Administrative History: The Universities of Adelaide and Melbourne entered into an agreement in 1906 for the joint conduct of a common scheme of public examinations in music. In 1911 the Universites of Tasmania and Queensland and in 1915 the University of Western Australia and in 1917 the State Conservatorium of Music, New South Wales joined this scheme, which continued as the Music Examinations Board (from 1944 the Australian Music Examinations Board) . In 1945 the parties provided for the making and implementing of agreements with other bodies conducting music examinations in Australia.

In 1963 Queensland withdrew from the agreement and was replaced by the Queensland Conservatorium of Music and in 1973 the University of Tasmania was replaced as participant on the Board by the Tasmanian Council of Advanced Education.

In 1973 the six parties joined in a formal agreement to carry on the joint conduct of the public examinations in Music, Speech and Drama as the Australian Music Examinations Board.

In September 1975 the University of Melbourne gave notice of its intention to withdraw from the agreement no later than the 1st January 1978 and was subsequently replaced as a participant by the Victorian College of the Arts. Similarly in 1977 the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music was replaced by the New South Wales Minister of Education.

The six new parties entered into an agreement in 1977 and the Board was reconstructed following a conference in August 1977 with the Ministers of Education in each state becoming signatories to a new Constitution. The new agreement was signed in August 1979 (revised December 1979) under which a central Executive Committee was established.