Edexcel is a London-based organisation and one of England and Wales's four main examination boards. The others are AQA, OCR and the WJEC. Its name is a portmanteau word derived from the words "educational" and "excellence".

Edexcel was formed in 1996 by the merger of two bodies, the BTEC (Business & Technology Education Council) and ULEAC (University of London Examinations and Assessment Council). In 2003, the Edexcel Foundation (a charity which managed the board) formed a partnership with Pearson PLC to set up a new company called London Qualifications Ltd, which was 75% owned by Pearson and 25% by the Edexcel Foundation. London Qualifications Limited (as of November 2004) has changed its name to Edexcel Limited.

Edexcel also operates on an international level, awarding over 1.5 million certificates to students around the world every year. However, Edexcel has also been dogged in the past by several allegations of poor service. Recently, during the summer examinations of 2004, it was discovered that a number of Edexcel exam papers had been stolen before they were supposed to be taken, and that the papers were being sold to students for exorbitant amounts of money (up to £1,000 in some cases). Edexcel assured the public that it was implementing measures to identify cheats during the marking process, and that they would have their grades cancelled.

External Links

• Edexcel website
• Pearson PLC