Students wait for A-level, T-level and BTec grades

Hundreds of thousands of students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will receive A-level, T-level and BTec results on Thursday morning.

Another record number of students are expected to find out they have secured a place at their first choice of university.

The cost of going to university has been in the spotlight this year, with mounting pressure on the government to reform student loan repayments and a renewed focus on technical education under Prime Minister Andy Burnham.

But the chief executive of Universities UK, which represents more than 140 vice-chancellors, urged students to not “let politicians make your decision for you”.

About 40% of 18-year-olds in England receive A-levels every summer.

Around 250,000 grades for vocational and technical qualifications are also expected to be released to students in England, including BTec National, Cambridge Technical, Cambridge Advanced National and T-level results.

AS-levels, which will count towards students’ final A-level results next summer in Wales and Northern Ireland, will also be released.

This year, the pass rate for National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher exams in Scotland rose across the board.

And last year, the proportion of students getting top A-level results reached a record high, with 28.3% of all grades across England, Wales and Northern Ireland marked at A* or A.