OCR announce A-level exam results are "not finalised"

Examination board OCR has announced that A-level results released this past summer are subject to marking errors and hence finalised results will be released at the end of this month. The results that have been given are "provisional", according to the board, and so universities should not use these marks to secure places - despite the fact that courses began in September. Deborah Streatfield, who is founder of the charity MyBigCareer, released a statement saying: "It is nonsense to think any university could wait until late October to hold open a place. We had one university this year that wouldn't wait longer than lunchtime on results day itself." Pupil Rory Bennett reported to the Telegraph that he was given a C in August for one of his subjects, meaning he lost his place from leading universities Queen Mary and Kings College London, despite the fact that he obtained a B after requesting a re-mark. The mistake was only noticed after the university admissions deadline. OCR have since apologised to the candidate, but maintained that "results remain provisional until schools and candidates have had an opportunity to query the information".

Alison Rogers who is chief executive of the chartered Institute of Educational Assessors believes that "standards in our qualification system must be seen to be robust, rigorous and able to stand up to the highest scrutiny and this must begin with the marking of examination scripts." The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) have advised pupils who requested a remark in August to contact the university that they lost their place with and speak to them directly.

Image courtesy to Flickr, Creative Commons