A-Level Guides

Straightforward explainers for Cambridge International AS & A Level students and parents — written to demystify the numbers behind your results.

A-Level grading can feel like a black box: you sit several papers, wait weeks, and a single letter appears. These guides open that box. They explain how raw marks turn into an A*, A, B, C, D or E, why grade boundaries move from one session to the next, and how the grades on your record shape university applications through UCAS. Everything here is specific to the Cambridge International A Level route (AS + A2), not the older 9–1 style used at earlier stages.

Read them in any order. When you want to put the theory into practice, pair them with our grade calculator, the grade boundary tables, or the grade-to-percentage converter to test your own targets against real figures.

Choose a guide

How A-Level Grading Works

From raw marks to A*–E: how components combine and where thresholds come from.

What Percentage Is an A* at A-Level?

Why there is no fixed number, and roughly what it takes to reach the top grade.

A-Level Grade Boundaries Explained

What thresholds are, why they shift each session, and how to read the tables.

A-Level Predicted Grades for UCAS

How predictions are formed, why they drive university offers, and how to self-estimate.

Independent study tool. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to Cambridge Assessment International Education. Grade boundary figures are sourced from official releases; always confirm with your exam board.