UK university places up as A-level results released

More than a quarter of UK entries were awarded an A or A* grade, up by 0.6 percentage points on last year

Students Isabel Victor-Nesadurai and Cara Procopio receive their A-level results at the City of London Academy Highgate Hill, in London. Getty Images

British universities have increased the number of domestic students accepted on to degree courses this year, as thousands of pupils received their A-level results on Thursday.

The proportion of A-level entries awarded top grades is up on last year and remains above pre-pandemic levels, national figures show.

Hundreds of thousands of students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland received their exam results on Thursday in a year when grading was expected to be restored to 2019 levels in all three nations.

More than a quarter (27.8 per cent) of UK entries were awarded an A or A* grade, up by 0.6 percentage points on last year when 27.2 per cent achieved the top grades. This was also higher than in 2019 when the last year summer exams were taken before the Covid-19 pandemic.

The number of students accepted on to UK degree courses has risen this year.

However, the number of international students who have been accepted on to courses stands at 51,170, down slightly on 51,210 last year.

A total of 425,680 applicants (of all ages and from all home countries) have gained a place at university or college – up 3 per cent on the same point last year, according to data published by university admissions service Ucas.

Ucas said 82 per cent of all applicants have gained a place at their first-choice university or college, which is up from 79 per cent last year.

For 18-year-olds in the UK, 243,650 applicants have been accepted – up 6 per cent on last year.

Independent school MPW, whose alumni includes Emirati and Middle Eastern pupils, saw their top grades rise this year.

“Our top grades A* and A are up on last year by 2.5% which is an excellent performance,” MPW told The National.

“Students who choose to retake A-levels with MPW on average improve by 1.5 grades, so we have lots of student improving by more than two full grades, making us the number one value-added provider.

“We are immensely proud of our students and their achievements.”

This year more courses were advertised through clearing, which allows applicants without the offer of a place, or who want to change courses, to apply after they have received their exam results.

A survey of 130 of the UK’s biggest universities found 23,000 course vacancies being offered to students through clearing compared to 22,400 last year.

Jo Saxton, chief executive of Ucas, said there were just under 30,000 courses available in clearing across a broad range of subjects and universities.

Education experts had said a number of British universities would be competing to fill their places amid financial pressures.

In January, visa restrictions were introduced to prevent most international students bringing dependents with them to the UK and this is believed to have affected applications.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson told Sky News the government does not intend to remove visa restrictions placed on international students by the previous Tory government.

“We don’t intend to change that,” she said. “But what I do say is that international students who come to our country and study do make a tremendous contribution.”

Nonetheless the new government is prioritising access for British school leavers and she said there are still “big gaps” in university access to UK students.

“Whatever the headline figure in terms of university applications, we do still see, sadly, very big differences between different parts of the country,” she said.

“So, for example, you’re far more likely to apply to university from London and the South-East than you are from the North-East,” she added. “There are big gaps, big differences – they’ve been growing in recent years.”