A-level results 2023 LIVE: London students get highest A* rate in the country as attainment gap widens

London students stretched their lead over the rest of the country as almost one third of A-levels taken in the capital were given top grades.

Results published today show that 10.5 per cent of exams taken in London were graded A*, which is the highest of any region.

In the North East - the lowest performing region, just 6.4 per cent of grades were awarded an A*.

In total, 30 per cent of exams taken in London were graded A* or A – which is just behind the South East at 30.3 per cent.

It means the gap between London and the South East and the lowest performing regions has increased from 3.9 percentage points in 2019 to 8.3 percentage points this year.

London was also the most improved region this year, with an 11.5 per cent increase in top grades since 2019 – the last year exams were taken and marked normally.

It comes as students in the UK saw the biggest ever drop in A-Level results, with top grades plunging by a quarter as exam chiefs battle pandemic grade inflation.

Teenagers now face a scramble to secure university places in one of the most fiercely competitive clearing rounds yet.

Top grades dropped by 25 per cent compared to last year, but are still higher than before the pandemic.

It means there were 73,000 fewer top grades awarded this year than last year, but 32,000 more than in 2019.

Results were deliberately lower for the second year running as exams watchdog Ofqual aimed to reduce grades that had spiralled during the pandemic when exams were cancelled and marks were based on teacher assessment.

Geoff Barton, head of the Association of School and College Leaders said today’s results will feel like a “bruising experience” for many students.

Warning students could face disappointment as grades brought down to pre-pandemic levels

06:40 , Matt Watts

Leaders in the education sector have warned that this cohort could face greater disappointment on A-level results day as they may have higher expectations after receiving record high GCSE results in 2021.

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), told the PA news agency: "Their aspirations will have been raised because of the results they got at GCSE.

"And yet what they're going to see [on Thursday] in most cases is that however their sister or brother did last year getting a string of top grades that is less likely to happen this year."

Mr Barton added that he has heard anecdotal evidence that some teachers have predicted grades for students "more akin" to during the pandemic years despite the return to pre-Covid grading standards in England this year.

"Whereas we will always see some disappointment on results day, that disappointment might be intensified if those young people feel that actually the kind of grades they were getting through the year and on their Ucas reference from the school reflected something higher than in reality they could be getting [on Thursday]," he said.

Schools Minister: A-level results must carry ‘weight and credibility’

06:50 , Miriam Burrell

The Schools Minister says exam results in England need to return to pre-pandemic levels to ensure A-levels carry “weight and credibility” with employers and universities.

But Nick Gibb said “additional protection” is in place this year where grade boundaries will be altered if senior examiners find national evidence of a drop in standards compared with 2019.

It comes after Covid-19 led to an increase in top A-level and GCSE grades in 2020 and 2021, with results based on teacher assessments instead of exams.

Students warned of ‘less choice’ in clearing than previous years

06:59 , Miriam Burrell

Students have been warned to brace for less choices in clearing as popular courses are set to get snapped up quickly.

Clearing is available to students who do not meet the conditions of their offer on A-level results day, as well as those who did not receive any offers.

Director of the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) told PA: “The biggest concerns are likely to be around people who get less good results than they expected and who may then miss their firm offer and possibly also their insurance offer.

“Remember, this is the cohort that got stellar GCSE grades so more than usual will be disappointed by their deflated A-level results and they will then find there’s less choice than in recent years in clearing.”

He added: “Even if they do find a place they’re happy with, they may then struggle to find decent accommodation, which is in short supply in many cities.

“It’s a bit of a mess and the best advice is for people to act swiftly.”

Pre-pandemic grading for A-levels ‘doesn’t bode well for disadvantaged students'

07:19 , Miriam Burrell

A social mobility charity has warned that the return to pre-pandemic grading for this year’s A-levels “doesn’t bode well for disadvantaged students.”

Carl Cullinane, director of research and policy at the Sutton Trust, said: “Disadvantaged young people were impacted most by school closures and have faced further disruption through the cost-of-living crisis.

“With an approach to grading this year which doesn’t take account of these experiences, less well-off young people are facing a cliff edge.

“Universities should consider the disruption different young people have faced when confirming places on the back of A-level results.”

Education Secretary: Students ‘worked so hard to get to this point’

07:30 , Miriam Burrell

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said all students deserved “massive congratulations… because they have been through quite a lot to get to this point”.

“They have had quite a lot of disruption, and they’ve worked so hard to get to this point,” she said on GB News.

Ms Keegan said reverting to previous grading models in England would ensure exams “hold their value” but stressed that the number of university places remained unchanged.

She also denied that UK students were at a disadvantage to international ones, after “very misleading” reporting.

“Just to put it into context, about 15 per cent of undergraduate students will be international students, 85 per cent of our universities are basically filled with home students.”

What’s happening today?

08:07 , Miriam Burrell

• School leavers are waking up to A-level results in a year when ministers want to restore pre pandemic grades.

• The proportion of top A-level results are expected to fall compared with last year. Results are expected around 9.30am.

• Exams were cancelled in 2020 and 2021 because of Covid. Pupils’ grades were based on teachers’ predictions instead, leading to a spike in top results.

• England’s exams watchdog, Ofqual, set out a two-year plan to bring A-level and GCSE results back down to pre-pandemic levels.

• Last year was the first time students sat exams since the start of the pandemic.

• Ofqual called it a "transition year", with grades set to reflect a midway point between 2019 and 2021.

• More than a third of A-level entries were awarded A or A* in 2022, compared to almost 45 per cent in 2021 and 38.5 percent in 2020.

Number of students accepted onto degree courses falls

08:10 , Miriam Burrell

The total number of students accepted on to UK degree courses has fallen 2.6 per cent on the same point last year, initial Ucas figures show.

A total of 414,940 are taking up places so far, according to the figures.

Falling attendance biggest concern for Education Secretary

08:31 , Miriam Burrell

The Education Secretary has said that students’ attendance rates is “the thing that probably worries me the most”.

Gillian Keegan told Sky News: “I’m worried about the attainment gap full stop. It’s the number one worry we’ve always had.”

She said that the Government will use this September to encourage children who stopped attending during the pandemic to get back to school.

“If you feel like you’re behind it only gets worse...it’s really much more looking at trying to resolve the issue and talking to the parents.”

79% students have first choice of university, Ucas says

08:43 , Miriam Burrell

There has been a slight drop in the number of students getting a place at their first choice of university.

Ucas chief executive Clare Marchant told the Today programme that 79 per cent of students had got their first choice, meaning that they can “just go out and celebrate”.

She said there has been “a slight drop from last year, which is what we expected as we return to the normal grading but again significantly up from the 74 per cent back in 2019 and that is what we expected”.

When asked about advice for students who didn’t get their first choice, she added: “Just think about your next step. We have got 29,000 courses in clearing as I sit here today and around 8,000 apprenticeships on UCAS.

“There is plenty of choice. The really key thing if you’re students or a parent, or guardian, is to just take a little bit of time. If you haven’t already done the research to think through what’s right for you.”

Fairest way of assessing students ‘is definitely exams’, Education Secretary claims

09:04 , Miriam Burrell

The Education Secretary has claimed that the “fairest way” of assessing students is “definitely exams”.

Gillian Keegan has pushed back at a critical report by the Social Mobility Foundation, which found that children from disadvantaged or low-income backgrounds in England were less likely to have received the help they needed to restore learning lost during the pandemic.

“Under this government from 2010, we had closed that (disadvantage) gap for the first time by 9.1 per cent,” she told ITV’s Good Morning Britain.

“So we were really pleased with the progress from 2010 to 2019. But it has stepped back with the pandemic, which is why we put that £5bn extra to help with tutoring to help with catch up.

“Actually it was the disadvantaged children that lost out in the teacher assessed grades as well. So the fairest way of assessing young people is definitely exams: everybody takes the same exam in the same conditions at the same time.”

Reports of earlier Ucas website crash

09:14 , Miriam Burrell

Students reported on social media that the Ucas website crashed earlier on Thursday morning as thousands attempted to find out their results.

The system, which is used to track university applications, was due to update from 8am on Thursday.

But several students reported a crash around that time on X, formerly known as Twitter.

One person wrote: “Ofc ucas had to crash this morning.” Another said: “Standard ucas crash.”

The website appears to be operating as normal now.

Jeremy Clarkson makes ‘good point’ about exam results, PM says

09:26 , Miriam Burrell

Rishi Sunak has agreed with Jeremy Clarkson’s advice that “it’s not the end of the world if your A level results aren’t what you’d hoped for”.

The broadcaster wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter: “I got a C and 2 Us and here I am today with my own brewery.”

The Prime Minister told students: “Jeremy has made a career of being the exception not the rule but he does have a good point here: Results day is important, but not necessarily a deal-breaker. Whatever results you got today, there are lots of options available to you.”

Record drop in top grades but higher than pre-pandemic levels

09:31 , Miriam Burrell

The number of students awarded top grades has fallen in a record drop compared with 2022, but remains above pre-pandemic levels.

More than a quarter of entries, 27.2 per cent, were awarded either an A or A*, down from 36.4 per cent in 2022, but up from 25.4 per cent in 2019.

Around one in 11 students received an A*, down from one in seven last year, but higher than 2019’s figure, which was 7.7 per cent.

The overall pass rate is the lowest figure since 2008, at 97.3 per cent. In 2022 it was 98.4 per cent and it 2019 it was 97.6 per cent.

The most popular subject was maths, psychology came in second and economics entered the 10 most popular topics for the first time.

The figures, published by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), cover A-level entries from students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Pictured: Students receive results

09:40 , Miriam Burrell

30% of London A-level entries awarded top grades

09:47 , Miriam Burrell

Percentages of A-level entries awarded the top grades (A*/A) by nation and region:

• North-east England 22.0%

• North-west England 24.1%

• Yorkshire & the Humber 23.0%

• West Midlands 22.9%

• East Midlands 22.3%

• Eastern England 26.6%

• South-west England 26.3%

• South-east England 30.3%

• London 30.0%

• England 26.5%

• Wales 34.0%

• Northern Ireland 37.5%

• All 27.2%

73,000 fewer top grades than last year

09:53 , Miriam Burrell

Jill Duffy, chief executive of exam board OCR, said there were 73,000 fewer top grades in England, Wales and Northern Ireland than in 2022.

But she added there were 32,000 more top grades this year than in 2019.

A total of 3,820 students in England alone scored three A* grades, according to separate figures from exams regulator Ofqual.

This is down from 8,570 last year, but up from 2,785 in 2019.

Pictured: London students celebrate results

09:57 , Miriam Burrell

10:00 , Miriam Burrell

Mayor of London congratulates students

10:01 , Miriam Burrell

Keir Starmer: ‘I will shatter the class ceiling'

10:09 , Miriam Burrell

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has congratulated students as he reflected on the time he received his exam results.

“I remember opening that envelope. My results allowed me to become the first in my family to go to university,” he wrote.

“That’s why I will shatter the class ceiling, so that all young people have the opportunities they deserve.”

More students studying computing but physics still dominated by males

10:28 , Miriam Burrell

Computing saw the biggest jump in candidates of any other subject, rising by more than 16 per cent compared with 2022.

Although this is encouraging, CEO of Code First Girls, Anna Brailsford, said male students still make up the majority of students taking maths and physics.

“It is disappointing that 77 per cent of Physics A Level students and 62 per cent of Maths A Level students are male,” Ms Brailsford said.

“With the underrepresentation of women in STEM subjects continuing to prevail, it is clear that schools are not doing enough to encourage its female students to pursue these subjects.

“As the UK’s tech job market continues to suffer from an ever-growing skills gap, and with projections suggesting that there will be just one qualified woman for every 115 roles by 2025 - we need to act fast to put in place the diverse tech talent pipeline we need.”

A ‘growing disparity’ between most and least deprived students

11:02 , Miriam Burrell

This year’s A-level results reveal a “growing disparity” between the most and least well off, the head of a social mobility charity warned.

Sir Peter Lampl, founder and chairman of the Sutton Trust and chairman of the Education Endowment Foundation, said: “There are significant regional differences in attainment, with top grades falling most in the North East while they have increased most in London and the South East, in line with patterns of regional prosperity.

”The gap in those achieving top grades has widened between those at independent and state schools.

“Comparing this year’s university acceptances to pre-pandemic levels in 2019, the gap between the most and least deprived pupils has widened and is now at levels last seen a decade ago. However, it has narrowed slightly since last year.”

Former footballer says exams ‘robotic and out of date'

11:11 , Miriam Burrell

Gary Neville, who helped found University Academy 92, has said students should be graded purely on coursework as he criticised the exam system.

He said exams are “robotic and methodical and...out of date”.

He told BBC Breakfast: “I have a different belief around exams. I don’t believe you should work for 16 years at school and at college and then it all depends upon a two-hour assessment.

“I think it’s prehistoric. I honestly believe that it needs ripping up.”

It comes after Education Secretary Gillian Keegan claimed that exams were the “fairest” way to assess students.

East London student scores top grades despite dyscalculia

11:16 , Miriam Burrell

A teenager from east London has scored top grades in his economics and finance A levels, despite having a condition that makes adding up numbers difficult.

Leon Goodman, 18, from Clayhall, achieved a B in finance, a C in economics and got a distinction for a BTEC in applied business.

He suffers from dyscalculia, a learning disorder that affects a person’s ability to understand number-based information and maths.

The student put his success down to teachers at Caterham High School who gave him extra support with his exams.

He said: “They were saying how the boundaries have got higher and people were worried and I saw a few articles saying they expected our year group not to do well. I’m really happy.”

Leon turned down the chance to go to uni to take up a marketing apprenticeship with the Prince’s Trust.

He added: “With sky high fees and the cost-of-living crisis I want to get out there and get a job rather than end up in mountains of debt.”

Pictured: Education Secretary visits City of London Academy

11:48 , Miriam Burrell

Students receive T-results for second year

11:51 , Miriam Burrell

Students in England have received their T-level results in the second year that the qualification has been awarded.

Overall, 3,448 students were awarded results on Thursday for the Government’s flagship technical qualification – which was introduced to be broadly equivalent to three A-levels.

Among the second cohort of T-level students, 90.5% achieved at least a pass.

Last year, 991 students were awarded T-level results in the first year. The first courses started in September 2020 in construction, digital, and education and childcare.

This year, T-level students are receiving results for a further seven courses.

Gillian Keegan defends the A*-E pass rate as it falls to lowest level since 2008

12:04 , Bill Mcloughlin

Speaking at the City of London Academy in Islington, the Education Secretary defended the falling pass rate by claiming As and A*s are higher than 2019.

She said: “So I think the pass rates do differ and you know, obviously, the exams differ, the cohorts differ, but what I will say is this year's exam results are fantastic results.

“Brilliant in terms of destinations - people being able to go on to universities - we've had three million young people look at apprenticeships now we've got them on the Ucas site as well and 350,000 of them have gone on and clicked on to look at more detail of that to get the applications etcetera.

“There are so many more opportunities for young people and I just want to say congratulations to them, they're fantastic. Well done, and enjoy where you're going to next.”

Gap between most and least deprived pupils widening

12:08 , Bill Mcloughlin

The academic gap between the most and least deprived pupils in the country has widened, an education charity has said.

Sir Peter Lampl, founder of the Sutton Trust, said: “The overall picture today is one of growing disparity between the most and least well off young people.

“There are significant regional differences in attainment, with top grades falling most in the North East while they have increased most in London and the South East, in line with patterns of regional prosperity.”

A-level results a ‘testament’ to the hard work of students who suffered through pandemic

12:23 , Bill Mcloughlin

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan praised the students who received their A-level results today after going through a “tough time” during the pandemic.

Ms Keegan said: “They’ve definitely had a tough time and they’ve definitely had to show their resilience.

“I mean, they did have teacher assessed grades at GCSE, they did have a lot of disruption during the pandemic, and that’s why I think it’s just our time really to congratulate them. They’ve done so well. They’ve really shown that they can be resilient.”

She added: “I was just talking to some students before, they said they practiced exams so that they could get the feel for what exams were like because they hadn’t done exams before.

“But I think it’s a brilliant, you know, testament really to their hard work and their determination how well they’ve all done.”

Results a ‘whirlwind of emotions,’ says Paddington sixth form student

12:48 , Bill Mcloughlin

Jonathan Russell, 18, a student at MBS Sixth Form in Paddington said he was full of mixed emotions after receiving his results, and will now be studying maths at the University of Edinburgh, his back-up choice, from September.

Mr Russell told the PA news agency: “I’m happy about some subjects, disappointed in others - it’s a sort of whirlwind of emotions. But I’m happy I got my offer.” He said he had already checked his university place at home on Ucas before coming into school to pick up his results.

On opening his results, he added: “It was more curiosity, to see what grade I missed for my first offer. It was not the one I expected, but it was the best one I could have missed.”

Mr Russell said he already had a strong familiarity with Edinburgh, having visited often in the summer with family, and already had friends based there.

He said he would be “going over to one of my friends to play some Mario Kart” to celebrate his results.

London sixth form sees 80 per cent of students score an A* or A grade

12:58 , Bill Mcloughlin

Newham Collegiate (NCS) saw 45 students offered places at either Oxford or Cambridge.

Nyari Barot, 18, from Dagenham, achieved three A* and will be going to Oxford to study theology.

She missed more than three weeks of school with a back injury she got while on holiday in India.

She said: “Getting into Oxford is hard enough but having to try to do it with a serious injury is almost impossible.

“The NCS were just incredible. It really is thanks to the teachers who took time out even after school to be able to help me get back to being ready for the exams.

“Now I am going to Oxford. It really is a dream come true for me because I have wanted this for such a long time.”

Sarah Oyegoke, 18, from Romford, is the 12th student from Newham Collegiate to win a full scholarship to the US.

She will be study law, with a focus on immigration, at Stanford University in California. The scholarship is covering the £80,000-a-year tuition fees and expenses over four years.

She said: “I’ve never been out of the country so to go and live in America is going to be a real culture shock for me.

“I was looking up where I wanted to go and the school really supported me when they suggested the scholarship for Stanford.

“I couldn’t believe that I could get into Stanford but everyone gave me the confidence to go for it.

“I am the twelfth student to leave East Ham for an Ivy League university. It is like something out of a film.”

A-level results show a ‘worrying trend of growing inequality’

13:20 , Bill Mcloughlin

This year’s A-level results have shown a growing trend of inequality within England, a social mobility charity has said.

Sarah Atkinson, chief executive of the Social Mobility Foundation, said: “Too many young people are continuing to shoulder the burden of the pandemic.

“While the government has returned to pre-pandemic grading this year, it doesn’t mean they should return to pre-pandemic education support.”

She added: “Concerningly, the results today show a worrying trend of growing inequality of attainment, both regionally, with the North-East falling behind London and the South-East and a widening the attainment gap between independent and state schools.”

Exams just as difficult as 2019, minister suggests

14:20 , Miriam Burrell

A-levels are just as difficult in 2023 as they were in 2019, the schools minister suggested.

Asked whether the qualification was now as difficult as pre-pandemic or if it was matched to a different performance standard, Nick Gibb told BBC Radio 4’s World at one: “What has happened is that yes, is the answer to that.

“The senior examiners will look at the overall performance this year and if they see at a national level a drop in performance then that will be taken into account.”

He added: “So a typical student in 2019 getting a B in geography is very likely to get the same grade in 2023.”

London student wins ‘life changing’ place at top public school

14:28 , Miriam Burrell

A student who won a “life-changing” free place at a top UK boarding school is pursuing her dream of becoming a doctor.

Ernesta Danquah Amoah, 18, from Barking in London, attended Millfield School, in Somerset, on a Royal National Children’s SpringBoard Foundation place to study for her A-levels in the sixth form.

She has achieved an A* in psychology, an A in biology and a B in chemistry and wants to study biomedical science at either Newcastle or Birmingham universities with a goal of becoming a doctor.

“Coming to Millfield was a life-changing experience,” she said.

“I was initially worried that I wouldn’t fit in as it was such a different environment from what I was used to in London but I was definitely proven wrong.”

University call centre inundated with thousands of calls

15:01 , Miriam Burrell

A university call centre had received more than 5,600 calls in the first hour of opening on Thursday morning.

More than 80 staff at the University of Sheffield had spoken to 430 people since opening the call centre at 8am, with the most popular subjects including management, law, psychology and engineering.

The university’s director of admissions said “clearing has become increasingly competitive” and “this year is no exception”.

Dan Barcroft, Director of Admissions at the University of Sheffield said: “At Sheffield, we have limited places available through clearing to high achieving students across a number of courses and are providing an accommodation guarantee to all applicants who have accepted an offer by the end of August.

“It’s so important that students considering an offer through clearing take the time to make well-informed decisions about where they want to study.”

‘No doubt that we have reinstated 2019 arrangements’, regulator says

15:29 , Miriam Burrell

Protection built into the grading process to recognise the disruption that A-level students faced has been “delivered”, England’s chief regulator has said.

Jo Saxton, chief regulator of Ofqual, told the PA news agency there was “no doubt” that pre-pandemic grading standards had been reinstated.

When asked why the proportion of top A-level results is still higher than 2019, despite an aim to return to pre-Covid grades, Dr Saxton told PA: “Whilst there are higher top grades than there were in 2019, it’s a narrow margin.

“We’re looking at around a percentage point on 2019 in the top grades, so there’s no doubt that we have reinstated 2019 arrangements.

“There’s also proof in that percentage point of higher top grades that protection, which I promised the young people, has been delivered.”

Minister backs T-Levels to become ‘world-beating qualification'

15:52 , Daniel Keane

A minister has backed T-Levels co become “a world-beating vocational technical qualification”.

Robert Halfon, minister for skills, apprenticeships and higher education, said: “We know that a huge amount of T-level students who wanted to go to university got offers from universities when they were applying.”

He added: “I think as more and more students do T-levels, as more and more T-levels come on board, they'll be offered by more and more universities.”

Students faced ‘tough ride’, warns expert

16:22 , Daniel Keane

Vivienne Stern, chief executive of Universities UK (UUK), has said that students faced a “tough ride” this year but noted that a “greater proportion of them gained a place at their first choice institution versus the last comparable year”.

“For some students who have done better than expected, or just missed out on the grades they needed for their first or insurance offer, there is lots of good advice and guidance available via the Ucas website.”

She added: “It is notable that the proportion of international students accepting places at our universities is the same as last year and down from 2019, knocking down the narrative that domestic students are in some way losing out.”

Computing leapfrogs religion in A-level entries

16:51 , Daniel Keane

Computing saw the biggest increase in the number of A-level entries in the UK this year, jumping by 17 per cent from 15,693 in 2022 to 18,306.

This was enough to propel it into the top 15 most popular subjects - an impressive achievement for a subject that was in 30th place as recently as 2014.

It was also enough to rank it ahead of religious studies for the first time, in what could be seen as a symbolic leapfrogging of a traditional subject by a very modern vocation.

Religious studies has been slipping in popularity for a while, with entries dropping 5 per cent year-on-year and down 38 per cent from a peak in 2016.

Drama and music see decline

17:24 , Daniel Keane

Having spent much of the past decade in freefall, entries for both drama and music defied expectation and held steady in 2021 and 2022, suggesting their long-term slump in popularity may have come to a halt.

This now looks to have been only a temporary reprieve, as both subjects this year resumed their decline.

Entries for drama fell 8 per cent compared with 2022 and have dropped by 45 per cent since 2010.

Music is down 7 per cent year-on-year and has also dropped by 45 per cent since 2010.

French and German fall even further

17:55 , Daniel Keane

There is no sign yet of the long-term decline of French and German reaching a standstill, let alone going into reverse.

Entries have dropped again this year, with French numbering 7,063 (a drop of 11% from 2022) and German down to 2,358 (down 16%).

The scale of the slump is striking, with French having fallen 49% since 2010 and German down a mighty 57%.

Spanish remains the most popular of the big three languages (8,110 entries), but this number has now fallen two years in a row, including a drop of 11% this year, suggesting it too might be going out of fashion.

The combined number of entries for other modern languages - which includes Chinese, Italian and Russian - stood at 5,955, up 8% year-on-year, but this is still well below the 8,289 in entries in 2019.

Students receive T-level results with 90.5% achieving pass

18:26 , Daniel Keane

Students in England have received their T-level results in the second year that the qualification has been awarded.

Overall, 3,448 students were awarded results on Thursday for the Government's flagship technical qualification - which was introduced to be broadly equivalent to three A-levels.

Among the second cohort of T-level students, 90.5 per cent achieved at least a pass.

The figures show that 69.2 per cent achieved a merit or above, 22.1 per cent achieved a distinction or above, and 0.3 per cent were awarded the top grade of a distinction*.

But figures suggest around a third of T-level students quit their course during their studies.

Economics now one among top ten most popular subjects

18:52 , Daniel Keane

Economics gained a spot in the top 10 most popular A-level subjects in the UK for the first time this year - taking ninth place overall, ahead of physics and pushing geography out of the list.

The rise in popularity could be because students feel it is relevant to modern challenges and issues such as climate change and the increased use of artificial intelligence, it has been suggested.

The figures also showed a surge in popularity for computing at A-level- it has seen the biggest increase in take-up this year compared to other subjects.

Watch: Student delighted as A-level results get her to Oxford

20:25 , Daniel Keane

Questions over ‘fairness’ as different grading standards used

20:40 , Daniel Keane

There are questions to be asked about the “fairness” of the exam system as different grading standards have been used in different UK nations, according to a social mobility expert.

A-level results in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have been published, with each nation taking an individual approach this year to grading and support offered to pupils following changes during the pandemic.

But this has led to warnings from some quarters about the impact on students.

Lee Elliot Major, professor of social mobility at the University of Exeter, said: “Questions must be asked about the fairness of an examination system that has applied different grade standards to different year cohorts of students but also students in the same year - depending on whether they live in England, Scotland or Wales.”

Thanks for following

20:59 , Daniel Keane

That’s all from us today - thank you for following our A-Level results coverage.