ICSE 2027 timetable: exams from February 15, writing now starts 10:15 am

The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) on Tuesday, 10 November 2026 announced the timetable for its 2027 board examinations. The ICSE (Class 10) examinations will run from Monday, 15 February 2027 to Wednesday, 31 March 2027, and the ISC (Class 12) examinations from Tuesday, 9 February 2027 to Thursday, 8 April 2027. The council also moved the ICSE morning session earlier: reading time now begins at 10 am and writing at 10:15 am, instead of 10:45 am and 11 am as before. The full subject-wise schedule is on the council's website, cisce.org.

For about 3.8 lakh students, the timetable turns a vague "February to April" into fixed dates that shape the next three months of revision, school pre-boards and family plans. The ISC begins six days before the ICSE, so schools that run both classes will be holding Class 12 papers while their Class 10 students are still in their last week of preparation.

The change in the morning schedule is the detail most likely to catch students out. Under the old pattern, ICSE candidates began reading the question paper at 10:45 am and started writing at 11 am. From 2027 the reading time starts at 10 am and writing at 10:15 am, and candidates must be seated by 9:45 am. A student who travels a long way to the examination centre, or who has practised mock papers to the old clock, will need to adjust.

The timetable also matters beyond the examination hall. ISC students who plan to sit entrance tests in 2027 can now see exactly how much time lies between their last board paper on 8 April and those tests, and ICSE students can see when their Class 10 work ends and Class 11 preparation can begin. Because the CISCE holds centres overseas as well as in India, the dates also guide schools abroad that follow its syllabus.

Peepals calculation: of the 3,79,980 candidates, 1,10,025 are ISC students, which leaves about 2,69,955 for the ICSE, or roughly 71% of the total (2,69,955 / 3,79,980 = 0.71). This agrees with the reported figure of about 2.70 lakh ICSE candidates. The ICSE window spans 45 days (15 February to 31 March, counting both days) and the ISC window 59 days (9 February to 8 April), and the first ICSE paper is 97 days after the timetable was announced. The new writing start of 10:15 am is 45 minutes earlier than the old 11 am. Our calculation from the reported figures.

Short-term: Schools will now fix their pre-board and practical schedules around these dates, and students can build revision plans paper by paper. Families planning travel in February, March or early April will need to check the subject-wise sheet on cisce.org.

Long-term: The earlier morning timing, if it stays, sets a new routine for CISCE candidates: an earlier start on every examination day. Students who have practised to the old timings will need to shift their mock tests to the new clock.

Who is affected: Class 10 and Class 12 students in CISCE-affiliated schools in India and overseas, their parents, teachers and examination centre staff.

What to watch next: The distribution of admit cards from mid-December 2026, and the first papers on Tuesday, 9 February 2027 (ISC) and Monday, 15 February 2027 (ICSE).

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