External verification is the process SQA uses to assure the quality of internal assessment, including internal verification, in centres. SQA uses two methods of external verification - event and visiting.
Event verification - if selected for event verification, evidence will be uplifted from your centre and verified at a central event by a team of appointees who are trained in assessment and verification
Visiting verification - if selected for visiting verification, an appointee will visit your centre to review evidence. They will contact you in advance to arrange the visit.
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National Qualifications verification 2024-25
There will be two rounds of external verification in 2024-25.
Centres that have been selected for verification will be informed before each round to allow time to prepare materials for the uplift and/or the visit.
Note: IACCA (or Internally Assessed Component of Course Assessment) is a component of a National Qualifications course, which is conducted and marked by centre staff.
Verification windows
Assessments covered
Round 1
Events: February 2025 (material uplift for events 22 January 2025)
Visiting: February 2025
Units: National 1-2, National 3-4, Specified Units
Round 2
Events: May 2025 (material uplift 25 April 2025)
Visiting: March to May 2025 (Verification visits must take place by 23 May 2025)
IACCAs: National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher
Units: National 4 Added Value Unit, Specified Units
NQ Physical Education Course Assessment
Visiting: September 2024 to May 2025 (Verification visits must take place by 23 May 2025)
IACCAs: National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher
How we select centres for verification
For the purposes of verification, courses and units are grouped into subject verification groups (eg French, Spanish, German or Italian).
There are a number of reasons why we select centres for verification in each of the groups. This might include their past verification history and the length of time since their last verification activity. In addition we also carry out 'random' selections in all verification groups.
The volume of selections in each verification group is considered carefully. Centres should be aware that where courses include an internally assessed component (IACCA), verification will usually be more frequent.
When centres are selected in a verification group, this can be for any courses or units specified by SQA
Request external verification
You may request external verification of any unit(s) or IACCA(s) during rounds 1 and 2. If you would like to request verification, please complete our contact form with details of the qualification, level(s) and unit(s) and/or IACCA(s) you would like verified.
Requests for round 1 must be submitted by Tuesday 05 November 2024. Requests for round 2 must be submitted by Tuesday 07 January 2025.
What evidence do you need to provide for verification?
Your SQA Co-ordinator will be informed of planned verification activity through SQA Connect or by email.
You can find guidance on the evidence you are required to provide for external verification in the Verification submission guidance documents below:
Guidance on provided evidence in electronic formats
Subject-specific information
Retention of evidence
Centres must retain all candidate assessment evidence for National Qualifications, including evidence for any of the freestanding units at SCQF levels 5, 6 and 7, until 31 December.
There are three possible outcomes of verification:
Accepted - the centre's assessment approach and judgements are fully in line with national standards.
Accepted* - the centre's assessment approach and judgements are in line with national standards, but there are suggested recommendations to improve assessment.
Not Accepted - there are significant issues with the internal assessment approach and/or judgements. Required Actions are specified which must be completed. Certification can only take place once these are resolved.
If the outcome is Not Accepted, SQA will work with the centre to ensure that the correct follow-up actions are completed. In all cases, centres will receive an outcome report which will provide feedback on the approach to assessment and assessment judgements.
Appeals
Centres that wish to appeal a Not Accepted outcome should follow the guidance outlined in the Appeals Process document.
Contact us
If you have any questions about the verification process, please contact us.
