Making Sense of the Cambridge IGCSE October/November 2026 Exam Series
In this article, our goal is to help you decipher "cryptic" Cambridge things about the upcoming Cambridge IGCSE exams into things you can actually understand.
1. The Big Picture
The October/November 2026 series runs for about seven weeks:
Starts: Monday 28 September 2026
Ends: Thursday 12 or Friday 13 November 2026 (the exact last day depends on your zone)
Within that window, exams are grouped into seven exam weeks:
Week | Dates |
1 | 28 Sept – 2 Oct |
2 | 5 – 9 Oct |
3 | 12 – 16 Oct |
4 | 19 – 23 Oct |
5 | 26 – 30 Oct |
6 | 2 – 6 Nov |
7 | 9 – 12/13 Nov |
Most written papers happen in weeks 3–5 (mid-October), when the bulk of Core subjects — Mathematics, the sciences, English, and the major humanities — are scheduled. The final two weeks are dominated by shorter multiple-choice components.
2. Why There Are "Zones" at All
Cambridge exams are sat by students in well over 150 countries, often for the same paper, on the same day. To stop a paper leaking from one time zone to another before everyone has sat it, Cambridge splits the world into administrative zones (this series uses Zones 1 through 6) and gives each one its own session and, sometimes, its own date.
In practice this means:
The same subject can appear on different dates depending on your zone, or on the same date but at a different time of day.
Each zone has one or two Key Times — a morning (AM) cut-off and an afternoon (PM) cut-off — before which candidates must be under full exam supervision. Some zones also use an evening (EV) session.
Your exam centre already knows which zone it belongs to; you don't need to work this out yourself. It's just useful to know why your paper date might not match what a friend abroad tells you.
3. Reading a Paper Code
Every exam has a code like 0620/41. It looks cryptic but breaks down simply:
Part | Meaning | Example |
First 4 digits | The syllabus (subject) | 0620 = Chemistry |
Digit after the slash | The paper/component number | 4 = Paper 4 (often the Extended Theory paper) |
Final digit | The variant, tied to zone and session | 1 = the specific sitting your zone was assigned |
So 0620/41 is Chemistry, Paper 4 (Extended Theory), variant 1 — while 0620/63 would be the same subject's Paper 6 (Alternative to Practical), variant 3, sat by a different zone. Same subject, same kind of paper, different slot in the calendar.
This is also why you'll see the same subject listed two or three times in a syllabus index — once per variant — each with its own date and session.
4. Key Dates for Major IGCSE Subjects
The exact date shifts by zone, but the table below shows a realistic example of where popular subjects land, using one zone's schedule as a reference point. Treat this as a guide to when in the series to expect each subject, not a guarantee of your own centre's date — always confirm against your school's confirmed timetable.
Subject | Component | Approx. week | Session |
First Language English (Oral) | Speaking & Listening | Week 2 (early Oct) | AM |
Mathematics (Core/Extended) | Papers 1–4 | Week 3 (mid-Oct) | AM |
Biology, Chemistry, Physics | Theory papers | Weeks 3–4 | AM/PM |
Biology, Chemistry, Physics | Practicals / Alt-to-Practical | Weeks 3–4 | AM |
Combined/Co-ordinated Sciences | Theory + Practical | Weeks 3–4 | AM |
History, Geography | Papers 1–2 | Weeks 3–4 | AM/PM |
Business Studies, Economics | Papers 1–2 | Weeks 3–4 | AM |
Literature in English, World Literature | Papers | Weeks 4–5 | AM |
Computer Science | Papers 1–2 | Weeks 2, 4 | AM/PM |
Sciences & Sciences (Multiple Choice components) | MCQ papers | Week 6 (early Nov) | PM |
Biology/Chemistry Multiple Choice | MCQ papers | Week 7 (Nov) | AM |
The pattern to notice: Theory and practical papers cluster in the middle of the series (mid-to-late October), while short multiple-choice components are pushed to the final two weeks (early-to-mid November). If you're building a revision plan, the middle stretch is where the heaviest, highest-stakes papers sit.
5. Speaking, Listening, and Practical Components
Not every component has a single fixed date. Several are scheduled within a test date window instead — a range of days during which your school arranges your individual sitting:
Component type | Typical window |
Speaking tests (French, Spanish, German, Hindi, etc.) | 15 September – 31 October 2026 |
English as a Second Language (Speaking) | 1 – 26 October 2026 |
Art & Design (Practical) | 1 July – 31 October 2026 |
Food & Nutrition (Practical) | 1 September – 31 October 2026 |
ICT (Practical) | Fixed single days: 24 and 30 September 2026 |
Your school — not Cambridge centrally — sets your exact slot within these windows, so check with your exams officer rather than looking for a fixed date on the main timetable.
6. A Few Things Worth Knowing
Same subject, different zone, different day is normal. It doesn't mean an error — it's how Cambridge protects paper security across time zones.
AM and PM are separate exams, not two chances at one exam. Some subjects are split so different zones sit the same content a few hours apart on the same calendar date.
Reading time is already included in the stated duration of each paper — schools shouldn't add extra time on top of what's shown.
Two papers, one session: if you're entered for two exams timetabled in the same session, your school can give you a supervised break between them rather than sitting both back-to-back with no pause.
This is the final timetable, but small changes can still happen. Always check your school's confirmed, personalised entry list rather than relying on the general syllabus grid — that's the version that reflects only the exams you're actually sitting.
7. Where to Check Your Own Dates
The information above is a guide to the shape of the series. For your actual, individual exam dates:
Ask your school's exams officer for your personal timetable (generated from your actual entries, not the full public grid).
Cross-check any specific paper code against the syllabus view section of your zone's official timetable, which lists every component alphabetically with its date and session.
If something looks like it clashes, don't assume it's fine — flag it with your exams officer so it can go through the formal timetable clash and deviation process before the series begins.
Hope things are less confusing now.
