SQA announces changes to 2026 National Qualifications exam timetable
Tuesday 9 December 2025
SQA has announced small changes to the 2026 National Qualifications exam timetable after listening to feedback from schools, colleges, learners, parents, carers and stakeholders.
The updated timetable, available now on the exam timetable and learner apps webpages, includes the following changes:
Health and Food Technology
All Health and Food Technology exams will now take place in the morning of Monday 27 April at 9am. These exams were previously scheduled for Friday 1 May.
Music and Music: Portfolio
All music exams will now take place in the afternoon of Monday 27 April. Advanced Higher Music and Advanced Higher Music: Portfolio have been moved from the morning session. The start times of National 5 and Higher Music have been brought forward by one hour, helping centres to manage accommodation requirements more effectively.
Urdu
National 5 and Higher Urdu exams will now take place on Wednesday 27 May, with start times and durations remaining the same. These exams were previously scheduled for Monday 27 April.
The dates and times of all other exams are unchanged.
Positive impact on exam clashes
Analysis of the updated timetable – using the most recent course entry projections – indicates there will be 600 fewer instances of learners sitting two exams in one day. Whilst some learners may now sit Music and Health and Food Technology exams on the same day, Music exams last between 45 minutes and 75 minutes, significantly shorter than most other subjects.
The overall timetable remains unchanged, with exams starting on Wednesday 22 April and finishing on Tuesday 2 June 2026.
The changes have been welcomed by teaching unions. A spokesperson for the EIS said: "The EIS recognises the logistical challenges in designing an exam timetable which gives all learners an equal opportunity to succeed and welcomes the SQA's decision to listen to concerns expressed by teachers and other stakeholders."
A spokesperson for the SSTA added: "The SSTA welcomes the decision by the SQA to move Higher Health and Food Technology to a different day in the 2026 exam timetable. Teachers expressed strong concerns about the impact of holding Higher English and Higher Health and Food Technology on the same day, particularly for pupils with additional support needs. The SSTA is pleased that the SQA has listened to this feedback and taken action to reduce unnecessary pressure on learners."
A spokesperson for School Leaders Scotland said: “We work closely with SQA and other partners in the best interests of both learners and our members, and we welcome the changes made to the 2026 NQ exam timetable. This is an indicator that the organisation is listening. We appreciate how challenging it is to develop the timetable and that making changes after publication is not ideal. As members of the Timetable Advisory Group, we will support SQA (Qualifications Scotland) in taking steps to avoid changes of this nature going forward.”
Collaborative approach to timetable development
The exam timetable is developed and agreed with a range of stakeholders including teaching unions, head teachers, teachers, local authorities, learner organisations, colleges and the Scottish Government before publication.
We have worked closely with these partners to ensure the updated timetable reflects the needs of learners and centres across Scotland.
Jean Blair, Chief Operations Officer at SQA, said: "We have listened carefully to feedback and believe that these final changes to the 2026 exam timetable provide a more favourable outcome for both learners and centres. The replacement of SQA with Qualifications Scotland provides an opportunity to show that Scotland’s national qualifications body is a more open, listening and responsive organisation, and today’s announcement is another important signal of that change."
SQA has updated its timetable resources for schools and colleges, including the extra time calculator, and the MyExams app. Guidance for learners will be provided through SQA News, and our social media channels.
Centres are asked to use the updated timetable for planning purposes and to delete any previous copies of the 2026 exam timetable they may hold.