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Page last updated

31 Oct 2017 at 15:33

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What information do you need to provide when you’re making final entries? Click on the relevant tab below.

  • General
  • Vocational

General

For general qualifications (GCSE, AS/A Levels) and Cambridge Nationals, when you make entries, you need to provide the following information.

  • Candidate personal details
  • Candidate number
  • Unique candidate identifier (UCI)
  • Unique learner number (ULN)
  • Qualification details

Candidate personal details

Provide candidate names, date of birth and gender:

  • Enter candidates under names that can be verified against suitable identification, such as a birth certificate, passport or driver’s licence. 
  • You may need to check the name they are using within the centre is their legal name rather than a ‘known as’ name. 
  • This helps prevent issues at a later date, when they need to verify they are the person named on the certificate. 
  • Please ensure candidates know the name they are entered under and use that on their exam script. 
  • Be careful not to transpose the date of birth information! We often receive requests to swap the day and month.

The candidate’s name and date of birth appear on the certificate exactly as you make the entry so, if you don’t get it right, making changes after the certificate has been issued will mean you have to pay for replacement certificates.

Candidate number

This is a four-digit number, usually allocated by the centre at the time of entry, which candidates will need to write on their question papers.

  • Ensure the four-figure candidate numbers are unique for the series and that a GCSE candidate does not have the same number as a AS/A Level candidate. 
  • Candidate numbers cannot be changed during a series. 
  • If you can, it’s best to use the same candidate number throughout the candidate’s exam career.

Unique candidate identifier (UCI)

This is a 13-character code. It is mandatory and is used mainly to link a candidate’s unit results across series (and across different centres) for all their entries so they can be certificated.

  • Any entries submitted without a UCI will be rejected. 
  • Exam administration software packages can usually generate UCIs but we have a check character calculator you can use to help you.
  • It is essential candidates only have one UCI. If a candidate has more than one UCI, we cannot link their unit results and they risk not receiving a final subject grade. If you find a candidate has more than one UCI, please email our Entries Team at OCRGQ.entryprocessing@ocr.org.uk from your centre’s registered email address with details of the UCIs in use and the candidate’s name. We will then merge the candidate details.
  • If a candidate comes from another centre, use the original UCI they bring with them. 

The following diagram shows the components of a UCI:

Unique candidate identifier (UCI)

Unique learner number (ULN)

This is a personal ten-digit number, which is used to ensure learner achievement information can be provided to their Personal Learning Record (PLR). ULNs are provided and administered by the Learning Records Service (LRS).

If a candidate does not have a ULN, the ULN field should be left blank; you must not add a piece of placeholder text, such as ‘9999999999’ or ‘TBC’.

Where a ULN is included with an entry, we will check the ULN and candidate details with the LRS. Candidate details submitted to us need to match exactly with those held on their PLR. If there are any differences, we will not be able to validate the ULN. This will not prevent your entries from being processed, but we will not be able to send results data to their PLR until the ULN and candidate details held by us have been validated correctly. If you need to make a change to a learner’s details, you must update them in a number of places:

  • Within their PLR
  • Within your management information system
  • You then need to send updated candidate details to OCR.

For more information, and to generate a ULN, please refer to the Learning Records Service.

Qualification details

Entries are made using a four-digit entry code and option codes (where needed). These details are provided in the Entry Codes booklet with more information in the final entry rules section.

  • Candidates must be entered for the correct entry option, which can represent any of the following:
    • A legitimate or ‘true’ choice between papers – For example, in the current GCSE History, each option determines which paper a candidate will take.
    • A choice between tiers – For example, Foundation and Higher.
    • A choice between methods of moderation – For many moderated units/components or externally marked speaking tests, the option specifies whether the work is uploaded electronically to the OCR Repository, submitted via post or, in some cases, moderated by a visiting moderator. For each of these units, all candidates’ work must be submitted using the same entry option.
    • A choice to carry forward a candidate’s result for an internal assessment – The carry forward option must only be used if a candidate has previously been entered for that unit and certification code.
    • A choice between languages – For GCSE Latin (J281, J081) and Cambridge Nationals ICT (Unit R001) only. These are offered in Welsh as well as English, and the option determines the language in which the candidate will take the assessment. See Welsh medium papers.
  • A candidate must not be entered for more than one option for a single assessment in the same series. 
  • Duplicate entries must not be made for the same candidate – It's not possible to enter a candidate for the same entry code twice using different option codes. You will need to make an entry amendment if you decide the option entered is incorrect.
  • For unitised qualifications, don’t forget to make your certification entries. 
  • If there are legacy and new qualifications running side by side, be extra vigilant about using the correct entry code.
  • Carry forward – If a candidate completed all units in a previous series and was not certificated, as long as the terminal requirement is met, a late certification can be made. Without a certification entry, a carry forward entry cannot be made. Carry forward will only work if the UCI used by the candidate is the same for all relevant series.

Vocational

For vocational qualifications unnamed entries, you need to provide the number of full qualification entries or the number of unit entries you would like for each qualification plus an order number. 

For named entries, you need to provide all of the following information:

    • Candidate personal details
    • Centre candidate number
    • OCR candidate number
    • Unique candidate identifier (UCI)
    • Unique learner number (ULN)
    • Order number
    • Qualification details

Candidate personal details

Provide candidate names, date of birth and gender:

  • Enter candidates under names that can be verified against suitable identification, such as a birth certificate, passport or driver’s licence. 
  • You may need to check the name they are using within the centre is their legal name rather than a ‘known as’ name. 
  • This helps prevent issues at a later date, when they need to verify they are the person named on the certificate. 
  • Please ensure candidates know the name they are entered under and use that on their exam script. 
  • Be careful not to transpose the date of birth information! We often receive requests to swap the day and month.

The candidate’s name and date of birth appear on the certificate exactly as you make the entry so, if you don’t get it right, making changes after the certificate has been issued will mean you have to pay for replacement certificates.

Centre candidate number 

An optional field for named qualifications, this number can be allocated by a centre if you wish to add an additional reference; it can be up to four digits long.

OCR candidate number

This is an eight-digit number allocated by OCR which allows a candidate’s units to be linked together when claiming for multiple units or full awards. For candidates entering for OCR qualifications for the first time, this should be left blank. If the candidate has a previous OCR candidate number, you should provide this to avoid additional numbers being generated.

Unique candidate identifier (UCI)

For Functional Skills, Cambridge Technicals and Cambridge Progression qualifications, it is possible to make EDI entries via A2C. For these qualifications, the UCI must accompany a candidate’s entry if centres wish to make entries and/or receive EDI results via A2C. The unique candidate identifier (UCI) is a 13-character code, which examination administration software packages will usually be able to generate. The following diagram shows the components of a UCI:

Unique candidate identifier (UCI)

Unique learner number (ULN)

This is a personal ten-digit number, which is used to ensure learner achievement information can be provided to their Personal Learning Record (PLR). ULNs are provided and administered by the Learning Records Service (LRS).

If a candidate does not have a ULN, the ULN field should be left blank; you must not add a piece of placeholder text, such as ‘9999999999’ or ‘TBC’.

Where a ULN is included with an entry, we will check the ULN and candidate details with the LRS. Candidate details submitted to us need to match exactly with those held on their PLR. If there are any differences, we will not be able to validate the ULN. This will not prevent your entries from being processed, but we will not be able to send results data to their PLR until the ULN and candidate details held by us have been validated correctly. If you need to make a change to a learner’s details, you must update them in a number of places:

  • Within their PLR
  • Within your management information system
  • You then need to send updated candidate details to OCR.

For more information, and to generate a ULN, please refer to the Learning Records Service.

Order number

The order number will be quoted on your centre’s invoice. It can be either an official order number or simply a reference, e.g. a tutor’s name. It is good practice to provide an order number as this enables invoices to be matched to your entries easily. You can use the same order number for as many entry submissions as you wish and it can be up to 20 characters long.

Qualification details

Provide entry codes of the full qualification(s) and/or details of the specific unit(s) as appropriate. Candidates must be entered for either the full award or individual units. They must not be entered for both. 

All entry codes can be found in the relevant entry codes booklets. 

If you are making EDI entries via A2C (Cambridge Progression, Cambridge Technicals or Functional Skills), the entry codes are used as follows:

  • Full award entries (Cambridge Technicals only), the entry code without the leading zero is followed by ‘00’. For example, the entry code for the full award 05340 would be 534000. 
  • Unit entries (Cambridge Progression, Cambridge Technicals and Functional Skills), the entry code without the leading zero is followed by the unit number. For example, the code to make a unit entry for scheme 05340, Unit 1, would be 534001. 

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