Options after GCSE, vocational, technical or other level 2 results
Understand your options
Whether you got the grades you were expecting or not, you have lots of options. You might want to explore workplace education options or gain a technical qualification.
It’s important to remember that you’re in the early stages of your journey, and there are many different routes that you can choose from. It might be helpful to discuss some of these options with a teacher or careers adviser.
Explore your study options
If your grades were different than expected
If your grades were not what you were expecting, you still have plenty of options to choose from. Learn about all your options at 16.
You may be able to improve your grade by taking exams in autumn 2021.
If you need to rethink your next steps, you still have lots of different options to choose from. You can speak to your school or college to decide your next step or visit GOV.UK to learn what to do if you think your grade is wrong.
Speak to an adviser
If you need help or advice around your exam results and next steps, you can call us on 0800 100 900 or use webchat
How your grades were calculated
This year, teachers received detailed guidance from exam boards to support them with calculating students’ grades. This means that your teacher was able to calculate your grade using a number of different types of evidence, including mock exams, coursework, essays or in-class tests.
If you want to know more about how assessment grades work, you can read the Department for Education’s article on what you need to know about grades in 2021.