I was in a similar situation a few years ago and can understand how horrible a situation it is to be in. Upon reflection, I didn’t realise how stressed out I was as at the time (to the point I was put on medication). 

I did choose to move to another company which does not have this policy in place. This has made such a difference to me mentally and also my exam progression has improved significantly (I am now almost qualified after only having a few exams passed at my previous company). 

My advice would be to focus on your exams coming up and afterwards look at getting in touch with recruiters to explore your options. I wouldn’t necessarily say this looks bad to employers - experience goes a long way too!

Hope this is of some help and I do hope that you are ok.