Summer 2022 was the first time students had taken exams marked and graded by exam boards since 2019, after two years of grades being determined by schools and colleges. In line with the objective set out by Ofqual, with grading to reflect a gradual move back towards pre-pandemic standards and a package of measures to mitigate some of the disruption experienced during the last two years, overall outcomes were higher than 2019 when exams were last sat, but lower than 2021.

Overall outcomes

Overall outcomes for A Levels in the UK were higher than 2019 when exams were last sat (A*-E increased by 0.8% to 98.4%) but lower than 2021 when teacher assessed grades were used (A*-E decreased by 1.1%). At the higher grades, A*-A increased by 11% from 2019 (from 25.4% to 36.4%) but decreased by 8.4% from 2021. The average number of A Levels taken by 18-year-olds has barely changed since 2017 (2.6 A Levels in 2022) and less than 5% of students took 4 A Levels in 2022.

Popularity of subjects

Whilst maths remains the most popular subject, accounting for 11.3% of all entries at A Level, entries decreased by 2.1% from 2021. Along with maths, psychology, biology, chemistry and history remain the top 5 most popular A Level subjects. Other subjects increasing in popularity include PE (+11.4%), political studies (+11%), and sociology (+7.6%). Having seen a dip in entries since 2019, geography is again one of the top 10 most popular subjects in 2022. In contrast, entries for English subjects declined in 2022 with English Literature entries down by 9.4%.

Gender patterns

Female entries accounted for 54.7% of all A Level entries in summer 2022 and overall outcomes at grades A*-E were slightly higher for female entries than for male (98.7% v 98.1%). Outcomes for female entries at the higher grades (A*-A) were 37.4% compared with 35.2% for male entries. Outcomes varied by subject though with, for example, male entries out-performing female entries at A* in maths and modern foreign languages.

Progression to higher education

On results day this year, 19% more 18-year-olds (nearly 180,000 students) in the UK gained a place at their firm or insurance choice compared to 2019 and in total, 425,830 students were accepted into higher education - the second highest on record. International placed students accounted for 12.3% of the total full-time undergraduate applicants accepted via UCAS, down from a high of 14.7% in 2019. This year also saw the first T Level students gain a place in higher education, with 370 (71% of applicants) accepted.

A full breakdown of grades achieved by subject, gender and region is available on the JCQ website. Ofqual’s equalities analysis of results is expected in the autumn.