Almost 150,000 pupils across Scotland have received their National, Higher and Advanced Higher exam results, with pass rates rising at every level and a record number of National 5 passes recorded.
Official figures show that the National 5 pass rate reached 79.2 per cent this year, while the Higher pass rate rose to 76.7 per cent and the Advanced Higher pass rate climbed to 77.6 per cent. Almost 270,000 pupils were awarded a passing grade at National 5, compared with about 262,000 in the previous year.
Scotland’s Education Secretary, Mairi McAllan, described the overall outcomes as «incredibly positive». She said the results were a testament to the breadth and strength of Scotland’s education system, the professionalism of teachers and school staff, and the hard work of young people who sat this year’s exams. She added that the figures reflected sustained effort in classrooms and exam halls across the country.
Ms McAllan also highlighted another narrowing of the attainment gap between Scotland’s most and least deprived areas, describing the latest progress as particularly pleasing. The figures suggest that the improvement seen across different parts of the country in recent years has continued, with pupils from more disadvantaged backgrounds achieving better results than in previous sittings.
The results are the culmination of a year of study and preparation for tens of thousands of candidates. They will now be used by universities, colleges and employers as pupils move into the next stage of their education or working lives. For many students, today’s marks determine whether they can take up planned places when the new academic year begins.
The results cover the main qualifications taken by pupils in the senior phase of Scotland’s secondary schools. National 5 qualifications are usually completed before Highers and Advanced Highers, and the three levels are central to the transition from school to university, college or employment.
This year’s figures show increases at all levels, and the record number of National 5 passes stands out as one of the strongest results of the day. The overall pattern points to a broad improvement in attainment rather than progress limited to a single qualification.
Teachers and school staff will now help pupils interpret their grades and decide on their next steps, including confirming places in further education, higher education, training or work. Schools will also be able to use the results to assess how their pupils performed against national trends and to plan support for the coming year.
The attainment gap between pupils from the most and least deprived areas has been a long-standing measure of Scotland’s education system, and today’s figures will be closely examined in that context. While pass rates have improved across the board, the narrowing of that gap is widely regarded as a key indicator of how fairly the system is performing.
Almost 150,000 young people received results in this year’s exam cycle, and the overall rise in pass rates provides a stronger basis for pupils as they confirm their next steps in education, training or employment. Schools across the country will now turn their attention to supporting students in the days and weeks ahead.
