Standardized Testing: A Guide To British Education

How Does It Work?

O-Levels and A-levels

The O Level is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education (GCE). It was introduced as part of British educational reform in 1947 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. These areas replaced O Levels with GCSE and IGCSE exams in 1988. The Scottish equivalent of this was the O-grade (eventually replaced by the Standard Grade). The O Level qualification is still awarded by Cambridge International Examinations in certain international locations, instead of or alongside the IGCSE qualifications.

The General Certificate of Education Advanced Level—or, more commonly, the A Level—is a school leaving qualification offered in the United Kingdom to students completing secondary or pre-university education. Students generally study for this qualification for two years, split into two parts, with one part studied in each year. The first part is known as the Advanced Subsidiary Level, or AS Level, and was previously known as the Advanced Supplementary Level, with the same abbreviation. The second part is known as the A2 Level. (The AS Level combined with the A2 Level forms the complete A Level qualification.)

What Is The Process?

Duration:

The O level/GCSE/IGCSE qualifications are similar to Advanced Placement exams in that they are completely exam-based, rather than a combination of coursework that requires students to study the set curriculum (with a wide range of subject options) for a certain number of years.

The A level qualifications are usually studied for over 2 years, after the completion of O levels. This is usually entails a 3 - 5 subjects from a wide selection of options.

Grading:

The O level/GCSE/IGCSE are graded on an 8-point scale from G to A*. 5 core subject passes at a grade of C or above are usually the minimum requirement for students to enter competitive higher secondary programs.

The A levels are graded on a scale from E to A*. The A* is awarded to students who achieve an overall score A in their AS and A2 levels, with at least a 90% in A2.

Universities:

Universities in the UK usually consider applicants on the basis of their predicted A level results and make conditional offers. These can be either based on three A-level grades (example, A-A-B or B-B-B) or on the UCAS system. Over the UCAS system, an A* is worth 140 points, an A is worth 120, a B is worth 100, a C is worth 80 a D is worth 60 and an E is worth 40. So, a student could be made a conditional offer of 300 points and fulfill that via either an A-B-C or a B-B-B. This gives students more flexibility.