | RAD Approved Venue Sessions | Special Exams
Approved Examination Centre (AEC) Sessions
UK
London and Middlesex
| SESSION | Session date | Entry submission deadline | Pre-booking closing date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2026 | 21 November – 14 December 2026 | 22 October 2026 | 17 September 2026 |
| Spring 2027 | 5 March – 26 March 2027 | 4 February 2027 | 5 January 2027 |
| Summer 2027 | 11 June – 12 July 2027 | 9 May 2027 | 1 April 2027 |
| Winter 2027 | 19 November – 12 December 2027 | 21 October 2027 | 23 September 2027 |
Midlands and East England
| SESSION | Session date | Entry submission deadline | Pre-booking closing date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2026 | 21 November – 14 December 2026 | 22 October 2026 | 17 September 2026 |
| Spring 2027 | 6 March – 21 March 2027 | 3 February 2027 | 6 January 2027 |
| Summer 2027 | 19 June – 11 July 2027 | 19 May 2027 | 21 April 2027 |
| Winter 2027 | 20 November – 5 December 2027 | 20 October 2027 | 22 September 2027 |
Northern England
| SESSION | Session date | Entry submission deadline | Pre-booking closing date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2026 | 21 November – 6 December 2026 | 7 October 2026 | 16 September 2026 |
| Spring 2027 | 16 March – 21 March 2027 | 3 February 2027 | 6 January 2027 |
| Summer 2027 | 19 June – 11 July 2027 | 19 May 2027 | 21 April 2027 |
| Winter 2027 | 20 November – 5 December 2027 | 20 October 2027 | 22 September 2027 |
Northern Ireland
| SESSION | Session date | Entry submission deadline | Pre-booking closing date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2026 | 14 November – 6 December 2026 | 16 October 2026 | 25 September 2026 at 5pm (provisional dates by 2 October) |
| Spring 2027 | 20 February – 12 March 2027 | 25 January 2027 | 4 January 2027 at 5pm (provisional dates by 12 January) |
| Summer 2027 | 7 May – 3 June 2027 | 8 April 2027 | 18 March 2027 at 5pm (provisional dates by 25 March) |
| Winter 2027 | 12 November – 4 December 2027 | 14 October 2027 | 22 September 2027 at 5pm (provisional dates by 1 October) |
Scotland
| SESSION | Session date | Entry submission deadline | Pre-booking closing date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2026 | 1 November – 23 November 2026 | 30 September 2026 | 9 September 2026 |
| Spring 2027 | 4 – 25 March 2027 | 2 February 2027 | 152 January 2027 |
| Summer 2027 | 4 – 27 June 2027 | 29 April 2027 | 8 April 2027 |
| Winter 2027 | 6 – 30 November 2027 | 7 October 2027 | 14 September 2027 |
South East England
| SESSION | Session date | Entry submission deadline | Pre-booking closing date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2026 | 14 November – 13 December 2026 | 16 October 2026 | 18 September 2026, Midday (provisional dates by 25 September) |
| Spring 2027 | 6 March – 21 March 2027 | 5 February 2027 | 15 January 2027, Midday (provisional dates by 22 January) |
| Summer 2027 | 19 June – 11 July 2027 | 21 May 2027 | 23 April 2027, Midday (provisional dates by 30 April) |
| Winter 2027 | 20 November – 12 December 2027 | 15 October 2027 | 24 September 2027, Midday (provisional dates by 1 October) |
South West England, Wales, Channel Islands
| SESSION | Session date | Entry submission deadline | Pre-booking closing date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2026 | 21 November – 6 December 2026 | 14 October 2026 | 21 September 2026, Midday (provisional dates by 2 October) |
| Spring 2027 | 6 March – 21 March 2027 | 10 February 2027 | 18 January 2027, Midday (provisional dates by 27 January) |
| Summer 2027 | 19 June – 11 July 2027 | 19 May 2027 | 19 April 2027, Midday (provisional dates by 30 April) |
| Winter 2027 | 20 November – 5 December 2027 | 20 October 2027 | 210 September 2027, Midday (provisional dates by 1 October) |
Ireland
Republic of Ireland
| SESSION | Session date | Entry submission deadline | Pre-booking closing date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2026 | 14 November – 6 December 2026 | 16 October 2026 | 25 September 2026 at 5pm (provisional dates by 2 October) |
| Spring 2027 | 20 February – 12 March 2027 | 25 January 2027 | 5 January 2027 at 5pm (provisional dates by 12 January) |
| Summer 2027 | 5 May – 1 June 2027 | 5 April 2027 | 15 March 2027 at 5pm (provisional dates by 23 March) |
| Winter 2027 | 12 November – 4 December 2027 | 16 October 2027 | 23 September 2027 at 5pm (provisional dates by 1 October) |
RAD APPROVED VENUE (RAV) SESSIONS
RAV UK
London Headquarters
| SESSION | Session date | Entry submission deadline | Session name in RAD online exam entries |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2026 | 25 October – 18 December 2026 | 14 September 2026 | UNITED KINGDOM London and Middlesex 2026 Winter HQ RAV |
| Spring 2027 | 22 February – 25 March 2027 | 11 January 2027 | UNITED KINGDOM London and Middlesex 2027 Spring HQ RAV |
| Summer 1 2027 | 7 June – 15 July 2027 | 26 April 2027 | UNITED KINGDOM London and Middlesex 2027 Summer 1 HQ RAV |
| Summer Solo Seal 2027 | 16 July 2027 | 10 May 2027 | UNITED KINGDOM London and Middlesex 2027 HQ Summer SOLO SEAL |
| Summer 2 2027 | 22 – 27 August 2027 | 5 July 2027 | UNITED KINGDOM London and Middlesex 2027 Summer 2 HQ RAV |
| Winter 2027 | 1 November – 17 December 2027 | 20 September 2027 | UNITED KINGDOM London and Middlesex 2027 Winter HQ RAV |
Stockport
| SESSION | Session date | Entry submission deadline | Session name in RAD Online Exam entries |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2026 | 29 November – 4 December 2026 | 19 October 2026 | UNITED KINGDOM Northern England 2026 Winter Stockport RAV |
| Spring 2027 | 14 – 19 March 2027 | 1 February 2027 | UNITED KINGDOM Northern England 2027 Spring Stockport RAV |
| Summer 2027 | 11 – 16 July 2027 | 31 May 2027 | UNITED KINGDOM Northern England 2027 Summer Stockport RAV |
| Winter 2027 | 28 November – 3 December 2027 | 11 October 2027 | UNITED KINGDOM Northern England 2027 Winter Stockport RAV |
SPECIAL EXAMS (UK)
Special exams can be arranged for dates outside the sessions listed on our dates page. These are subject to a surcharge which reflects the additional costs (see table below). The minimum requirement for special exams is three hours.
Please note, the RAD cannot guarantee to fulfil requests for Specials, which depend on examiner availability.
| Session | Session dates | Entry submission deadline | Pre-booking closing date |
|---|---|---|---|
| July 2026 | 1 – 31 July 2026* | 2 June 2026 | 15 May 2026 |
| August 2026 | (No Availability) | n/a | n/a |
| September 2026 | 1 – 30 September 2026 | 2 August 2026 | 15 July 2026 |
| October 2026 | 1 – 31 October 2026 | 2 September 2026 | 15 August 2026 |
| November 2026 | 1 – 30 November 2026 * | 2 October 2026 | 15 September 2026 |
| December 2026 | 1 – 21 December 2026 * | 2 November 2026 | 15 October 2026 |
| January 2027 | 4 – 31 January 2027 | 1 December 2026 | 15 November 2026 |
| February 2027 | 1 – 28 February 2027 | 3 January 2027 | 15 December 2026 |
| March 2027 | 1 – 31 March 2027* (Not during 26 – 29 March) | 1 February 2027 | 15 January 2027 |
| April 2027 | 1 – 30 April 2027 | 1 March 2027 | 15 February 2027 |
| May 2027 | 1 – 31 May 2027 (Not 3 and 31 May) | 1 April 2027 | 15 March 2027 |
| June 2027 | 1 – 30 June 2027* | 2 May 2027 | 15 April 2027 |
| July 2027 | 1 – 31 July 2027* | 1 June 2027 | 15 May 2027 |
| August 2027 | (No availability) | n/a | n/a |
| Special exam | Fee |
|---|---|
| Surcharge for 1 day of exams (3-6 hours’ examining time) | £175 |
| Each additional consecutive day of exams (up to 6 hours’ examining time) | £58 |
As with all exams, provisional results will be issued no later than four weeks, and certificates no later than six weeks, after the end of the session.
Special Booking procedure:
- Create a new AEC entry in the relevant Special session on Exams online. You would need a dedicated ‘Special Exams’ site added to your school. Please, contact your Regional Manager or exams@rad.org.uk if you do not have one. You will also need an RAD travel form uploaded to the notes section.
- Input the candidates you intend to enter. This list can be modified up to the point of submission. This is to give an idea of how many hours of examining time you may have and, therefore how many days you will require. If you do not know the names of your candidates, please indicate the approximate hours of examining time you expect to have in the note section. (please remember one day of exams is a minimum of 3 hours and a maximum of 6 hours).
- Using the calendar feature at the bottom of the entry, deselect all dates using the ‘deselect all’ button and then click on the dates you are requesting. You can also add any relevant information to the notes session (including starting times or hosting teachers, Reasonable Adjustments etc.).
- Please ‘save’ your entry, do not submit at this stage, a special surcharge will need to be added to your entry before you are ready to submit.
- After the Pre-booking closing date, the office will acknowledge your booking and confirm a special surcharge has been added.
- Please submit your entry by the advertised Entry submission deadline. Entries submitted after the deadline will be charged a late fee.
Special exams at headquarters
To request special exams at London headquarters, please email Kelsey Murray.
Entry forms must normally be submitted, along with the request, six weeks in advance of the requested date.
Contact details:
If you would like to know something about a specific AEC or RAV session, please get in touch with the tour organiser.
For further enquiries contact exams@rad.org.uk
If you have an urgent exams enquiry outside of normal business hours please contact the tour organiser of your session. Please note the following distinctions:
- Approved Examination Centre (AEC) Sessions for exams in Your Own Studio.
- RAD Approved Venue (RAV) Sessions Studio organised by the RAD.
- Special Exams (UK and Ireland).
We aim to release results online four weeks after the end of the exam session, with certificates, medals and bars sent six weeks after the end of the session.