More than 26,000 students across Northern Ireland collected their A-level and AS-level results on Thursday 13 August 2026, with early figures pointing to another year of grade inflation ahead of England and Wales. Many pupils accessed their results online from 08:00 BST, while others attended their schools in person to open results alongside teachers and classmates.
The results confirm that Northern Ireland has again outperformed its counterparts elsewhere in the UK on the proportion of top grades awarded, continuing a trend seen in recent years. Scotland runs its own separate qualifications system and issues results on a different timetable.
How much have grades actually risen?
The rise in top grades this year has been sharper than initially expected. While the source information going into results day suggested 2026 outcomes would be broadly similar to 2025 — when just over 30% of A-level entries in Northern Ireland received an A* or A — provisional figures from the exams regulator now show a record 44% of entries achieved A*–A grades in 2026, according to a Joint Council for Qualifications release. That marks a substantial jump from 30.4% in 2025 and 29.4% in 2019.
The same data shows the A* rate alone climbing to 14.5% in 2026, up from 8.7% the previous year, while the overall pass rate covering A*–E grades reached 99.1%. Provisional AS-level outcomes also improved, with 98.2% of entries achieving grades A to E, compared with 96.7% in 2025, according to the JCQ release. The regulator has described this year's outcomes as broadly returning to standards last seen in 2019, even though the share of top grades remains higher than in that pre-pandemic year.
What can students do with their results today?
Students receiving A-level, AS-level and BTEC results on Thursday can use them to secure places at university or further education colleges, begin apprenticeships, or move directly into employment. Most qualifications are awarded through the Northern Ireland exams board CCEA, though some pupils will also receive grades issued by exam boards in England and Wales.
Many young people are expected to seek guidance from teachers on next steps, whether that means confirming a university place, entering the clearing system, or reconsidering their options. Universities operate a clearing process that allows students who missed their first-choice offer to find alternative courses or institutions.
This results day forms part of a wider release across the UK, with hundreds of thousands of students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland also receiving A-level, T-level and BTEC results on the same day amid separate debate over university costs and rising uptake of technical qualifications. A detailed breakdown of how grade boundaries, appeals, resits and clearing work this year is available in a wider guide to A-level results 2026.
Are fewer students going to university?
Figures from the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service indicate a modest decline in the proportion of 18-year-olds in Northern Ireland applying to university in recent years. In 2022, 52.8% of 18-year-olds applied to university, a figure that had fallen to 49.1% by 2026.
Higher Level Apprenticeships, which combine paid employment with structured learning, appear to be filling some of that gap. The Department for the Economy reported that more than 2,100 students were enrolled on a Higher Level Apprenticeship course at a further education college in Northern Ireland during the 2024/25 academic year.
What changes are coming to future exams?
Although today's results are unaffected, significant reform is planned for qualifications taken by future students. Education Minister Paul Givan has outlined changes under a programme called TransformED, which will introduce a new two-year modular A-level made up of three separate topics or exams from 2029, according to reporting on the reform plans.
Once the new model takes effect, CCEA will stop offering a separate AS-level qualification altogether, the same reporting confirms. Current AS and A-level students will not be affected by the shift.
What happens next?
CCEA is running a results helpline from Thursday 13 August until Wednesday 26 August 2026 on 028 9026 1260 for students with questions about their grades, according to a national broadcaster's report. The Department for the Economy's careers service is also offering advice online or by phone on 0300 200 7820.
GCSE results across Northern Ireland are scheduled for release on Thursday 20 August 2026. The new two-year modular A-level remains on track for first teaching in 2029, under the timetable set out as part of the TransformED reforms.
Key Facts
- More than 26,000 students received A-level and AS-level results in Northern Ireland on Thursday 13 August 2026.
- Provisional figures show a record 44% of A-level entries achieved A*–A grades in 2026, up from 30.4% in 2025.
- The A* rate rose to 14.5% in 2026, up from 8.7% in 2025, with an overall A*–E pass rate of 99.1%.
- University applications among 18-year-olds in Northern Ireland fell from 52.8% in 2022 to 49.1% in 2026.
- A new two-year modular A-level will replace the current system from 2029, ending separate AS-level qualifications.
