Lower A-Level Grades 2023: 8 Reassuring things for worried parents and students to know

As if waiting for A-Level results wasn’t stressful enough, news about the fact that exam results are going to be lower this year than in the previous few years piles even more worry on top for nervous students.

Those with conditional offers at their preferred higher educational institution are suffering the most, with their futures hanging in a balance that seems weighted unfairly against them – had they taken their examinations in 2022 instead of 2023, it seems they would have been far more likely to receive a higher grade.

Furthermore, a mini baby boom that happened in the mid 2000s means that there are more 18-year-olds this year than there have been in earlier years, making the pressure for university places even more competitive than usual.

And yet it’s not like the Class of 2023 escaped COVID-related disruption at all – students currently awaiting A Level and BTEC results were subject to exactly the same chaos in their formative learning years as the three cohorts before them and would have spent much of their exam-learning years in and out of home learning.

In case you aren’t aware of the whole context: during the pandemic, the exam grading system was adjusted to allow for the disruption suffered by students, resulting in grade inflation. Now that pandemic disruption has been minimised, the grading system has returned (almost) to normal, so the hard truth is that, yes, schools are likely to see that overall A-Level grades are lower in 2023 than they were in 2020, 2021 or 2022. For this reason, it will be more useful to compare 2023 grade performance with the cohort of 2019 and before, rather than any of the pandemic years.

Could this mean that an individual student who might have received an A grade in the 2022 A-Level year is more likely to receive a B grade this year? It’s possible. However, the exam boards insist that such a student would have received a B grade A-Level pre-pandemic, and thus their B grade in 2023 is a true reflection of their performance, rather than an artificial inflation of their marks.

While there’s no escaping the fact that the generous pandemic grade allowances have been largely eschewed this year, there are some small crumbs of comfort.

Exam boards have said that allowances will still be made for the Class of 2023, and examiners have been instructed to ensure that where student performance on a national level is lower than before the pandemic due to disruption, they will adjust grades accordingly. This means that a student who would have achieved a B grade in A Level English before the pandemic should still achieve a B grade in that subject in 2023, even if their performance in the examinations was a little weaker.

If you’re awaiting your child’s or your own A Level results shortly, and are finding it hard to relax, here are some things to remember. Written as part of a letter to students by Jo Saxton, the Chief Regulator of Ofqual – the UK government body that regulates exam boards – and by Clare Marchant, Cheief Executive of UCAS – which operates the application process for UK universities and colleges – these points may give further context to the exam marking process, and hopefully help to reassure you that the grades will be as fair as possible.

Things to know about A-Level grades and the marking process of 2023

1. Your work is marked and graded by expert examiners. They do not know your name, which school or college you attended, or where in the country you live. Ofqual makes sure that the rules are the same for all students taking the same qualification.
2. All students are assessed on the same basis and your grade is determined solely on your work. Whatever your results, you can be confident that it’s no harder or easier to achieve a particular grade in the same subject no matter which exam board’s GCSE or A level qualification you took.
3. As mentioned above this year GCSEs, AS and A-level grading standards are returning to normal. There is, however, some grading protection built into the overall national results (not at individual student level), because of the disruption students have faced. This protection won’t boost your marks by whole grades, but it will mean that the quality of work required to achieve a grade is ever so slightly lower than would have been needed before the pandemic.
4. Awarding organisations are aware of the grading approach taken for GCSEs and A Levels and are taking an appropriate approach for each of their vocational and technical qualifications (such as T Levels, BTECs or Cambridge Technicals), given their different structures. For more information see Ofqual’s VTQ grading blog.
5. If you don’t get your predicted grades, DON’T WORRY, this happens very often. In 2019 only 21% of accepted applicants achieved or exceeded their predicted grades. Yet 86% of UK 18-year-olds applying to UCAS took up a higher education place. The number of university places available is not affected by the approach to grading.
6. Universities understood what grades will look like overall this year and took this into account when making offers. They also look at the full range of information within the UCAS application, including the personal statement and reference. This year 89% of students have received and accepted an offer from their preferred university, up from 83% last year.
7. Once you know your grades, Clearing offers you the chance to re-evaluate your choice regardless of whether you receive predicted, better or lower grades, and there will be thousands of courses available. Last year, 12,000 applicants who did not have a place on results day went on to be accepted onto a course in Clearing. You will also receive an email from UCAS tailored to you, which will clearly outline your next steps and other options you may want to consider.
8. You will have plenty of choice for your next steps. Due to an increase in 18-year-olds in the population, there will be competition for higher education places again this year as more students seek to go to university or college – but be assured, there will be many options to choose from, whether exploring an undergraduate degree, thinking about an apprenticeship or employment. Take some time to thoroughly consider all your options – but be mindful that the most selective courses do get filled quickly.

See the full letter to students, with further tips about the Clearing process, here.

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