SQA Exam Timetable 2026: Dates, Diet & What to Expect

The 2026 SQA exam diet is the first to be administered by Qualifications Scotland — the body that replaced SQA in February 2026. The exams themselves, the qualifications, and the results process are unchanged. Only the name on the tin is different.

The exam diet at a glance

The 2026 diet runs across six weeks, starting with National Qualifications on 22 April and concluding on 2 June. Every Scottish school and many further education colleges follow the same national timetable. There are no regional variations.

Key levels covered:

• National 3 and National 4 (internally assessed — no written exams, but component deadlines fall within the diet window)
• National 5 — the main diet for S4 and S5 pupils
• Higher — S5 and S6 pupils, with many S6 pupils resitting
• Advanced Higher — predominantly S6, with some university direct-entry candidates
• Skills for Work qualifications — timetabled alongside National courses

How your personal timetable works

Qualifications Scotland publishes the full subject-by-subject schedule in late February each year. Your school then creates a personalised timetable for every candidate, showing:

• The exam name and level
• Date and start time
• Room and seat number
• Duration

You can also access your individual schedule on MySQA (the online portal — still at mySQA.org even under the Qualifications Scotland name). Log in with the credentials your school provided when you registered.

What the timetable does not cover

Some qualifications are assessed entirely by the school and have no national written exam:

• National 4 Awards (portfolio and added value unit, marked internally)
• Most Skills for Work courses
• Course assignments submitted before the diet (for example, the National 5 and Higher assignment marks are sent to Qualifications Scotland before the written exam and make up part of the overall grade)

Check with your subject teacher whether your course has a written exam, a portfolio element, or both.

On the day: what to bring

Every exam room follows the same rules:

1. Candidate number — on your personal timetable or MySQA. You don't need your name on your script.
2. Pens — black ink, not gel pens that smudge. Bring at least two.
3. Any permitted materials — your teacher will tell you. A calculator is allowed in most maths and science papers; a dictionary is not allowed in any exam.
4. No mobile phone — phones (even switched off) must be left outside the exam room or handed to an invigilator. Bringing one in is treated as an attempt to cheat.

Arrive at least 15 minutes before the start time. Latecomers are admitted for the first hour of the exam but no extra time is given.

Study leave

Most Scottish schools grant study leave during the exam diet — typically from a week or two before a pupil's first paper. The exact arrangements vary by school: some offer full study leave for all S4–S6; others keep pupils in school on days when they have no exams.

Check your school's study leave policy in January or February — it's published in the school bulletin or on the website.

Exceptional circumstances

If something serious happens in the run-up to or during the exam — bereavement, serious illness, a disclosed disability not previously supported — tell your school's exams officer immediately. They can submit an Exceptional Circumstances request to Qualifications Scotland. Evidence is required, and QS assesses whether an estimated grade can be awarded.

This is not a "get out of jail free" card: estimated grades are based on your teacher's assessment of your performance across the year and are subject to national moderation. But it is there for genuine, evidenced hardship.

Results: Tuesday 4 August 2026

All National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher results land on the same day — Tuesday 4 August 2026. You'll receive a text or email notification overnight on 3 August; the MySQA portal updates from early morning. Physical certificates arrive by post in the weeks following.

What happens to your paper after the exam

This is the process most pupils never see:

1. Collection and scanning — Scripts are collected from exam centres by secure courier and sent to Qualifications Scotland. Most scripts are scanned and distributed to markers electronically.

2. Marking — Most papers are marked by trained external markers — typically current or recently retired teachers who apply for marking roles each year. Markers receive detailed marking instructions and attend a standardisation meeting before marking begins.

3. Checking for consistency — Senior markers review a sample of each marker's work to ensure the marking instructions are being applied consistently. Scripts that fall near grade boundaries receive additional scrutiny.

4. Grade boundary setting — Grade boundaries (the raw marks needed for A, B, C, D in each subject) are set by subject specialist committees after the marking is complete. They take into account the difficulty of the paper, statistical data from previous years, and the overall mark distribution. Grade boundaries are not fixed in advance — a harder-than-usual paper leads to lower boundaries.

5. Statistical moderation — Where coursework or coursework-equivalent marks are involved, statistical processes check for inconsistencies between schools.

6. Results — The final grade for each candidate is calculated and transmitted for release on 4 August 2026.

Preparing in the weeks before your first paper

A few practical things that make a difference:

• Do at least three past papers per subject under timed conditions. Not reading through — sitting them properly, timing each section, and marking against the official marking instructions. Past papers and marking instructions are free on the Qualifications Scotland website.
• Know your exam room and seat number before the morning. Check your personal timetable on MySQA or from your school. Arriving and discovering an unexpected room change is avoidable stress.
• Sleep before the first paper matters more than revision the night before. Memory consolidates during sleep. A rested brain recalls information better than a tired one that spent the night cramming.
• Tell someone if you're struggling. Exam anxiety is common and treatable. Your school's guidance teacher can refer you to support, and most schools have access to counselling during the exam diet.

For everything about results day — the timeline, what to do if you miss an offer, and how appeals work — see our SQA Results Day 2026 guide.