Logo

A Guide to Music Theory Exams with PJC

Monday, September 30, 2024 | ABRSM Exams, Music Theory

A Guide to Music Theory Exams with PJC


THE IMPORTANCE OF MUSIC THEORY
Music Theory at PJC is an integral part of our curriculum, and it is absolutely fundamental in developing the high level pianists and singers we have today in our Intermediates and Advanced Programmes. The following blog gives you all the information you need to know regarding how to prepare for, enter, set up and take an ABRSM Music Theory exam. This ABRSM website page is dedicated to this, which includes an interesting video about the importance of music theory to all musicians. 


WHY TAKE AN EXAM?

The Grade 5 Theory Exam is mandatory requirement for anyone wishing to take ABRSM Piano or Singing at Grade 6 and above. The other Grade 1-4 Theory Exams are not compulsory and are only taken to reward the students' work and effort that will be taking place during their weekly lessons. However, I do heartily recommend that your child takes their Grade 1 Theory Exam at the very least, so they are confident with the online format in preparation for the all important Grade 5 one in the future. 


ENTERING FOR THE EXAM 
The format for this exam is very different from any practical exams your child may have done in the past. You can sign up your child to be entered by registering them on the teal exam slot of the correct grade via our online portal. These can be found on the 1st of every month, as PJC does a bulk entry for theory exams at the start of each calendar month. Once we enter your child, they then have 28 days to complete this exam. This exam process is done ONLINE and AT THE STUDENTS’ OWN HOME and can require a lot of work for the responsible adult involved, so please do take the time to read the information below. It is the responsibility of the parent to do all computer checks beforehand. 
 


PREPARING FOR THE EXAM

Following a successful mock at the back of their ‘ABRSM Discovering Music Theory’ book, students must have done an online Practice Exam prior to taking their exam to get used to the online exam format. They can complete the mock test at this link (scroll down to Online Practice Exams, English/Italian/Spanish, and then open the appropriate link for Grade 1-5). Please inform Phillippa of the result (preferably via WhatsApp) of this practice exam and DO NOT do the real exam yet if they don't pass this practice one. 


Further practice can be done via ABRSM’s Practice Platform. For a very reasonable fee, students can take multiple practice papers in the online format they will be doing in the real exam. There are also free quizzes for the terms and signs for each grade at this link (just scroll down to 'Music Theory quiz'). There is also an ABRSM Music Theory App you can practice questions with available for both iOS and Android. 


Grade 5 Theory students must also have completed all of their theory work from their PJC Intermediates Blue Book: Grades 4-5, and be able to write out their ‘Cheat Sheet’ from memory and apply it successfully. 


BEFORE THE EXAM DAY

All candidates will access their online Music Theory exams via their own ABRSM accounts. Once entered, ABRSM will send you an email and you should be able to log in to their portal with the details they either send you or have previously sent if you have taken an ABRSM exam before. Candidates can take their exam on any date and at any time within 28 days of booking the exam. Remember that this exam is taken at the candidates’ HOME on a computer.


Check that you can meet all the room and system requirements needed to take the exam. The ABRSM System Requirements are linked here. You should also test the compatibility of the computer equipment and internet connection being used for the exam by running this simple online check: PSI RPNow System Check.  We recommend using Google Chrome as your web browser. DO NOT use a VPN for this exam. 

 

ON THE EXAM DAY

Students will need:

  • A laptop or desktop computer and a desk to work from- NOT a phone, tablet nor Chromebook.

  • Blank paper and a pen or pencil to work out answers during the exam. Candidates will need to show both sides of their blank paper to the camera during their room scan. There must be no text, notation, or images on the paper. If there are, this will be noted by our proctors and may lead to a malpractice investigation and disqualification.

  • Photographic ID. If they do not have an in-date passport, you need to download and prepare a Candidate Identification Form.

  • Time to complete all the ‘getting ready’ steps below, before the exam begins. We recommend allowing 15 to 30 minutes for this.


GETTING READY

  • Log on to the candidate’s ABRSM account and click ‘Start Music Theory exam’ on the dashboard. This will launch and install the RPNow Proctoring software that you need for the exam. Please note – once this button has been pressed, there is a 3 hour window to complete the exam. 

  • Follow these steps to complete the exam set up:

    • Make sure all other apps, programmes and browsers are closed.

    • Show the candidate’s Photo ID. 

    • Perform the room scan. If your computer does not allow a 360 degree room scan you can use a mobile phone or digital camera – then play this footage back to the webcam. The recording of the room scan must be done during the room scan section of the exam set up so that they can confirm the room is suitable for the exam.

    • Take the candidate’s picture on the screen.

  • From this point on, the session will be recorded (desktop, webcam and audio), until the exam window is closed at the end of the exam.


DURING THE EXAM

  • A timer in the right-hand corner of the exam screen will show how long candidates have to complete the exam. The countdown (in minutes) will not start until the candidate has started the actual exam.

  • If it’s essential that the candidate has a toilet break once the exam has started, this should be limited to once only and should be for a maximum of five minutes. Candidates must inform the online invigilator (proctor) that they are about to take a toilet break by looking at the camera and saying this out loud. They can also write this down and show the piece of paper to the camera. The exam recording should continue during this time.

  • The responsible adult is allowed to leave and re-enter the exam room once the live exam has started as long as this does not disrupt the exam and they do not bring any prohibited items into the room.

  • The exam will time out if a candidate is inactive for 30 minutes. If this happens the candidate will need to re-open the RPNow software, do the pre-exam checks and then log in again to finish their exam. This is only possible within 3 hours of first launching the software.

  • Before closing the exam window at the end of the exam and stopping the recording, tear up any paper used in the exam. Candidates should do this in front of the camera so it can be seen clearly.



WARNING

It is extremely important that the exam is taken within 3 hours of first launching the software. Do not begin the exam process unless all checks have been done and the student is ready to take the exam. 


ISSUES

For any technical advice before or on the day of the exam, contact PSI Customer Support on +44 20 3885 0911. Unfortunately PJC is not able to help in any way. 


PAYMENT

The exam fee plus the £3 charge for the certificate is automatically added to your account on signing up to the exam slot on our online portal. This can be paid at the next invoice due date. 


RESULTS

Unlike practical exams, theory exams often take four weeks for the result to be released. 


NEXT STEPS
After taking the exam, before the results are released, please purchase the next book in the ABRSM Discovering Music Theory series so your child can begin work on the next grade up in lessons going forward.


We wish you all the best of luck with your upcoming music theory exams!

From Phillippa and all the Team at PJC ♪