29th August 2013 9:00
By Blue Tutors
A’ Level results have been released for over 300,000 students, who will find out whether they have secured a place at university. A’ Level results have become increasingly controversial as the pass mark continues to rise each year, reaching 98% last year. It is expected that the trend will continue, and schools and exam boards are bracing themselves for further debates on grade inflation on the publication of this year’s results. Although the pass rate has continued to rise, the percentages of students obtaining the top grades of A and A* fell last year, and an early look at the results show that this trend is continuing, with schools disappointed to see a reduction in the number of their students obtaining the top grades.
Due to the high pass rate, university courses have become increasingly competitive, meaning that many students who achieve good results will still miss their offers for top universities who often require A and A* grades in all subjects. The clearing process will be more important than ever this year, and universities and the universities and colleges admissions service UCAS are prepared to work extremely hard over the next week to find places for students who have missed their offers. The clearing system will play a more major role this year, after admissions rules were changed to allow universities to accept an unlimited number of applicants who have achieved grades of at least ABB. This means that universities will be competing to enrol extra students, especially after last year when changes to the admissions system caused many universities to miss their recruitment targets, leaving them with unfilled places.
The publication of the A’ Level results has brought on-going debates about higher education in the UK back to the fore, with major concerns surrounding whether university is still the best option for many students after the rise in tuition fees to £9,000 a year means that students will graduate with large debts. Paul Clark, director of policy at Universities UK has urged students not to give up on academic courses, commenting that while there is a growing demand for vocational courses, academic degrees provide vital skills in critical thinking and analysis which greatly enhance their employment prospects. However, many students receiving their A’ Level results will go into more vocational, ‘job-based’ courses which will allow them to build their skills for the world of work without accruing the enormous debts which their counterparts on mainstream academic courses will face.