Types of Assessment

We offer assessments at varying levels in a wide range of disciplines which are either listed below, or the candidate may wish to combine various disciplines, in order to create a tailor-made assessment.

• Voice (Classical - Musical Theatre - Popular Vocals - Chorister – or a combination)
• Bowed Strings
• Guitar
• Keyboards (Piano - Accompanist *** - Organ performance – Church organist) ***
• Woodwind
• Brass
• Ensembles  (Choirs / vocal groups / duets / orchestras / chamber groups / Bands) +
• Choral Director ***
• Composition ***
• Singer-songwriter ***
  The disciplines marked with *** are available at diploma level only
  The disciplines marked with + are available at Performance Certificate level only
• Tailor-made Combination Assessments
  It is also possible for a candidate to choose a combination of musical disciplines for their assessment for Grades, Performance Certificates or Diplomas.
  For example, a candidate may opt to take a diploma or grade in Voice and  include repertoire from different genres such as Classical, Musical Theatre and Popular music.
• At diploma level, a candidate may wish to combine a composition / Singer-songwriter portfolio and perform either in person, or via a remote assessment.

​Our assessors are trained to give you a more relaxed
exam experience

• Our performance assessments  focus on the performance aspect of music, but they also include a ‘Discussion’ section, plus a portfolio of musical interests / experiences – Great for the CV!
• We allow candidates a wide flexibility of repertoire choices
• Our composition & singer-song-writer Diploma assessments are via submitted portfolio only
• We offer helpful feedback in our detailed report sheets to all candidates
• We provide a printed Certificate to successful Candidates
• We offer Grades – Performance Certificates & three levels of diplomas in most disciplines
• There are no pre-requisites for Grades, Performance Certificates or our DipTCSM level one diploma

Grade Assessments
The grades 1 – 8 are intended to be of a similar standard to other examination boards and are available in the disciplines listed above:

Performance Certificates
(Available in most disciplines, including ensembles and Chorister).

There are four levels of performance certificate which focus on the performance aspect only. These are ideal for candidates who only wish to perform and get marked on the performance only. These assessments are of a similar standard to the performance section of the  specified grade assessments listed below.

Preliminary Certificate    (Standard – approx. Grade 1)
Foundation Certificate    (Standard – approx. Grade 3-4)
Intermediate Certificate  (Standard – approx. Grade 5-6)
Advanced Certificate       (Standard – approx. Grade 7-8)
Please note that organists are only eligible for intermediate and advanced certificates.

External Diplomas
Diplomas are available at three levels: DipTCSM, ATCSM & FTCSM are available in most disciplines, either listed above or a combination. A high standard of performance is required for the performance based diplomas and candidates can perform to either a small invited audience or just in front of the assessor.

Church Organist Assessments
*Our Church Organist qualifications are designed for church organists who are playing for regular church services, rather than Organ Performance.

Composition & Singer-songwriter
**For diploma assessments in composition / singer-songwriter, the candidate does not attend an assessment as these diplomas are via a submitted portfolio only.

Find out more
Some of the assessment requirements etc are outlined briefly on the menu entitled ‘How they work’.

Obtaining a syllabus etc
Please view the 'contact' page and request a syllabus, which should always be referred to for guidelines / rules & regulations and requirements etc.