The A-level students of this year are the first to take exams since the outbreak of COVID-19, which wreaked havoc on the school evaluation system in the United Kingdom.
The A-level scores achieved by UK students this year are lower than in 2021 and 2020 but remain higher than the last time students physically took exams, before the epidemic.
Today, hundreds of thousands of students in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland will eagerly read their exam results, while adolescents in Scotland received theirs last week.
They are the first cohort to take exams following the outbreak of COVID-19, which wreaked havoc on the assessment system.
This year, the total pass percentage for grades A* to E is 98.4%, which is down slightly from 99.5% in 2021 but higher than the 97.6% achieved in 2019.
Entries getting the highest grades of A* and A is down 8.4 percentage points from 44.8% in 2018 to 36.4% this year, but up 11.0 percentage points from 25% in 2019.
The admissions authority Ucas has recognized that institutions have been increasingly selective in their offers, predicting that the competition for university spots will be intense this year.
Results indicate that a record 425,830 students will enroll in a UK institution this year, with more disadvantaged 18-year-olds gaining admission than ever before.
Math is the most popular A-level subject, accounting for 11.3% of all entrants, but English has seen a decline in entries this year.
This year, there has been an 11% increase in Political Studies applications, which may be a reflection of the tumultuous times in which we live.
The Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) reported that girls continued to surpass boys in terms of A* to E grades, with 98.7% for girls and 98.8% for boys.
However, this year’s statistics indicate that the trend is less significant, with boys bridging the gap in A* grades and the percentage of students who received an A or better.
In Northern Ireland, nearly 25,000 students received their results, with the overall pass percentage increasing to 99.1% this year.
In Wales, 98 percent of pupils earned A-E grades, with 17.1 percent earning an A.
Before the release of the results, education secretary James Cleverly stated that it was “always” the goal for this year’s grades to be lower than the previous two coronavirus-affected years.
He told, “They were more charitable during the years of the pandemic, and I believe that is justified.”
“It was always the intention to retrieve them. This is going to be evaluated this year, so pupils may receive slightly lower grades than they anticipated and desired.
As I’ve stated, though, the majority of students should be admitted to the universities of their choice.
Over 92% of the first cohort of T-level students to get their results today achieved a pass or higher grade.
T Levels are new, two-year courses that follow GCSEs and are roughly similar in length to three A Levels. They were introduced in 2020 and prepared students for entry-level work in the skilled sector.
Kath Thomas, the interim CEO of the JCQ, stated that the results “mark a significant milestone” in the nation’s recovery from the pandemic.
“Not only is it the culmination of two years of hard work, but these students are the first in three years to have taken formal summer examinations, so we should all celebrate this accomplishment,” she said.
“Examinations are the most equitable method of evaluating students since they allow everyone to demonstrate their knowledge.
“Today’s findings signal a significant turning point in our recovery from the epidemic and are a credit to the effort and tenacity of students and school personnel across the nation.”
