Unfortunately there has been a great deal of confusion around the exact length of the exam timer once it begins on exam day. In the last few weeks, we’ve gotten inconsistent information, and unfortunately this has caused us to give you some inconsistent information on how long the exam timer will last.
However, today I got the following confirmation from someone very high up in the SOA education function, and it sounds like the SOA may re-contact candidates soon to help clear this up:
We… are writing a clarification that should be out in the next day or two. Here is how it works:
Suppose an exam is a four-hour exam (such as the ERM exam). The timer at the Prometric center will run for 4 hours and 15 minutes. Candidates may use that time as they wish. Should they elect to take breaks, the clock keeps running. There is no read-through period because it is impossible to enforce a no writing provision. We created some confusion by referring to the study note rather than the default exam time.
If you are registered for a fall 2020 exam, you should have gotten an email that stated “During the exam, 15 minutes of break time will be added to the advertised exam length noted in the introductory study note.” I believe that at some point, the introductory study notes were edited to add that 15 minutes as well, which resulted in a double counting that lead many to believe there would be an additional 30 minutes.
As the email quoted above states, however, there will only be an additional 15 minutes for all exams.
For ILA track exams this means that you will have 5 hours, 15 minutes to complete LPM and LFM once the timer starts. You will have 2 hours, 15 minutes for LAM, and 4 hours, 15 minutes for ERM. Once the timer starts, it can’t be stopped, but you are allowed to take a break as the clock continues to run.
We have also seen conflicting information on whether you can bring food or drink to consume during the break time. Some emails have said no, but someone recently shared an email with me from the Accommodations function of the SOA that said the following:
You may put your food/drink in your locker and have it whenever you need during the 5 hour 15 min. exam time. Will this suffice? If not, I will email you further detailed instructions on how to apply for accommodations. Please note, Prometric requires 30 days notice to setup accommodations so I cannot guarantee it, but we can try. Also, you will risk losing your seat because if we need to apply accommodations at this point, because Prometric cannot apply accommodations on existing appointments and will need to cancel your current appointment first, in order to apply any accommdoations. This is why we usually ask candidates to apply for accommodations prior to registration or soon after registration.
I think it’s safe to say that you cannot eat or drink at your actual exam seat, but it sounds like you may be able to eat a quick snack during a break outside the exam room.