General Certificate in Education - GCE (A/AS/A2 levels) equivalent to Level 3
When were they available?
A levels (advanced level) were introduced into England, Wales and Northern Ireland in 1951 as the primary examinations for 18 year olds in school. They are currently available although there have been changes overtime (see below). Since 1997 'A' levels have been split into AS (advanced subsidiary) and A2.
Scottish equivalents are 'Highers', 'Advanced Highers' and 'Scottish Qualification Certificate'.
Where would I have studied?
A levels were taken mainly in schools, further education (FE) colleges and sixth form colleges which now offer the AS/A2 levels.
How would I have been assessed?
A levels were usually studied over 2 years and assessment is by external examination and portfolio.
The AS level is gained at the end of one year of study and assessed through external examination and portfolio; this can be upgraded to A2 level with a further year of study and assessment.
What qualification would I have achieved?
The grading system has also changed over time with early A levels being pass or fail but in some cases the fail defaulting to an 'O' level pass (this was dropped in 1987).
A pass is denoted by A, B, C, D or E, with an F denoting fail.
Awarding bodies offering A levels are: AQA, CCEA, EDEXCEL, OCR and WJEC.
A list of 'old' awarding bodies such as the Joint Matriculation Board (JMB) or Royal Society of Arts (RSA) can be found on the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) website.
