UAE A LEVEL and BTEC RESULTS 2021. The Full Story.

5:00pm: Tuesday 10th August 2021: And that’s a wrap. It’s been a long day – but in many ways an historic one. No Student, or indeed school, has had an easy year – in many cases it has fallen little short of catastrophic by any normal standards of the education that we all expect to Sixth Form students to have access to. In almost every case, it is the rounded edges of education, in areas like the Performing Arts, Sport and ECAs that have taken a direct hit, but it is the interactivity and cultural aspects of student and school life that have probably wrought the most shocks. Mental health issues and worries have forced many of us, including those many years in age advanced of students in Year 13, have resulted in us facing issues and dilemmas we never could have envisaged – or would wish to. The achievements of students, families and schools this year represents an inflection point in education that will have broader impacts that may very well not be known long into the years ahead. Already, to take a simple issue, serious consideration is being given to moving A Levels from the letter grading system to a numerical one (like GCSEs) to create some sort of re-set from the impacts of grade inflation. For those who worry that this year’s results mean less than previous years, we argue they, in fact, mean so much more. This is true in no small part too of heir grading – many believe that grading students on the basis of teacher assessment rather than examination grades and quotas is an infinitely more accurate means of awarding qualifications not less. It is on that note that all of us should thank teachers – they have been required to take on definitive assessment responsibilities (and responsibilities is the key word here) that were never anticipated part of their role. That they have cleary fought so hard for their students across UAE schools speaks volumes about just how amazing hey are – and how grateful to them all of us should be. Many students over the following days will face issues on the availability of university courses. The number this will effect is unclear – but Medicine and Dentistry are particularly hit. The hope must be that, whilst UAE students learn in private schools – they do so with no alternative state sector. The current moves by universities to positively discriminate in favour of state educated students should not impact on students in the UAE on that basis. On the basis of all of us at SchoolsCompared.com and WhichSchoolAdvisor.com all that is left to say on the mater is an extraordinarily big “well done!” To close we finish up with news on GEMS Education and their wrap-up of the extraordinary and much-deserved success of students across their British schools.

Table of results, A-Z

	No of students	No of exam entries	% of Grade 9	% of Grade 9-8 (A*)	% of Grade 9-7 (A*-A)	% of Grade 9-6 (A*-B)	% of Grade 9-4 /(A* – C)	Overall pass rate   9-4 (A*-C)	% achieving 5 A*-C/ 9-4 Inc. English and Maths
Al Ain Academy	np	np	40.4	55.8	70.2	77.9	98.1	np	np
Al Bateen Academy	np	np	17.1	32.8	49.9	71.2	91.2	np	np
Al Mamoura Academy	np	np	12.4	31	53.5	73.6	98.4	np	np
Al Yasmina Academy	np	np	19.6	39.1	56	75.2	95.2	np	np
Brighton College Abu Dhabi	77	729	33	56	77	92	99	99	99
Brighton College Al Ain	28	228	36	56	78		99	99	96
Brighton College Dubai	9	75	29	55	69	81	99	100	100
British International School AD	90	780	31	47	62	78	94	95	91
British School Al Khubairat	np	np	25	43	66	np	98	98	np
Cambridge International School AD	197	1450		29.9	50.3	77.3	89.3	89.3	np
Cambridge International School Dubai	233	1673		26.8	49.6	73.3	87.1	87.1	100
Dubai College	123	1105	63.44	83.98	95.66	100	100	100	100
Dubai English Speaking College	227	2038	14	np	53	75	99	99	96.5
GEMS Firstpoint School	96	790	12	27	50	75	98	100	np
GEMS Founders Dubai	221	1545		24.1	40	69.1	82.7	82.7	np
GEMS Metropole School	137	1000	8.6	21.2	37.8	np	75.5	88.9	np
GEMS National School Al Barsha	42	4.2	12.5	26.8	69	np	87.2	87.2	np
GEMS Wellington International School	156	564	36	52	70	92	98	98	np
GEMS Westminster School RAK	130	631		25.8	40.1	64.2	75	75	np
GEMS Westminster School Sharjah	139	887		20.3	40.5	64.9	85.8	85.8	np
GEMS Winchester School Dubai	174	1,289		12.6	31	67.1	85.3	85.5	np
GEMS Winchester School Fujeirah	24	144		36.1	56.9	70.1	84	84	np
Grammar School	79	410	15	35	49	78	89	np	np
Jumeirah College	160	1459	24.4	55.9	81.2	97.1	99.4	99	np
Jumeirah English Speaking School AR	130	1163	47.7	68.9	85.3	95.3	99.9	99.9	100
Kent College Dubai	37	np	12	24	48	69	94	np	np
Nord Anglia International School Dubai	np	np	np	48	np	np	np	100	100
Our Own English School Al Aim	77	543		20.6	36.5	57.1	75	75	np
Repton Abu Dhabi	21	174	34	44	64	79	98	100	100
Repton Dubai	79	745	17	39	58	75	95	100	93
Safa Community School	np	np	n/a	19	36	58	84	84	100
Sharjah English School	49	436	34	60	81	92	99	99
Sunmarke School	105	939	20	36	58	80	96	96	92
Star International School, Al Twar	13	110	31	45	57	76	99	100	100
The English College	102	905	22	39	58	76	95	95	np
The Westminster School Dubai	346	2397		20.7	45.9	71.1	90.4	90.4	np
The Winchester School Jebel Ali	224	1858		27.6	51	72.2	86.2	86.2	np

Table of results, Order by %Grade 9-8

	No of students	No of entries	% of Grade 9	% of Grade 9-8 (A*)	% of Grade 9-7 (A*-A)	% of Grade 9-6 (A*-B)	% of Grade 9-4/(A* – C)	Overall pass rate 9-4 (A*-C)	% achieving 5 A*-C / 9-4 inc.English and Maths
Dubai College	123	1105	63.44	83.98	95.66	100	100	100	100
Jumeirah English Speaking School AR	130	1163	47.7	68.9	85.3	95.3	99.9	99.9	100
Sharjah English School	49	436	34	60	81	92	99	99	99
Brighton College Abu Dhabi	77	729	33	56	77	92	99	99	99
Brighton College Al Ain	28	228	36	56	78		99	99	96
Jumeirah College	160	1459	24.4	55.9	81.2	97.1	99.4	99	np
Al Ain Academy	np	np	40.4	55.8	70.2	77.9	98.1	np	np
Brighton College Dubai	9	75	29	55	69	81	99	100	100
GEMS Wellington International School	156	564	36	52	70	92	98	98	np
Nord Anglia International School Dubai	np	np	np	48	np	np	np	100	100
British International School AD	90	780	31	47	62	78	94	95	91
Star International School, Al Twar	13	110	31	45	57	76	99	100	100
Repton Abu Dhabi	21	174	34	44	64	79	98	100	100
British School Al Khubairat	np	np	25	43	66	np	98	98	np
Al Yasmina Academy	np	np	19.6	39.1	56	75.2	95.2	np	np
Repton Dubai	79	745	17	39	58	75	95	100	93
The English College	102	905	22	39	58	76	95	95	np
GEMS Winchester School Fujeirah	24	144		36.1	56.9	70.1	84	84	np
Sunmarke School	105	939	20	36	58	80	96	96	92
Grammar School	79	410	15	35	49	78	89	np	np
Al Bateen Academy	np	np	17.1	32.8	49.9	71.2	91.2	np	np
Al Mamoura Academy	np	np	12.4	31	53.5	73.6	98.4	np	np
Cambridge International School AD	197	1450		29.9	50.3	77.3	89.3	89.3	np
The Winchester School Jebel Ali	224	1858		27.6	51	72.2	86.2	86.2	np
GEMS Firstpoint School	96	790	12	27	50	75	98	100	np
Cambridge International School Dubai	233	1673		26.8	49.6	73.3	87.1	87.1	100
GEMS National School Al Barsha	42	4.2	12.5	26.8	69	np	87.2	87.2	np
GEMS Westminster School RAK	130	631		25.8	40.1	64.2	75	75	np
GEMS Founders Dubai	221	1545		24.1	40	69.1	82.7	82.7	np
Kent College Dubai	37	np	12	24	48	69	94	np	np
GEMS Metropole School	137	1000	8.6	21.2	37.8	np	75.5	88.9	np
The Westminster School Dubai	346	2397		20.7	45.9	71.1	90.4	90.4	np
Our Own English School Al Aim	77	543		20.6	36.5	57.1	75	75	np
GEMS Westminster School Sharjah	139	887		20.3	40.5	64.9	85.8	85.8	np
Safa Community School	np	np	n/a	19	36	58	84	84	100
GEMS Winchester School Dubai	174	1,289		12.6	31	67.1	85.3	85.5	np
Dubai English Speaking College	227	2038	14	np	53	75	99	99	96.5

12:05pm: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Congratulations in from Olivia Roth, Chief Executive Officer, BSME Middle East to all its British schools and students:

“Students in every BSME school have excelled despite the most challenging circumstances: last minute exam board changes, inconsistent decisions out of schools’ control plus a pandemic to manage.

They have demonstrated resilience beyond their years.

Teachers have gone above and beyond to ensure that students’ learning has progressed and that their wellbeing remains a priority.

We know that the future of every student is safe in their hands.

#ProudlyBSME”

12:01pm: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Dubai College results are in!

The cohort of 132 students at Dubai College entering for the A Level qualification achieved the following results: 

A*: 48.78% 

A*A: 81.07% 

A*B: 94.65% 

A*C: 98.44% 

The pass rate was 100 %  

The top 5 university destinations of Dubai College graduating students are: 

1. University of Exeter (10 students)
2. University College London (9 students) 
3. Imperial College London (8 students)
4. King’s College London (7 students)
5. Cambridge, Edinburgh, Loughborough, Manchester, McGill (4 students each) 

A considerable proportion of students entered the fields of Medicine, Law, Engineering, Business, Economics or Finance. In addition, Dubai College students are now heading off to study a diverse and broad range of courses around the world including Comparative Literature and International Relations, Fashion Management, East Asian Studies with Studio Art and Earth Sciences among many others. 

Stand out students include Sourav Roy who achieved 5 A* grades in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Maths and Music plus an A* in his EPQ. 

• 13 other students achieved a full house of A* grades in all four of their chosen subjects.  
• 16 other students achieved a full house of A* grades in all three of their chosen subjects. 

 81% of all A Level qualification resulting in an A or A* grade. As many as 30 students gained a full house of the coveted A* grades, 13 of whom achieved this rare feat in four A Level subjects and one of whom doing so in five A Level subjects.  

Headmaster of Dubai College, Mike Lambert, said,

“The different models of assessment used by schools this year make traditional comparisons relatively meaningless.

However, I am pleased for all the Dubai College students who persevered over the course of the past 18 months and achieved such a strong set of results this summer.

With these grades they have been able to secure some impressive university offers despite the squeeze on the number of available places which has resulted from the greater number of students achieving their offers both last year and this year.

On some courses, for example Medicine, there has been a 20% rise in the number of applicants this year.

Every A Level student should be proud of their achievements this year more than ever.”

Head of Sixth Form, Bobby Trivic, said of the results:

“Following the cancellation of final examinations, these grades represent our students’ holistic performance across two years and thus is a measure of their consistent academic exploration and endeavour. More than anything else, the students have demonstrated immense adaptability and resilience in overcoming the inevitable personal and academic challenges brought by the pandemic in their final year of school.

They should all be incredibly proud of their achievements today and over the past two years and we wish them the best of luck as they leave for their next academic venture.”  

11:51am: Tuesday 10th August 2021:

“We are so proud of all of our A Level students Incredible results and we couldn’t be happier for you all.

Congratulations to everyone who has contributed to this phenomenal academic success.

#ACEtogether #WEKSuccess #LimitlessLearning #ALevelResultsDay #Proud“

11:49am: Tuesday 10th August 2021:

11:35am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Brighton College Al Ain results in 2021 are in and the school has asked to particularly celebrate the achievements of young women excel in the sciences and mathematics examinations.

 47% of exams sat by the pupils this year have resulted in a top grade of A*, with 75% at A-A and 90% A-B.

Pupils who have achieved outstanding A Level grades this year include:

• Dania Al Hashimi achieved A*A*A*A* in Mathematics, Chemistry, Biology and Spanish. She is taking a gap year and applying for Medicine in the UK.
• Ghalia Alsayed achieved A*A*A* in Computing Science, Mathematics and Chemistry and is heading to University College, London to read Computing Science.
• Melis Cevik achieved A*A*A* in Mathematics, Chemistry and Physics and is heading to the University of Amsterdam to read Business Analytics.
• Ruba ElHouni achieved A*A*A* in Mathematics, Chemistry and Physics and is heading to the University of Lancaster to read Chemical Engineering.
• Felix Payne achieved A*A*A* in History, Geography and Economics and is taking a gap year then applying for History in the UK.
• Brian Thomas achieved A*A*A* in Mathematics, Chemistry and Biology and is heading to the University of Debrecen in Hungary to read Medicine.

 

Head Master of Brighton College Al Ain, Dr Kenneth Greig said:

“This has been another extremely difficult year for our pupils with the changes to examinations due to the pandemic, but I’m so pleased that the awarding bodies have placed their trust in Centre Assessed Grades.

The hard work carried out by Brighton College Al Ain pupils and our teachers has resulted in yet another superb set of results which gives our pupils an excellent basis for success at University and beyond.

I am particularly pleased to see that so many girls have achieved top results in the sciences and mathematics.

As a scientist myself, it is wonderful to see young women choosing careers in these areas.

I feel sure that pupils at Brighton College Al Ain will continue to perform at the highest academic level for many years to come.”

11:35am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Brighton College Abu Dhabi results off the press:

Brighton College Abu Dhabi pupils have beaten last year’s record haul of top grades, securing 85% A*-B grades in this year’s examinations.

Beyond the headline, we were delighted that Bright College Abu Dhabi is the first school to have sent us an Added Value score. This looks beyond headline results (which are fairly meaningless in themselves), to the amount that students at the school exceeded their expected grades on joining the school:

“Even more important than the raw scores, the value-added score that pupils have achieved this year is (+1.25), which yet again reflects the excellence of the school’s excellent teaching and learning. This year’s outstanding results mean that, on average, a Brighton College Abu Dhabi pupil gains a grade and a quarter above statistical expectations.”

Two Brighton College Abu Dhabi pupils this year will study at Cambridge University and a third has deferred his place until 2022.

 63.3% of all grades achieved this year are A* – A grades, 85.1% of grades are A* – B, and 95.8% of the grades that have been achieved are A* – C.

Brighton College Abu Dhabi are also the first school to report the specific achievements of their UAE national pupils. This year they have achieved a hugely creditable 83% A*- B grades.

The school has asked us to celebrate with them the achievements of the following students (and we are delighted to do so):

Yoobin An (Korean)                                        4A*

Cara Easton (British)                                       4A*

Mireya Arora (Indian)                                      3A* 1A

Ibrahim Arekat (Palestinian)                           3A*

Euan Dalley (British)                                       3A*

Sindhuja Renganathan (Australian)                  3A*

Sophie Biervert (German)                                3A*

Julien L’Her (Canadian)                                   2A* 2A

Neha Nouman (British)                                   2A* 2A

Carolina Beirne (Singaporean)                         2A* 1A

Davide Frenguelli (Italian)                               2A* 1A

Laura Hurn (British)                                        2A* 1A

Sofia McLachlan Vazquez (British)                  2A* 1A

Lakshmi Mukundan (Indian)                           2A* 1A

Charlotte Stoll (British)                                    2A* 1A

Sebastian Dunleavy (British)                            4A

Simon Corns, Head Master of Brighton College Abu Dhabi said:

“It is an extraordinary tribute to the resilience of our pupils that, despite the appalling challenges they have faced over the last two years from learning disruption, distance learning and unpredictability, that they have gone on to achieve such richly deserved distinction.

Experience they engaged in at the school prior to the pandemic when they benefited from an enormous range of co-curricular activities, I am sure, has ensured that they are rounded human beings who can withstand the pressures to which young people are inevitably exposed, and more  than ever at the moment.

I congratulate them all, and the excellent staff who helped them to achieve these stunningly impressive grades in the school’s tenth year of operation.”

Amit Patel, Head of Sixth Form added,

‘Year 13 pupils throughout the world have endured and overcome many challenges that just two years ago many of us could have never imagined.

We are extremely proud of our pupils here at Brighton College Abu Dhabi who have not only managed to cope with and navigate the obstacles that they faced, but have done so with determination, hard work and empathy to those around them.

The outstanding results that they have secured this year are down to the efforts of the pupils and the support of their hard-working teachers.

We have a number of pupils who have secured places to study Medicine, and two who will be studying at Cambridge this September.

We now congratulate all our pupils as they move on to some of the finest universities around the world, whether they are St Andrews, Warwick or Durham in the UK, or Toronto, Penn State, NYUAD, or Auckland around the globe.

We are proud of all their achievements and excited about their future adventures.”

 

11:31am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Results from GEMS FirstPoint School for both A Level and BTEC have landed on the SchoolsCompared Desk.

The cohort of 47 students at FirstPoint School entering A Level qualifications across 145 exam entries achieved the following results:

A*: 18%

A*A: 46%

A*B: 75%

A*C: 90%

The pass rate was 100%

 

For BTEC:

 

The cohort of 4 students at FirstPoint School entering for Level 3 BTEC qualification achieved the following results:

Pass: 50%

Merit: 0%

Distinction: 50%

Distinction*: 0%

The pass rate was 100%.

 

The top 5 university destinations of our graduating students are:

A: UCL (University of Central London)

B: Edinburgh

C: CATOLICA

D: Bristol

E: Polimoda

F: Glion and Les Roches

 

Degree courses include: MPharm, Medicine, Law, Business Administration, Psychology

A Level results	2021	2020	2019
Name of School	FirstPoint School
No. of students in A level cohort:	47	48	18
No. of exam entries	145	148	63
% of exam entries graded A*	18%	22%	0%
% of exam entries graded A*-A	46%	47%	13%
% of exam entries graded A*-C	90%	93%	67%
% of exam entries graded A*- E	100%	100%
Overall pass rate A*-E	100%	100%
Number of students excluded from the statistics (staff, non-students etc)	0	0
Highest number of grades by individual students Anonymised	1.     A*, A*, A*, A* 2.     A*, A*, A*, A 3.     A*, A*, A* 4.     A*, A*, A* 5.     A*, A*, A*, A	2 students achieved 3 or more A*-A grades.

 

BTEC Level 3 results	2021	2020	2019
Name of School	FirstPoint School
No. of students in BTEC Level 3 cohort:	4	2	–
No. of BTEC entries	4	2	–
% of entries graded Distinction*	0%	0%	–
% of entries graded Distinction	50%	0%	–
% of entries graded Merit	0%	0%	–
% of entries graded Pass	50%	100%	–
% of entries graded Unclassified	0%	0%	–
Overall pass rate	100%	100%	–
Number of students excluded from the statistics	0	0	–
Highest number of grades by individual students	2x Distinctions   1 student achieved a Distinction alongside 1x A* and 2x As in A Levels – as well as completing an industry placement under our internships programme.	2 x passes	–

Standout students include:

Tiago Grilo  studied traditional core subjects including Mathematics, Spanish and Business combined with the school’s internships programme – completing an internship with SIEMENS Middle East. Mr Grilo supported the school through the Covid crisis and was a part of the emergency planning team as well as appearing on the main stage of the WETEX Smart Energy for a Sustainable Solution seminar to give a talk on sustainability with the CEO of Siemens Middle East.  Mr Grilo secured straight A* in his A-Levels and a highly-coveted place at CATOLICA Lisbon to study Business.

“These last two years of school have been a stepping stone to life in more ways than one. FirstPoint has played a key part in preparing us for the next stage of our lives, and we are privileged to have had an outstanding level of education and access to the innovative opportunities that FPS offers. These past two years have been difficult (with Covid), and so many people don’t have the same opportunities that we have had, so I feel lucky and know that FPS has prepared us to thrive in the future.

Going forward, life will continue to challenge us time after time and life will hit us from unexpected angles, but thanks to FPS, we will be ready to fight back and be able to pave our own paths to success. FirstPoint has now been my home for the past six years. FPS is the place where I have grown into the ambitious, proactive person that I am today, and it is also the place where I have met the people who I now call family and teachers who pushed for me at my lows and challenged me to reach my highs. T

his year group has a bright future ahead, and I cannot wait to see the mark we leave on this world. For me, I am going to be heading back home to study Business Administration at CATOLICA Lisbon. I have been waiting for this moment all my life and I could not be more ready for this next phase thanks to FPS. Therefore, I am very grateful to FPS for all it has done to help prepare me for the future.”

Sreekar Gudipati accessed a mixture of learning models provided by the school’s blended learning offer. Mr Gudipati achieved a score of 1570 out of 1600 in his SATs, placing him in the 99th percentile internationally. He was also able to secure four A Levels at A* grade and secure a place at a prestigious university in Singapore.

Mr Gudipati graduation GEMS FirstPoint School as Valedictorian and top of his class.

“None of this would have been possible without the support of my teachers, my friends and FirstPoint school. Working at FPS is not easy. The challenge is high and they push you to be your very best. But this whole experience has given me a first-class education, which has set me up for what I hope is a very successful future”.

Sonaa Balasubramaniam overcome significant challenges and difficulties during the pandemic in order to fulfil her ambitions of completing her A Levels and applying to read Medicine at university. With a move to Distance Learning and the full support of her teachers and school, Ms Balasubramaniam achieved three A*s and one A in her Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics A Levels, this securing an offer at UCL (University College London) to read for their prestigious MPharm course. MPharm from UCL is among the top 5 globally. ,

Nawal Sheikh achieving three A*s and one A.  Ms Sheikh became a published author at GEMS FirstPoint and completed A Levels in a range of subjects, including Psychology and both English Language and Literature. Ms Sheikh secures an offer to study at the University of Bristol.

“My favourite thing about FPS is the close-knit community between everyone at the school – the teachers, the staff, the students and even the security guards. Being a distant learner, I was worried about losing that closeness but when I do come to school, the security guards always ask me how I’m doing, how my family is doing and always wish me good luck. I feel like that’s such a unique trait that you can’t find at every school and I’m going to miss it. The diversity of the school makes it easy to connect with someone. Trust the people around you because they want to help you and they are beneficial during the GCSE years. FPS has enabled me to thrive this year, despite the challenges of Covid and I have been fully supported through all of my studies, my university applications and through my fears, worries and concerns. I am very grateful to FPS for their unending support.”

Matthew Tomkins, Principal and Chief Executive Officer at GEMS FirstPoint School in Dubai, speaking exclusively to SchoolsCompared.com, said:

“For the third year in a row, the A Level students at GEMS FirstPoint have broken all previous records.

We are so proud of all that our FirstPoint Family have achieved.

By working together, our students, their families and the staff at FirstPoint have achieved outstanding results.

Alongside the grades they have achieved, the students also leave with a set of qualities and skills that will serve them well throughout the rest of their lives.

The students of FirstPoint School will enter employment as leaders and lead with integrity and responsibility throughout their careers.

Congratulations to the class of 2021.

We are so proud of you all.”

Dr. Daniel Doyle, Head of School, GEMS FirstPoint School Dubai, told us:

These results demonstrate that year on year FirstPoint school achieves outstanding results across a wide range of qualifications and courses for all of its pupils. These results are a testament to the incredible resilience and perseverance of our students.

They have worked so hard this year and are a credit to the school and our families. We are so proud of them.

Whilst it has been a year of unpredictability and change, we have still been able to stay true to our identity and offer an innovative and challenging curriculum that integrates internships, industry-based placements and wider opportunities into daily learning.

These results are truly indicative of the quality of teaching and learning here at FPS, and we must thank our teachers for their relentless efforts to provide high-quality, engaging learning opportunities across a range of learning models – enabling all students, in all circumstances to access education and fulfill their full potential.

The future is bright for us here at FPS and we feel very proud of our school community.

I wish our graduating class every success with their future endeavours.”

 

11:30am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Dubai British School Emirates Hills ‘A’ Level results are in:

A Level results	2021	2020	2019
Name of School	Dubai British School Emirates Hills
No. of students in A level cohort:	71
No. of exam entries	170 166 A-level 4 AS level entries
% of exam entries graded A*	19%
% of exam entries graded A*-A	54%	60%	59%
% of exam entries graded A*-C	96%	98%	94%
% of exam entries graded A*- E	100%	100%	100%
Overall pass rate A*-E	100%	100%	100%
Number of students excluded from the statistics (staff, non-students etc)	None
Highest number of grades by individual students	4 x A*

DBS Result Overview 

Post 16  (including all Post-16 qualifications AS/A-levels and BTECs)

Total number of Year 13 A-level students: 51

Total number of Phase 4 qualification students (including AS/early entry): 71
Total number of BTEC students: 21

A*-B A*-C 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020  2021 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020  2021 All Phase 4 Including BTEC 55% 67% 73% 78% 85%  81% 78% 92% 93% 94% 98%  96% All A Level 54% 61% 67% 70% 78%  86% 77% 89% 91% 91% 97%  98% English 29% 60% 67% 64% 92%  86% 71% 100% 100% 88% 100%  100% Maths 68% 65% 75% 91% 70%  84% 84% 90% 94% 91% 88%  95% Further Maths 100% 33% 100% 100% 100%  100% 100% 67% 100% 100% 100%  100% Science 66% 56% 33% 61% 87%  81% 76% 80% 71% 77% 100%  97%

 

Simon Jodrell, Principal, Dubai British School Emirates Hills told SchoolsCompared.com:

“I am delighted to be able to congratulate the students at DBS EH who, despite challenging circumstances, have received exceptional results today, which truly reflect their efforts and achievements.

To have demonstrated such sustained high levels of commitment in uncertain times has seen DBS EH students justly rewarded with entry to both Russell group universities in the UK, and leading universities worldwide, and the results are extremely well deserved. I am confident that the diligent, responsible, bright and able students leaving the Sixth Form at DBS EH will thrive on their chosen paths.”

Sinead Kehoe Head of Secondary, Dubai British School Emirates Hills told SchoolsCompared.com:

“I could not be prouder of how well our DBS EH Sixth Form students have done in their A-level and BTEC qualifications. Students internationally have been affected across the two years of their A-level and BTEC courses. However, to see the determination and resilience of our teachers and students in responding to those challenges has been incredibly humbling. These results demonstrate the hard work and determination of our school community in supporting excellent achievement and I’m delighted to see our students maintaining great results in difficult times. A huge 25% of our graduating class were awarded three or more grades at A/A* in their A-level subjects with three individual students achieving an A* in all their subjects.

Our overall Phase 4 data (including BTEC) remains in line with the achievement levels of previous years, and we have seen an increase in the number of A* to B grades in our A-level courses in line with an ongoing increase in results that has been happening over the past five years.

Our students are now in an excellent position to launch their academic careers with university offers in the UK and abroad onto courses such as Medicine, Law and Architecture.”

Ben Crowder: Assistant Headteacher, Dubai British School Emirates Hills, said:

“We are delighted to announce that Dubai British School Emirates Hills have achieved our best ever A* results at A-level. An incredible 19% of students were awarded the highest possible grade demonstrating that all of the hard work and effort in this most challenging of years.  I am so proud of all of their efforts and am delighted that so many of the students have managed to reach their first-choice universities.”

11:15am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: A good explanation of BTEC grades from CareerMap:

10:51am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Gavin Williamson, the UK Secretary of State for Education, is being interviewed live on the BBC for his major appearance as part of A Level and BTEC Results Day 2021. A Level results are now the top story on the BBC. These are Mr Williamson’s  key points:

On reports that nearly half of students who sat A Levels will receive an A or A* grade:

“We should be celebrating children this year. It is a truly exceptional year. This year’s cohorts of students have had to deal with a level of disruption even greater than that experienced during a World War. It was correct that we took the necessary action to ensure that they can take the next step on in the lives, whether to university, careers, apprenticeship or higher technical qualification.

[Quite extraordinary the expressed outrage of the presenters that students grades should be this high from the BBC, but it’s possible they are just goading Mr Williamson.]

On grade inflation – and what will happen next year:

You raise an important point. We do expect students to get better grades this year – but it is difficult to compare the experiences of students this year from previous years. Next year we hope to be stepping back to normality and examinations. We also set out mitigations we look to put in place. We recognise that youngsters will have again faced disruptions and mitigations are in place. We need to manage the return back to normality for students.”

On the UK government being a disaster after a report by the Institute for Government accused the government of failing students by not planning properly for a second wave:

“Sadly the report is inaccurate and misleading. We have planned. We learned from last year – and as you have seen this year we have a completely different approach this year. [..] Last year we did not serve students well enough and I personally apologised for this. ”

On worries that students will get to university and be imprisoned in their rooms again, doing online learning again:

“We have been absolutely clear with universities that it is absolutely safe and OK to do face to face teaching, whether tutorials or lectures. I do not have the same powers with universities as I have with schools. But we are clear we want high quality teaching – and part of this is being present in the lecture theatre and tutorials with your pers. You can do so much on Zoom and Teams but nothing can replace being there in person. I will be asking the OFS to put pressure on the universities to re-start face to face learning.

On students anger about fees for what amounts to no more than a distance learning education…..

“We have asked the regulator to look at the quality of teaching in universities -= and that means face-to-face learning. Universities are very safe places to be. We want to see them back in the lecture theatres as well as on campus.”

On there being not enough places or accommodation for students and quality going down… 

“We are going to have a big demographic bulge this year. We have already taken action. There is always pressure on medical places. Just a few years ago there were only 6000 medical places. Today there are 8500 places. We have put in extra money, £10M, to increase the number of high quality, most expensive courses. Universities have grown their capacity – and it has continued this year. We are confident that the student experience will be ever better. It is really important that we remember too that not all students will go to university. Many will go on to higher technical qualifications in colleges or apprenticeships for example. Many students will earn whilst they learn. We must get out of the habit of thinking that university is the only route that students can follow.”

 

10:45am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: as we await the flood of exam results due from around 11:30am, a big congratulations to every BTEC and A Level student in schools across the UAE from both the SchoolsCompared.com and WhichSchoolAdvisor.com teams of journalists and educationalists. Whatever your results, individually and collectively you have achieved nothing less than the extraordinary in years that historically will be seen as an inflection point in the world and education. Covid 19 has impacted all of us in in extraordinary ways, some of which we shall not even be conscious of, or count the cost of, for many years to come. Many of us too will have experienced tragedy. Covid 19 puts today in context in every possible way. A very heartfelt well done.

10:30am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Good article in the TES on all that there is to celebrate in this year’s results. We think the following points are key:

“Students will receive grades which reflect their achievements. There were no grade ‘quotas’ and no pressure on centres to conform to a historic grade pattern – just a requirement to evidence candidates’ knowledge and skills and to assess them in test conditions against nationally set grade criteria as consistently as possible.”

“The system won’t generate the same national distribution of grades as in previous years – that would have required the application of an algorithm. Rather than talking of ‘grade inflation’, we need to understand that grading based on several assessment opportunities rather than a few terminal exams will not produce the same results profile. This doesn’t mean it’s less accurate, it’s just the consequence of a different approach.”

“So let’s see this year’s results for what they are: a meaningful assessment of students’ learning by skilled professionals applying national standards in challenging circumstances. This year’s students have had to overcome so many obstacles on the road to their grades, the least we can do is resolve to celebrate their achievements.”

More on why we need to celebrate student achievement this year can be found here.

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10:17am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Alistair Jarvis, Universities UK being interviewed on the BBC on the worry that there will not be enough places for students. Tellingly, he does not answer the question he was given – but focuses on the big issue of lack of places in a stock answer clearly memorised before the interview.

“Universities have been expecting higher demand and we have planned for it. We are predicting record numbers The vast majority of students will get into the course they want.”

He also claims the “vast majority” of teaching “will be face to face.”

He escribes reports that many students will receive online lessons as “misleading.”

In the context of Covid 19, Mr Jarvis also promises that student “mental health” is a priority for universities and universities are and will be there to help them.

Universities UK represents 140 universities in the UK.

More on Universities UK can be found here.

10:10am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Very hard hitting (and excellent) story in the UK’s Daily Telegraph expressing anger at the very confused priorities in education and treatment of students:

“This generation of children has been utterly neglected, so let’s stop with the fake sympathy, Gavin. For two years, they have not done exams and are now being told that their results, assessed by teachers, will probably be too high (grade inflation). Children who have been in and out of school, quarantined in their bedrooms and taught mostly online are now being told there are not enough university places for them.

[…]

I think I would be greatly cheered if any of my kids decided to become something useful, like an electrician. So to those who do not get the results they want, all I can say is that there really is more than one path to getting to where you want to go.

Sure, it’s difficult, but at the heart of learning is flexible thinking and adaptability. And you have already shown that by surviving this pandemic.

Carry on teaching yourself. However hard it has been, your generation has learnt more than any other about what life’s priorities should be. Use that knowledge.”

Susanne Moore. Daily Telegraph. 9 August 2021

We have quoted as much as we can legitimately as sadly this story is paywalled.

It can be read here. 

10:01am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Brilliant quote from Ofqual interim chief regulator Simon Lebus reported in the TES and stated on the BBC.

Teacher-assessed grades (TAGs) are likely to give a “much more accurate” reflection of what students are capable of this year than exams, according to the head of Ofqual.

“I think a good way to think of it is exams are a bit like a snapshot, a photograph – you capture an instant, it’s a form of sampling – whereas teacher assessment, it allows teachers to observe student performance over a much longer period, in a rather more complex way, taking into account lots of different pieces of work and arriving at a holistic judgment.

“I think, from that point of view, we can feel satisfied that it’s likely to give a much more accurate and substantial reflection of what their students are capable of achieving.”

This picks up our view that this year’s results are likely to be the most, not least accurate.

Realising the political issues that arise from stating this, Mr Lebus later backtracked saying “I am referring to this year only.”

Surely, If it applies this year, it applies every year…

9:44am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: SchoolsWeek picking up on the 4 major issues this year that will impact on A Level results:

Grade Inflation – students are worried that employers and universities will perceive them as fake. [Our view is quite the contrary – this year’s results, exactly because they have been decided by schools and teachers, are likely to be the best reflection of each student’s ability and work ethic than ever awarded historically].

The race for university space – as above, in our view the biggest issue of all potentially this year.

A potential tsunami of appeals. Consensus seems to be this unlikely given trust in teachers – but if universities play hard ball with places pressure could become overwhelming here.

Private school students getting higher grades because of game-playing the system and historically higher baseline grades to justify pushing the boundaries. It is reported elsewhere that this will be balanced by universities favouring disadvantaged students from state schools. Our view is that UAE students should not be impacted – at least this should be the case given that students here do not have the realistic option of a state education.

Definitely worth reading the full analysis from SchoolsWeek here.

 

9:44am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Sky news again picking up on worries whether universities will cope, this now the biggest story by far of this year’s A Level and BTEC Results Day:

“If results are higher will this affect university places?

This is the big question. Is there enough capacity in the university system to cope with a bumper set of results? If there are too many top grades it could cause a crush for places on popular courses. Certainly, many universities believe there won’t be much wriggle room for students who narrowly miss their offer grades.

Another factor increasing competition is the fact there are 10% more 18 year olds applying for places this year. Plus, there is expected to be some overspill from the 2020 cohort.”

The overspill issue is significant – universities are also managing significant numbers of students they asked to defer last year…

9:35am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: UCAS Track will be key today for students after opening their results. It is here that offers are confirmed or rejected.

Unconditional – Your place on the course has been confirmed, whether it’s firm or insurance, or both.

Unsuccessful – You’ve not been accepted by your choice or choices, but you can now enter Clearing.

Unconditional Changed Course – You haven’t met the necessary grades for your offer, but the university have proposed a similar course that meets lower grade boundaries. Universities can  also offer deferred entry with students given 5 days to decide.

In the unlikely event that no decisions are showing, do not panic. You must give your universities or colleges a call – there is likely to be a scramble for places and expect long queues.

 

Access UCAS Track here.

9:19am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: An old quote – but a helpful one reported by the Gulf News in the context of those calling for restrictions on the number of each grade that should be awarded in A Level.

In 2005 David Cameron, former UK Prime Minister, demanded that a cap should be put on the number of A*A grades awarded each year. Sir Michael Tomlinson, the then former UK’s Chief Inspector Schools, retorted:

“On this basis, if you have 100 Einsteins taking A-level physics, only seven of them would get an A grade. If pupils have shown they can meet the criteria to pass, they should be allowed to pass.”

9:10am: Tuesday 10th August 2021:  It says something about global news when a story about a member of the UK’s royal family is dominating UK news over A Level and BTEC results, including on the BBC. Priorities are clearly wrong. The BBC’s second lead story covers how If grades jump as predicted we will see A*A grades rise over the last three years from 25%, to 40% to 50%. They highlight the problem that we picked up on earlier – the potential lack of available places at universities. The consensus is that the UK government should have stepped in with funding months ago….

9:00am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Worth looking at this BBC video as a reminder of last year’s fiasco on A’ Level results day – one not the finest hour in British education. This was a year of U-turns, downgraded results, horror and nothing short of chaos. Worth reading the comments too: ”

This year, lessons have been learned…

 

8:55am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: The UK’s LBC has focused on the likely continuation of distance learning at UK universities – and a growing row over the unfairness of fees. They quote a Sunday Times report that “University College London, the London School of Economics, Imperial College, Cardiff and Leeds have all said lectures will continue to be held online.” Whilst the government is mooting cutting fees by £2,000 for UK students, there have been no reports of fees being cut for international students. We will report later on this story…

In the meantime, more can be found on this from LBC here.

8:27am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Our sister site has a good summary of what we can expect today and action that students can take if results do not meet expectations.

More can be found here. 

8:22am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: The National has taken a practical approach to this year’s results focused on the challenge students will face even getting into the UK for those who have places here.

“Students from red-list countries can travel to England if they have a UK visa but there is no exemption from a 10-day hotel quarantine. The UAE was removed from the red list last week.
Some universities are paying for hotel quarantine, which can cost £1,750 ($2,425) or more, including Covid tests.”

On this note, we also know that some universities are paying students up to £10K for deferring their places by one year because of demand, this particularly true in Medicine.

 

8:11am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Barnaby Lenon, Member of OFQUAL’s  standards advisory group, is reported in the UK’s Daily Telegraph, as saying that grade inflation may now be embedded in the system on the basis that it would be inequitable to have a cliff edge in future years in which results fall back to traditional levels. He calls for a fundamental rethink of how grades are awarded.

More on this here [paywalled]

8:10am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Association of School and College Leaders Geoff Barton said:

“…comparing this year’s results with previous years’ was like “comparing apples with oranges.

This cohort of students has suffered more educational disruption than any cohort since the Second World War.”

8:07am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: UK Daily Mail predicting around 30% of all grades awarded will be A and 19% grade A*. Last year the figure was 38.6% for both combined. Again the focus is on the shortage of places. As a shot across the bow, Tory peer Lord Lucas predicts that private school pupils “will get short shrift in admissions because universities are prioritising the disadvantaged.” We do not think this will impact on UAE students because there is no alternative to a private school education.

Read more on this here.

 

8:05am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Positively, the biggest story globally this year is not grade inflation, or algorithms (these have thankfully been scrapped this year in favour of Teacher Assessed/Centre Assessed Grades) – but rather whether universities will be able to cope with the number of successful applications. The issue is whether universities have received sufficient funding to manage student numbers (with the UK  government stepping in to support more Medical places.) Many are saying that teachers are better placed to decide grades and a rethink of the previous exams-based system needs to take place.

8:04am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: First results from GEMS Education’s GEMS Wellington Academy – Al Khail and GEMS Metropole School – Motor City.

 

GEMS Wellington Academy – Al Khail (WEK)

		A*		A*-A		A*-B		A*
Total A-level Candidates	Total A-level Entries	No. Entries	%-age	No. Entries	%-age	No. Entries	%-age	Students
31	91	24	26%	47	52%	71	78%	11

Campbell Douglas, Principal/CEO, GEMS Wellington Academy – Al Khail told SchoolsCompared.com

“Once again we are delighted with the exceptional A-level results our students have achieved this year.

The hard work, commitment and dedication from both students and teachers alike have paid off in what has been an extremely challenging year.

We are very proud of what our students have accomplished and look forward to their continuing success in their chosen pathways.”

 

GEMS Metropole School – Motor City (MTS)

		A*		A*-A		A*-B		A*
Total A-level Candidates	Total A-level Entries	No. Entries	%-age	No. Entries	%-age	No. Entries	%-age	Students
42	123	24	20%	51	41%	90	73%	15

Nav Iqbal, Principal/CEO, GEMS Metropole School – Motor City told SchoolsCompared.com:

“I am extremely pleased to announce and celebrate GEMS Metropole School’s strongest ever A-level examination results. I am delighted to say that there has been significant improvement since the previous academic year. This is testament to our hard-working students who, despite the challenges faced during the pandemic, performed exceptionally well.

“The results of our inclusive cohort of students show that 41% achieved an A*-A grade, 73% achieved A*– B, and 89% passed with grades A*– C. This improvement is particularly impressive with a growing cohort. Our three highest achieving students gained three A*s and a B, two A*s and two As, and three A*s. Standout subject performances were recorded in Chemistry, Drama, Art and Economics, and we have seen an increase in the number of A*-A grades this year, especially in Maths (+48%) and Chemistry (+29%).

“We are proud of all our Year 13 students who have been determined and dedicated throughout their studies. Our leavers are now on their way to achieving great things, and we look forward to hearing about their future university and employment success. A special mention also goes to our fantastic teaching staff, whose commitment has ensured students have felt continuously supported and were able to achieve their best. GEMS Metropole is a strong place for academic excellence and exceeding potential. It is a special time for our school and we are proud of what is being achieved and what will continue to be achieved.”

8:03am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: Aldar Academies’ Al Ain Academy is first! The cohort of 8 students at Al Ain Academy entering for the A- Level and International A- Level qualifications achieved the following results:

8:01am: Tuesday 10th August 2021: The race is on for the first school in the UAE to report their results. Aldar Academies sand GEMS Education are in the running…

8:00am. Tuesday 10th August 2021: Welcome to The SchoolsCompared.com A Level and BTEC Results Day 2021. This is the most important day of the year in the lives for graduating students in British schools across the UAE. This is also the day in which many students studying for the International Baccalaureate Career-related Programme receive the BTEC career related components of their IBCP. None of us will forget the day we open the envelopes containing our results. For most of us that comes with the fear and excitement that sees your life flashing before your eyes – and prayers of a happy ending. All of us handles the moments before, and after, differently. All students are likely to need support, whether because of clearing, the rush to gain confirmation that university choices are real and actually will happen in a year that Covid has thrown everything upside down – or to manage often extreme and overwhelming disappointment and worry. Let us not forget too that teachers and schools today will be under pressure – and this year probably more than any other. The web is filled with comments about schools and teachers from students who now place the responsibility for their futures squarely on the shoulders of teachers who this year will decide their grades. This is not an easy place for schools or teachers to be. If there is one thing that will be needed today it is kindness from students, families, teachers and schools for each other – all of us. This is a day when the whole child (and adult) gifts of compassion, sensitivity, emotional intelligence and altruism need to be remembered. This is not a day that decides the rest of our lives. It is, rather, a day that begins the journey of the rest of our lives. Exam results are part of a story still to be decided. Richard Branson left school at 16 and today is a billionaire and astronaut with interests in 200 plus companies in 30 countries worldwide. Simon Cowell has a single GCSE and went on to make his name with BMG records and found Syco. To date he has engineered the sale of around 20o million records. Jon Snow scraped a C in English and failed his other A Levels yet went on to be one of the UK’s most loved and respected broadcasters and journalists. After leaving school he picked up the pieces and went to college to secure the grades needed for university. Steven Spielberg was rejected by the Southern California School of Theatre, Film and Television – and rejected three times. He is arguably the world’s greatest film maker – and went on to secure his BA degree 35 years later. Jeremy Clarkson achieved a C and two ungraded marks for his A’ Levels. Lord Alan Sugar has a single GCSE. Billions of people around the world lead beautiful, valuable, highly successful – and happy lives without qualifications. Closer to come, Zara Harrington, Principal of Safa British School, was told early on her career that she would not make it – just didn’t have it. She is today one of the most loved and respected Principals in the UAE and has gone on to lead one of the very best schools in the emirates. The opportunities to change our lives is not made in a single exam results day, but every single day of our lives.

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Send your exam news, photos, feedback and comments to [email protected]. We will endeavour to report on all stories submitted…

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Broadcasting countdown ….

Live A Level and BTEC results broadcasting live here 8:00am, Tuesday 10 August 2021. GCSE Results begin broadcasting 8:00AM, 12 July 2021.

Every School. The results that Matter. Commentary, News, Data. On the second.

Join the SchoolsCompared Team for LIVE results tomorrow for this year’s A Level, BTEC and GCSE Results. Second by second, minute by minute, our team are posting results live as we receive them – together with analysis and comment.

• Will grade inflation impact on places at university?
• Will this year’s results be the best on record?
• Results from your school, every school.

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Continues… Read Part 2 of our feature exploring live results from across UAE schools in 2021 results here.

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