A-level results day 2026: Record first-choice university places expected

The wait is finally over

School and college leavers will also collect AS grades, Level 3 vocational technical qualifications (VTQs) and, in England, T-level results.

Last summer, more than one in four UK A-level entries (28.3 per cent) were awarded an A or A* — up from 27.8 per cent in 2024 and the highest proportion outside the pandemic years.

In Northern Ireland, where more than 26,000 students are picking up results from 8am, BBC News NI reports that entries are once again expected to earn more top grades than their peers in England and Wales.

The celebrations come against a tougher backdrop, however. The Independent reports that almost 58,000 18-year-olds in England are projected to receive no grades at all today, having left education and training early, while official figures show the number of 16 to 24-year-olds not in education, employment or training topped one million earlier this year, the first time since 2013.

What to expect from this year's A-level results

Education Secretary Lucy Powell said her priority was “making sure every young person has the skills, knowledge, and confidence to thrive in the jobs of the future”.

“That's why we're giving technical education the respect it deserves by rolling out new V Levels to go alongside A Levels, introducing brilliant routes into the careers of the future from age 14, and fully funding apprenticeship training for under-25s.”

Students who miss their grades can still find a university place through clearing — and for those weighing up other routes, from apprenticeships to careers advice, today is the day the options open up.