MATRICULATION EXAMINATION REGULATIONS

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 327.271

MATRICULATION EXAMINATION REGULATIONS

30th April, 2013

LEGAL NOTICE 133 of 2013, as amended by Legal Notices 330 of 2013,

316 of 2014,395 of 2016, 111 of 2018, 147 of 2022, 133 of 2023 and 246 of

2024.

(1) The title of these regulations is the Matriculation

Examination Regulations.

(2)

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires -

"the Certificate" means the Matriculation Certificate;

"the Examination" means the Matriculation Examination; and

"the MATSEC Board" means the Matriculation and Secondary

Education Certificate Examinations Board.

(3) The MATSEC Board retains to itself the interpretation of

the regulations and syllabuses relating to its examinations.

(1) These regulations shall be applicable as from 1st

March, 2018, onwards.

(2) The Examination shall also be subject to the Conduct of the

Matriculation and Secondary Education Certificate Examinations

Regulations.

(1) The Examination shall be held at two levels: Advanced

(AM) Level and Intermediate (IM) Level.

(2) There shall be two sessions of the Examination: the First

Session shall be held during the period April to June, and the

Second Session shall be held in September of each year.

(1) * The Examination is offered in a wide range of subjects

as follows

Group l: Maltese, Arabic, English, French, German, Greek,

Italian, Latin, Spanish;

Group 2: Accounting, Classical Studies*, Economics,

G e o g r a p h y, H i s t o r y, M a r k e t i n g , P h i l o s o p h y, P s y c h o l o g y * ,

Religious Knowledge, Sociology;

Group 3: Applied Mathematics (Mechanics), Biology, Chemistry,

Computing, Environmental Science*, Physics, Pure Mathematics;

Group 4: Art, Graphical Communication, Engineering Drawing

and Graphical Communication*, Home Economics and Human

Ecology, Information Technology, Music, Physical Education*,

*Shall be applicable for examinations held from January 2025 or later.

Theatre and Performance,

Systems of Knowledge*.

* offered at Intermediate Level only

(2) No subject may be taken at both Advanced and

Intermediate Levels, and SEC Levels in the same session of

examinations.

(3) In the Second Session candidates shall be allowed to sit for

a maximum of six subjects as follows: one subject at Advanced

Level and a maximum of five subjects at Intermediate Level

restricted to one subject from each of Groups 1, 2, 3 and 4 and

Systems of Knowledge.

(1) To qualify for the Certificate, candidates must pass the

examinations taken within a period of five years from the first

sitting of any examination offered within the Examination.

(2)

The Certificate shall be awarded to candidates who

(a) sit for

(i)

one subject chosen from each of Groups 1, 2, 3

and Systems of Knowledge and two other

subjects chosen from Groups 1, 2, 3 and 4

indicated in regulation 4; and

(ii) two of the six subjects must be at Advanced

Level, three other subjects at Intermediate Level

and Systems of Knowledge; and

(b) obtain

(i)

a pass in at least one of the subjects offered from

each of Groups 1, 2 and 3, and a pass in Systems

of Knowledge; and

(ii) a minimum of 44 grade points obtained as a total

from the results awarded in six subjects as indicated

in paragraph (2) (a) of this regulation, and

calculated as indicated in paragraph (5) of this

regulation.

(3) The following restrictions apply for the award of the

Certificate

(a) No subject may be presented at both Advanced and

Intermediate Levels;

(b) Environmental Science may not be presented with IM

and AM Biology, Chemistry, or Physics;

(c) Computing may not be presented with Information

Technology;

(d) Engineering Drawing may not be presented with

Graphical Communication (At Intermediate Level the

two subjects become one: Engineering Drawing and

Graphical Communication); and

(e) Classical Studies may not be presented with Latin or

Greek.

(4)

(a) Candidates who satisfy all the criteria in this regulation

shall be awarded the Certificate on the basis of the best

results obtained.

(b) Candidates who sit for three or more subjects at

Advanced Level shall be entitled to have one or more

of the results of these subjects considered as

substitutes for one or more of the Intermediate Level

subjects required by sub-regulation (2)(a)(ii). In such

cases, the subject or subjects that are substituted shall

be considered as Intermediate Level passes, grade for

grade, for the purpose of calculating the number of

grade points as indicated in sub-regulation (5).

Candidates shall be required to inform the MATSEC

Board in writing which subject/s they wish to be

substituted.

(c) The Certificate shall be issued once only and it shall

indicate that the candidate has satisfied the criteria for

the award. Candidates shall also receive a transcript of

the results obtained in individual subjects as

established in regulation 6.

(5) Grade points shall be awarded for all subjects passed, up to

a total of 100 grade points, as follows

Advanced Level Intermediate Level

Grade A - 30 grade points Grade A - 10 grade points

Grade B - 24 grade points Grade B - 8 grade points

Grade C - 18 grade points Grade C - 6 grade points

Grade D - 12 grade points Grade D - 4 grade points

Grade E - 6 grade points Grade E - 2 grade points

Provided that in applying these grade point equivalences,

regulation 4(b) is followed for those candidates who present one or

more Advanced Level subjects instead of Intermediate Level

subjects.

(1) The results obtained in the individual subjects shall be

given as grades A, B, C, D, and E in descending order of merit. F

indicates Fail and ‘abs’ indicates Absent for the examination.

(2) The results sent to candidates shall show the subjects in

which a pass grade had been awarded as well as the subjects in

which the standard required for the lowest grade was not reached.

(3) The MATSEC Board shall issue certificates for each session

showing the subjects in which a pass grade has been awarded.

(4) An authenticated copy of the results may be obtained from

the MATSEC Board against a fee as determined by the University.

(1) Registration for the examinations online or on the

appropriate application form and accompanied by the relevant fee,

must be made by the closing date as published in the notice for

registration. Applications submitted after the closing date but by

the published date for late applications shall be accepted if an

additional fee is paid.

(2) Applications for registration for the First and Second Sessions

at a later date may be accepted at the Executive Director’s discretion

against the payment of a further additional fee.

(3) Alterations to the application form may only be made by

the candidates subject to the same conditions and additional fees

applicable for late registration.

(4) Private candidates must submit their project proposals as

specified in the syllabus.

The marking of papers and the results shall be final and

binding on all candidates and the MATSEC Board shall not, except

in its absolute discretion, enter into correspondence about results

with candidates or their parents or any other person.

(1) Candidates with special needs may be given the option to

be exempted from being examined in a particular component of the

examination, such as an oral or a practical examination. When

candidates accept the option and their work is prorated to compensate

for the missing component, their Certificate shall be endorsed as

follows

‘Special arrangements were made to enable the candidate

to be assessed in this subject. Details may be obtained

from the Executive Director.’

(2) Such certificates shall only be issued as a last resort when

ways cannot be found of supporting candidates with special needs

to satisfy examination requirements.

(3) Applications requesting special arrangements shall be made

on the appropriate form, within the date stipulated by the MATSEC

Board, and must be endorsed by the Head of the candidate’s school

and supported by appropriate medical or other professional

e v i d e n c e i s s u e d w i t h i n t h e p e r i o d / p e r i o d s sp e c i f i e d i n t h e

Guidelines to MATSEC Examinations Access Arrangements - 2011

published by the Access - Disability Support Committee and

approved by the Senate.

(1) All coursework is to be available at the candidates’

schools for moderation by the Markers’ Panel.

(2) The school assessments must reach the MATSEC Support

Unit by the date specified by the MATSEC Board.

(3) Private candidates are required to submit their coursework

as established by the MATSEC Board, with a dated endorsement

showing where it was carried out, by the date specified by the

MATSEC Board.

(4) Candidates may be called for an interview relating to their

coursework.

(5) Coursework assessment marks may also be retained for

subsequent sessions of the Examination for a period of up to five

years, but the candidates may, at their option, present new or

revised coursework.

Oral/aural examinations shall be held in both the First and

the Second Sessions of the Examination.

(1) Candidates are expected to bear in mind the necessity

for good expression and orderly presentation in their examination

answers.

(2) All work submitted in connection with the Examination,

including written work and coursework, shall remain the property

of the MATSEC Board, but may be returned to the candidates at the

discretion of the MATSEC Board.

Each

Advanced

and

Intermediate

Matriculation

examination has its own particular structure.

(1) No texts or dictionaries are permitted in the

examination room unless specifically indicated in the syllabus.

(2) The use of non-programmable electronic calculators is

permitted in Mathematics, science subjects, and related subjects,

unless indicated otherwise in the syllabus.

(3) A booklet with mathematical formulae shall be supplied by

the MATSEC Board where appropriate.

(1) In terms of the Conduct of the Matriculation and

Secondary Certificate Examinations Regulations, candidates who

are not satisfied with the grade awarded to them in any of the

subjects for which they sat, may request a revision of their

examination scripts, within the period specified by the MATSEC

Board and against a fee as determined by the University.

(2)

The revised result shall be final.

Candidates are required to answer in the language the

questions are set, unless otherwise specified in the examination

paper.

(1) Candidates shall not be allowed into an examination

room after the first half hour of the examination, and they shall not

b e a l l o w e d t o l e a v e t h e e x a m i na t i o n r o o m , t e m p o r a r i l y o r

permanently, during the first half hour and during the last quarter of

an hour of an examination.

(2) Mobile phones, books, note-books, and any other

unauthorized aids to the examination (including electronic aids)

must be left outside the examination room or delivered to the

invigilator before the examination questions are distributed.

(3) Candidates shall be provided with one or more examination

booklets, which must be filled in accordance with the directions

printed on the cover of the booklet. No part of an examination

booklet may be torn off, and no examination booklet or part thereof

may be taken outside the examination room.

(4)

When an index number is used, candidates must not write

their name on any part of the examination booklet or make any

mark thereon calculated to disclose their identity to a marker.

(5) Candidates caught cheating, or attempting to cheat, during

an examination or in any way caught taking, or attempting to take,

an unfair advantage over other candidates shall be subject to

disciplinary procedures as established in the Conduct of the

Matriculation and Secondary Certificate Examinations

Regulations.