Results day is the most eagerly anticipated day in the calendar for those in further education but we’re happy to report that today’s showings are mostly positive. The pass rate for exams in 2012 stands at 98%, an increase for a thirtieth successive year.

More than 300,000 candidates received their results today and despite the drop in university applications, the race for places remains highly competitive. Ucas has announced that 357,195 students had been accepted onto their chosen courses, which is down 6.95% on last year.

As ever, tens of thousands of students who didn’t achieve quite what they needed are waiting in clearing to find a university place. Ucas has said that there are more courses with spaces to be filled this year though, with 25,000 courses still looking for students. Ucas have phone lines open until 7pm this evening to help students who want advice with their next move.

Elsewhere, the number of grades this year that have been issued as either A or A* has fallen for the first time in two decades. Results show that 26.6% of grades issued this year have been A/A*, which represents a 0.4% fall from last year.

Brian Lightman, of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: “More students than ever are taking A levels and for many, getting a B or C grade is a real achievement. When you have a cohort with a wider range of ability, it is not surprising that the percentage achieving A and A* drops slightly. There will always be fluctuations in grades.”

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