Results for A-levels, T-levels, BTecs and other vocational qualifications have been released, marking a critical juncture for thousands of students. And this year, they’ve come at a time when all eyes are on what teenagers decide to do next as they navigate an increasingly complex landscape of higher education and career options.
Universities are keen to get them through the door. As they grapple with their finances, they know that every filled seat in a lecture hall comes with tuition fee funding, making the recruitment of domestic students a top priority for institutions across the country.
The new prime minister, meanwhile, wants to carve out clear routes into technical jobs that can rival the well-established path of A-levels and a university degree. For teenagers, considerations about the immediate and long-term cost of university, as well as the availability of high-quality vocational training, are weighing heavily on their decision-making processes.
About 40% of 18-year-olds in England receive A-levels every summer, and this year top A-level results across the whole of England, Wales and Northern Ireland have risen for a third year running. Overall, 28.5% of grades were marked at A* or A, up from 28.3% last year. These results are still much lower than they were in 2020 and 2021, when exams were cancelled and results were based on teachers’ assessments.
Grading in England returned to pre-pandemic levels in 2023, prompting a significant fall in top grades, while Wales and Northern Ireland followed suit in 2024. The proportion of top grades across the three nations combined has been slightly creeping up since that drop in 2023. Specifically, 28.3% of grades in England were A* or A, up from 28.2% in 2025, while Northern Ireland saw 30.7% of grades at that level, up from 30.3%.
A record number of 18-year-olds in the UK have been accepted into university, according to the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas), with more than ever getting into their first choice. The steepest growth has been in acceptances to what Ucas calls “higher tariff” universities. These institutions have taken on 5.5% more UK 18-year-olds than last year, and many are still advertising courses in Clearing.
Nick Hillman, chief executive of the Higher Education Policy Institute, noted that a fall in the number of postgraduate international students had freed up resources for universities to teach more UK undergraduates. The Russell Group stressed its members would only admit students who show evidence of being able to succeed, though four in 10 universities in England are still expected to report a financial deficit in 2025-26.
Regional disparities remain a significant point of discussion. Hillman pointed out that the percentage of A* and A grades in the North East had grown, but London had moved significantly further ahead, highlighting a structural divide in the circumstances and opportunities surrounding students. Myles McGinley, managing director of Cambridge OCR, added that there were also severe inequalities within the capital itself, noting the gap between areas like Richmond and Hounslow.
Gender differences in performance have also shifted. More A* and A grades went to girls than boys this year, with 137,000 compared to 120,900. However, in terms of percentages, 28.9% of all grades given to boys were A*s and As, compared to 28% of grades given to girls. This marks a reversal of previous trends, as last year was the first time boys overtook girls in this respect since 2018.
This is the fifth year of T-level results in England, and the number of students getting grades has rocketed as their popularity grows. More than 19,600 students received grades in 21 subjects this year, up from 11,900 students across 18 subjects last year. This will be welcome news for the new prime minister, who says he wants pupils in England to be able to study technical qualifications that carry genuine weight in the job market.
The pass rate for these vocational qualifications increased slightly from 91.4% in last year’s provisional results to 92.6%. Despite this progress, the dropout rate remains high, and some students take longer than the standard two years to complete their courses. T-levels are among the 300,000 grades for vocational and technical qualifications issued this cycle.
Jo Saxton, chief executive of Ucas, told the that the sheer amount of courses listed in Clearing meant teenagers could absolutely still go to university in the autumn if that is their goal. While universities are worried about their finances, the percentage of UK 18-year-olds applying to university has remained stable, suggesting that the drive for higher education remains resilient despite economic concerns.
But ultimately, the percentage of UK 18-year-olds applying to university has remained stable, and worries about the long-term costs – with rising tuition fees and widespread criticism of the student loans system – do not
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After that, there was a concerted effort to bring them back down.
You can see how results were in your local area using the look-up tool below.
While the raw number of 18-year-olds getting into their first choice has risen, there are more of them in the population than in previous years – and the actual percentage of 18-year-old offer-holders in England, Wales and Northern Ireland getting into their first choice has fallen from 82% to 79%.
But ultimately, the percentage of UK 18-year-olds applying to university has remained stable, and worries about the long-term costs – with rising tuition fees and widespread criticism of the student loans system – do not appear to have put teenagers off.
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And the percentage of students achieving a merit or above grew from 65.3% to 68.9%.
Around 77% of students who started their T-level in 2024, and were therefore expected to complete it this year, have received results.
That’s still much smaller than the number of A-level grades given out (more than 800,000 among 18-year-olds alone).
According to Ucas, engineering and technology subjects saw the biggest growth in university acceptances, up 16% from last year.
Technical education won’t be the only thing standing out to Andy Burnham and his ministers today, especially after their recent meeting in No 10 North.
The gap between the highest- and lowest-performing regions in England has grown again.
In London, 32.7% of A-level grades were marked at A* or A.
In the North East and the East Midlands, it was 23.1%.
It’s also the largest gap on record since the A* was introduced in 2010.
Henri Murison, chief executive of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, said the regional gaps were driven by “persistent long-term disadvantage”.
Chris Zarraga, director of Schools North East, said schools in different parts of England were “not operating on a level playing field”.
For example, 79.8% grades given to girls were marked A* to C, compared to 76.8% of boys’ grades.
Additional reporting by Phil Leake, Libby Rogers, Rob England, Isobel Cottam and Jess Carr
