Guidance

GCSE and A level grading: what you need to know

Updated 9 April 2025

Applies to England

Grade boundaries change from year to year 

If an exam is easier than in previous years, the grade boundaries for that paper will be higher. If it is harder, the grade boundaries will be lower. 

The difficulty of exam questions varies year to year, even though exam boards try to keep the level of demand consistent. That’s because it is impossible to determine how difficult students will find a paper until it is taken. 

This is why new grade boundaries are set each year – to reflect the difficulty of that particular paper, and to ensure that it is no easier or harder to get a grade in any given year.  

The standard of work needed to get each grade remains comparable year on year 

The quality of a student’s work in their exams determines the grade they get and no-one is advantaged or disadvantaged by the year in which they happen to sit the exam​. There are no quotas for the number of students who must pass or fail a subject each year, and no cap on the number of students that can get each grade.  

The fact the number of top grades awarded is relatively stable from year to year reflects the fact that student performance is typically relatively stable too. ​ 

Grade boundaries are set with the aim of maintaining standards over time, not to ensure that the same proportion of students get a particular grade. 

Grade boundaries are decided after students take exams and when marking is nearly complete 

Exam boards set grade boundaries by analysing data about the students taking the qualification and comparing it with those that have taken it previously. This data is used to identify potential grade boundaries, which reflect whether students found the exam slightly harder or easier than the previous year.  

Senior examiners then scrutinise samples of work from students who have achieved marks on and around these potential grade boundaries. This is compared with work of students from the previous year who were on the same grade boundaries.  

Those scripts are studied to determine if the standard of work at the potential grade boundary is appropriate. Senior examiners use the evidence from their scrutiny in combination with the data, to recommend final grade boundaries. 

The number of students achieving each grade can differ between exam boards offering the same qualification 

Grade boundaries typically differ between exam boards, because grading reflects the level of difficulty of each particular paper. All exam boards must cover the same subject content and assessment objectives, and follow the same rules. But there are often small differences between the type of questions they ask or the balance of different types of questions in a particular paper. 

Similarly, while exam boards try to keep levels of demand consistent year-on-year, this is also very difficult to do in practice.  

Where grade boundaries increase between one year and the next, or are higher with one board than another, it does not mean it is more difficult to achieve a grade. Rather, it reflects that that exam paper was easier. Equally, where grade boundaries are lower with one exam board than another that reflects that the paper was harder, not that it is easier to get a particular grade. 

Grade boundaries cannot be adjusted for certain groups of students  

Grade boundaries must apply to all students taking the same specification with a particular exam board so that they are all judged against the same standard. It is not possible to vary these to reflect, for example, disruption experienced during the academic year by a group of students or schools or colleges.  

Even if it were possible to fairly reflect in exam grading the many variables in teaching or provision that students might experience, it is important that the grade a student receives accurately reflects what they know, understand and can do. Not what they might have known, understood or done had circumstances been different. This is important so that employers, universities and further education colleges can understand and be confident that qualifications are a consistent measure of student performance.  

The National Reference Test monitors GCSE English language and maths performance over time 

Every February and March, students at more than 300 schools across England sit the National Reference Test. It is taken by a representative sample of students in year 11 who are about to sit their GCSE exams. 

Watch our short video about the National Reference Test.

This short test features similar-style questions to those set in GCSE English language and maths exams.  

The tests have taken place every year since 2017, so the results enable Ofqual to monitor year 11 performance trends over time. It provides additional evidence to support the setting of grade boundaries for GCSEs in English language and maths each year.   

As it is a consistent test sat each year, it is a valuable measure of whether overall performance is going up, down, or staying the same. If there’s a genuine change in the level of attainment from year to year, the National Reference Test will help us to see it. 

The National Reference Test is all about understanding national attainment – not individual student performance or school accountability. It is an important part of the system Ofqual oversees to ensure that standards are maintained, and qualifications retain their value over time.