Hey! I haven't really seen that happen, but is it possible for people to take their OWLs and NEWTs at an older age? I don't see why they couldn't tbh, in Greece at least people can finish high school at an older age and can give the uni admission tests again and again, so it'd make sense to me that Hogwarts dropouts could sit OWLs and NEWTs. There's a Department of Education and an examinations.... people thing so OWLs and NEWTs can be held out for non Hogwarts students around the same time as it happens at Hogwarts?

I'm asking because I have Kamil here who had to drop out after his fourth year but he'd definitely sit his OWLs at a later time if he had the chance. I assume it'd be more difficult since he has to study everything on his own and also he'd have to figure out what sort of questions they might have that year.

ALSO, another thing that occured to me while writing this is: could people test out only for a particular subject? Say that Kamil needs an OWL in Potions and Herbology only for a job, could be sit just the two of those? My logic for this is that you'll have to pay separately for each subject, so someone working class who wants to better themselves can pay the fee only for the classes they actually need. It's not too different from NEWT students that only take 3 classes tbh. Furthermore, could someone who didn't take a NEWT test it out at a later time? Or someone who got a T the first time test again to get a higher grade?

Idk, I just don't see a reason why this couldn't happen except the Ministry wanting to be a dickhead for some reason. xD

My suggestion is that anyone can test when older, but they have to pay a semi high price to do so, say 1 galleon for every class? Whereas for Hogwarts students it's free to do the tests.

If we don't have this IC then I'd be super interested in a plot where Kamil tries to contact Ross etc about it, so maybe there can be a Wizengamot vote? How could would it be to threat that out, also. ;)

  

Idk, I just don't see a reason why this couldn't happen except the Ministry wanting to be a dickhead for some reason. xD

With the importance of the practical component, I don't think it's necessarily feasible for it to be worthwhile. Hogwarts students attend classes with experts in the requisite fields daily and are tested immediately after the completion of their studies. Because so much of the exams is practical, I don't think it can be accurately translated to nonmagical tests of a similar nature where studying hard can be enough for you to excel.

Also allowing poor people to better themselves does go against the Victorian ideal of the importance of class hierarchy xD

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   Eloise Scrimgeour

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Yeah but I still don't see why someone couldn't have gotten a tutor or studied a subject and sat the exams? It just seems silly to me that you HAVE to sit an exam only when you're 15 or 17 and then never have the chance to do so again. Furthermore, even if we are fuck the poor people, there's a chance someone rich could decide that they want to try and become an auror and resit their NEWTs? Why couldn't they do that? At worst people would just fail their tests and waste the sum of money that they paid to take it.

tbh if it can't happen this will just give me socialist stuff for Kamil to be obnoxious about, but the system as it is doesn't make sense xD but I guess we have JK Rowling to blame for that lol

  

Taking low level school exams was relatively common in this period. It was possible to arrange through the local parish schools to sit exams as an adult. You'd just ask to sit in with the students when the test period came.

But given the make up of Wizarding society, (no third level education etc) the question would be more like...why would you? If you left school at 14, and have a job that pays, you've no reason to seek formal qualifications, even if you got tutoring to improve your magic beyond school level.

Unless you wanted to go for a job at the ministry for some reason. But in that case it would make more sense for ministry departments to offer exemption or entrance exams the way universities do. Some universities, and some courses will hold a test for those who perhaps are not from the country and dont have equivalency exams or left school young etc to see if they have what they need to get in. You don't need any prior qualifications or other entrance requirements, if you get a high enough score, you're in. Oxford and Cambridge both offered a similar sort of exam by the mid 1850's, as did the Edinburgh Medical school. So it would be period appropriate. maybe the educational department at the ministry holds a once off adult test in the Hogsmeade ballroom?

The ministry could do something like that - offer a test, or entrance exam for those wishing to apply for a ministry posting without NEWTs. I would imagine the bar would be very high bar, and your scores would need to be considerably higher than would perhaps be needed for NEWTs.
So NEWTs would cost more in education but be 'easier' academically
The exam would be free to sit but hold you to a higher standard, because you are a- an adult and b- to stop it becoming too easy for people to social climb.

For 'other' jobs - the only other NEWT needing jobs are like apprenticeships, in which case I imagine if someone displayed exceptional natural skill a master would take them on regardless of their education level.

  

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I vote against this because if non- school exams were a thing I'd have to come up with reasons for Ophelia and Juliana not to have taken them >>

But just to add to what Kayte said about class mobility, I also feel like certifications in general were probably less important in this era because of the prevalence of the apprenticeship system (with the exception of a few professions like aurors). So if your WC character wants to be a potioneer for example they could go the Hogwarts route and do OWLs or NEWTs, or they could drop out after one year and apprentice under a potioneer for five years and exams would never be necessary.

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   Aldous Crouch, Elladora Black, Eloise Scrimgeour, Holly Scrimgeour

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The ministry could do something like that - offer a test, or entrance exam for those wishing to apply for a ministry posting without NEWTs.  I would imagine the bar would be very high bar, and your scores would need to be considerably higher than would perhaps be needed for NEWTs. 

I used an AtO once to get a character in as an Obliviator based on merit/life experiences rather than academics. I would be comfortable considering things like that (not for Aurors, though, since they're choosy AF) for the AtO if it's threadded IC?

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   Edna Shacklebolt, Elias Grimstone, Ellory Lestrange, Madeleine Backus, Ophelia Devine

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That's a good compromise! Since irl many people get jobs thanks to experience, connections and idk hacking the Pentagon and then being hired by them.

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