Primary and secondary education

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, primary education lasts for 6 years. It is compulsory for all children between the ages of 5 and 11.

Secondary education in Engeland, Wales en Noord-Ierland lasts for 7 years. Students complete the following 2 stages:

• lower secondary education which is concluded with exams for the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE);
• upper secondary education which is concluded with examens for the General Certificate of Education (GCE) advanced subsidiary levels (AS levels) or advanced level (A levels).

Students conclude the lower years of secondary education with exams for the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE).

• Duration: 5 years.
• Content: students themselves select their exam subjects, and also decide how many subjects they want to take exams in. The number of examination subjects per pupil ranges usually between 5 and 10. English is always a compulsory subject.
• Function of the diploma: access to upper secondary education (General Certificate of Education AS levels or A levels) and secondary vocational education.
• Diploma: General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE).

Please note: 'at least a VMBO-T diploma' means that the diploma has a higher level than a VMBO-T diploma, but a lower level than a HAVO diploma. The level of the diploma lies between a VMBO-T diploma and a HAVO diploma.

Changes in GCSEs in England

In 2015 the exams of the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) in England were changed. Please note: not in Wales and Northern-Ireland.

Changes in GCSEs in England:

• The level of the exams has risen slightly.
• The exams are being held at the end of the programme (after 2 years) rather than mid-term.
• The grading system was adapted: A* to G were replaced by figures 9 to 1, with 9 being the highest grade. See also Secondary education grading system.

After lower secondary education, students aged 17 to 19 can go to upper secondary education. They conclude it with exams for the General Certificate of Education (GCE) advanced subsidiary levels (AS levels) or advanced level (A levels).

In upper secondary education, students can choose from 2 different levels:

• advanced subsidiary levels (AS levels); or
• advanced levels (A levels).

AS levels involve approximately half the study hours compared with A levels. In addition, AS level exams are at a lower level than A level exams.

• Duration: 1 year (AS levels), 2 years (A levels).
• Content: students themselves select their subjects, and also decide how many subjects they want to take exams in. A levels usually involve exams in 3 subjects, because British universities typically require 3 relevant A levels for admission.
• Diploma: General Certificate of Education (GCE) advanced subsidiary levels (AS levels) or advanced level (A levels).

The evaluation of a GCE AS levels or GCE A levels will always take into account the results students have attained for both the GCE and the GCSE:

Changes in GCEs in England

Since 2015, the GCE exams have also been adjusted in England (note: not in Northern Ireland and Wales). The exams of the AS levels were disconnected from the A levels and no longer count towards the A level result. After completing an AS level, it is no longer possible to enrol in the 2nd year of an A level.

The grading system for the GCEs has remained the same: A * to E for the AS levels and A levels. The first new AS level exams were in 2016 and the first new A level exams in 2017.

Qualifications in Wales (QiW) shows in this PDF the main differences between AS levels and A levels per region: AS and A levels in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

There are different types of subjects at GCE AS level and A level:

• academic subjects
• vocational subjects
• skills-based subjects.

The academic and vocational subjects are relevant subjects because they contribute to admission to higher education. The skills-based subjects, on the other hand, are never ‘relevant subjects’. British universities do not accept these subjects as grounds for admission: they are non-academic subjects, also known as ‘non-preferred subjects’.

Skills-based subjects as an extra subject

The skills-based subjects can have added value as an extra subject (skill). Examples of such subjects are General paper, Global Perspectives & Research, General Studies, Critical Thinking, Thinking Skills and Extended Project.

The applied subjects, such as Applied Business and Applied ICT, also do not contribute to admission to higher education. These subjects were eliminated in 2017.

Below, we will set out which combinations of relevant subjects a General Certificate of Education (GCE) must have in order to be comparable to a HAVO or VWO diploma.

Relevant subjects to be comparable to HAVO

• A GCE with AS levels is comparable to a HAVO diploma if the pupil has passed 2 relevant subjects. These subjects may be either academic or vocational in nature. It is, however, important that the subjects be relevant to the desired field of study in Dutch higher professional education.
• A GCE with A levels is comparable to a HAVO diploma if the pupil has obtained 2 relevant subjects with an assessment of D or E. Here, too, both relevant academic subjects and vocational subjects may be counted toward admission.
• In addition to a GCE with A levels or AS levels, the pupil must also have passed the GCSE with an assessment A * to C or 9 to 4 in at least 4 subjects.

Relevant subjects to be comparable to VWO

• A GCE with A levels is comparable to a VWO diploma if the pupil has passed 3 relevant subjects with results between A* and C. Relevant subjects are generally academic subjects. Vocational subjects can also be valuable provided they are relevant to the desired course of study and the results attained are between A* and C.
• In addition to a GCE with A levels, the pupil must also have passed the GCSE with an assessment A * to C or 9 to 4 in at least 3 subjects.
• A GCE with AS levels is not comparable to a VWO diploma.

The GCSE and GCE exams are administered not by the secondary schools but by regional examining boards. Many of these examining boards have merged over the years. The most well-known examining boards are:

• AQA
• Pearson
• OCR
• WJEC (Wales)
• CCEA (Northern-Ireland)
• Cambridge

Cambridge International

In addition to these regional examining boards, there is a board for international secondary education: Cambridge International. It offers international variants of British qualifications such as:

• International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE);
• Cambridge O level;
• Cambridge International AS and A levels.

In terms of level, these qualifications are comparable to the regular GCSEs, AS levels and A levels. The changes to the GCSEs and GCEs do not apply to the qualifications offered by Cambridge International.

Cambridge Pre-U Diploma

Cambridge International offers the Cambridge Pre-U Diploma as an alternative to the GCE A levels in the United Kingdom. Although Cambridge International will discontinue Cambridge Pre-U. The last exams will be June 2023 (with a resit in June 2024).

• Duration: 2 years.
• Content: a choice of 27 Cambridge Pre-U Principal subjects. To obtain the diploma students must pass 4 components, including 3 Principal Subjects and the Global Perspectives and Research (GPR) course. Alternatively, they can combine a number of Principal Subjects and GCE A levels. Students will obtain a Cambridge International Pre-U Certificate for each additional subject that they pass.
• Diploma: Cambridge Pre-U Diploma.

Cambridge International offers the Cambridge Pre-U Diploma as an alternative to the GCE A levels in the United Kingdom. Although Cambridge International will discontinue Cambridge Pre-U. The last exams will be June 2023 (with a resit in June 2024).

• Duration: 2 years.
• Content: a choice of 27 Cambridge Pre-U Principal subjects. To obtain the diploma students must pass 4 components, including 3 Principal Subjects and the Global Perspectives and Research (GPR) course. Alternatively, they can combine a number of Principal Subjects and GCE A levels. Students will obtain a Cambridge International Pre-U Certificate for each additional subject that they pass.
• Diploma: Cambridge Pre-U Diploma.