Thousands of students across Greater Manchester and the rest of the UK will receive their A level results today.
For many students, their A level results will determine which university course they get into and where they'll spend the next few years of their lives. Last year, grades were decided by teachers, using coursework and previous mock exams to determine the results, but this year has been a return for exams and teenagers will find out how they have done throughout the morning.
This year's grade boundaries will aim to reflect a 'midway' point between 2021 and 2019, to reflect the disruption, exam regulator Ofqual said. It means that the race for university places is expected to be one of the most competitive yet, with almost 40 per cent of students thought likely to make use of the clearing system to get a place on a course.
UCAS has acknowledged that universities’ approach to making offers to students this year has been a cautious one. Clare Marchant, UCAS chief executive officer, said: “A return to either an intermediary position or, as Ofqual have said, a midpoint, was never going to be pain-free and I think we would kid ourselves to say that that is going to be pain-free, although necessary to do.
“So I think there is lots of positive news in terms of potentially looking at record or near-record students getting into their first choice. But similarly, we all know that a return to midpoint is something that potentially needed to be done, but is not easy.”
We will be visiting a number of schools and colleges across the region as the day unfolds to get reaction from students and teachers. Updates will be posted in the blog below.
READ NEXT:
