Examinations | Introduction
Examinations have played a key role in the College's work since the institution was founded in 1864. The College's original Royal Charter of 1893 and revised Charters (the most recent dating from 2003) charge it with the promotion of the arts and practice of organ-playing and choral directing to the highest standards of competence and artistry, and empower it to implement such standards through examination. For nearly a century and a half the College's diplomas have been deeply embedded in the musical fabric of the United Kingdom as well as being respected abroad. They remain highly prized now as they were more than a century ago, not least because they continue to demand the combination of technical and interpretative skill with stylistic, analytical and historical understanding that marks out the truly accomplished musician.
The structure and content of all the College's examination syllabuses have been extensively reviewed over the last decade or so. The College's Academic Board, which consists of leading practitioners and teachers who work in the school, university and conservatoire sectors, keeps the content, style and conduct of the examinations under continuous review. The Diplomas of Associate (ARCO) and Fellow (FRCO) are long-established and well known, but there are other, newer qualifications to assist those seeking accreditation. The Certificate (CertRCO) has been introduced to validate the skills (particularly in liturgical context) of experienced amateur players and developing students. The Licentiateship in Teaching (LTRCO) has been introduced to validate the skills and practice of organ teachers, and the DipCHD has been fundamentally revised in recent years (from the CHM, the Choirmaster's Diploma) so that it is available and of value not just to the organist-choral director but also to the specialist, non-organ-playing choral conductor.
The actual process of sitting the component parts of an examination for RCO qualification may seem daunting to the candidate. However, the College's aim is to encourage and nurture candidates towards success as much as possible. All the College's qualifications are structured in a modular fashion so that they can be gained cumulatively; many candidates now successfully progress towards RCO qualifications in this manner. The College runs preparatory day-courses and workshops, it offers library resources to candidates, and past written and organ test papers are readily available from this website. I cannot emphasise enough that the most vital and valuable part of the process is the preparation and study before the examination.
The pages below this webpage give access to the General Regulations and the specific requirements for all the College's examinations. Information about examination centres, application deadlines and written paper schedules are also given. The annual publication Diploma Examinations contains all this material in one document. It is available as a download on the ‘Diploma Regulations' page of this site >click here, or in print on request from the College's Administration. Further details concerning examination schedules and fees are published periodically. Again, such information is available from the College website or in print on request from the College's Administration. Any further enquiries about College examinations should be addressed to the College's Administration.
Patrick Russill
Chief Examiner
Announcements
The examination regulations and requirements for July 2009 to January 2010 are now available (>click here). The application deadlines, written paper schedules, and fees for 2009-2010 may be found in these Regulations. Practical examination schedules are quoted provisionally on this site around six months before the examination session concerned.
In order to make the whole examination process as transparent and consistent as possible, the entire framework of assessment criteria for all examinations has been thoroughly overhauled. The 2009–2010 Regulations also contain modifications to the LTRCO regulations, and announce new arrangements whereby RCO Members holding either an ARCCO or an AAGO are eligible to apply for FRCO.