Exam security goes up in flames
An evacuation of the Sir Alexander Fleming (SAF) building last week left fourth year medical students unattended and able to discuss the contents of the BSc final examinations. Whilst waiting for the alarm to be deactivated, students were seen discussing the exam before being led back into the building ten minutes later. The false alarm was triggered by steam emitted from a research enclosure. Peter Seal, Chief Fire Officer, said, "A trigger alarm point was also pressed, meaning full evacuation procedures had to be followed."
The incident has enraged some students who have queried the integrity of the examination. One of the fourth year students told Felix, "Groups of students were discussing the paper and although we were told not to, once we got outside, we were all dispersed amongst the crowd. This was evidently irresistible for some students." Another medical student, who also preferred to remain anonymous, said, "I think the evacuation had a major effect on my performance during the exam. I may as well have finished the paper early as all my concentration was lost upon returning to the hall."
Erika McGovern, Undergraduate Medical Office (UMO) Exam Manager, discussed the students' concerns with Felix, "It was an extraordinary event and our concern was student safety." McGovern stated that she was new in her post and had not been made aware of any existing College formal procedures for exam evacuations. The impact of the evacuation will be taken into account when the scripts are sent for marking and students will not be disadvantaged by the incident.
Danny McGuinness, Imperial College School of Medicine President, said, "as far as I can see, the exam invigilators had no option other than to evacuate the building, as they didn't know whether it was a true alarm or a false one." He highlighted the coordination issue in terms of a lack of clear policy, "It may well be time for College to look into having procedures for matters such as these.
"With regards to the candidates' ability to discuss the paper, I believe that there was limited opportunity for candidates to gain an unfair advantage over each other. They were all outside for a very brief period and during that time, all candidates had the opportunity to discuss the paper if they wanted; it's not like one student was made to sit in the corner on their own.
"Another point to note is that they won't have an unfair advantage over other candidates at other sites as they weren't sitting the same exam due to the fact there are many different BSc pathways."
Worried about whether a procedure for exam evacuations was in place at College and why even the UMO Exam Manager was not aware of such guidelines. Felix questioned Sally James, College Assistant Registrar for Examinations, to ascertain whether a communication breakdown had occurred and why students were allowed to gather in separate groups outside the SAF building. James told Felix, "I can assure you that steps will be taken to ensure that all relevant staff are informed of the appropriate procedures for dealing with these situations in the future.
"I've now had an opportunity to investigate the matters that you have raised and I am satisfied that the UMO evacuated the examination according to established College procedures. The Guidance will shortly be available on the Registry website."
The exam guidelines make clear that "whilst they [students] are awaiting the resumption of the examination, they should not discuss the question paper with other candidates," but does not endeavour to explain to invigilators how to enforce this procedure whilst outside the building, or the importance of making sure candidates are in close proximity to examination staff during the evacuation.
