What are the resit arrangements for legacy qualifications?
Students taking legacy AS and A levels in England will have the opportunity to resit these after the final scheduled award, regardless of the subject. These resits will be in May or June of the following year. Ofqual has confirmed resit arrangements for legacy GCSE qualifications. Similarly, Qualifications Wales has outlined the position for final legacy exams and resits in Wales.
How is the process for reviews and appeals changing?
Starting this summer, schools and colleges in England and Wales will have a second opportunity to challenge GCSE, AS level, A level, and project results, if they continue to have concerns about marking or moderation errors. It adds to their existing right to appeal results on the grounds that an exam board hasn’t followed its own procedures.
Will the Uniform Mark Scheme (UMS) still exist for linear A levels?
In the new linear A levels in England, there are no UMS marks, and all the papers are A level papers. Exam boards will use predictions to identify an overall subject-level grade boundary for A*, and students who achieve that mark or higher will get an A*. This Ofqual blog explains the process in more detail. If you have previously made use of the UMS, you will need to amend your practices accordingly.
Further resources about qualification reform are available on ucas.com, in addition to comprehensive FAQs about how the changes might affect applications to higher education.
Qualification reform FAQs
In the run-up to Confirmation and Clearing, we’ve been receiving some queries about qualification reform.