The General Certificate of Education Advanced Level (short form: GCE Advanced Level), or more commonly, the A Level, is a school leaving qualification offered by educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the British Crown dependencies to students completing secondary or pre-university education. A number of countries, including Singapore, Kenya, Mauritius and Zimbabwe have developed qualifications with the same name as and a similar format to the British A Levels. Obtaining A Level or equivalent qualifications is generally required for university entrance.

A Levels are generally worked towards over two years and split into two parts, with one part studied in each year. The first part is known as the Advanced Subsidiary Level, A1 Level or AS Level (the AS Level acronym was previously used for the separate Advanced Supplementary Level qualification). The second part is known as the A2 Level and is more in depth and academically rigorous than the A1 Level. The AS Level is a qualification in its own right, and the AS Level combined with the A2 Level forms the complete A Level qualification. Up to June 2009 a third Special / Advanced Extension Award level was available for the brightest candidates.

The General Certificate of Education (GCE) Advanced Level, or A Level, is a secondary school leaving qualification in the United Kingdom, offered as a main qualification in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, as an alternative qualification in Scotland, and as an international school qualification worldwide.

A Levels require studying an offered A level subject over a two-year period and sitting for an examination at the end of each year (A1/S and A2, respectively), proctored by an official assessment body. Most students study three or four A level subjects simultaneously during the two post-16 years (ages 16–18) in a secondary school, in a sixth form college, in a further and higher education college, or in a tertiary college, as part of their further education. A levels are regarded as equivalent in level to the BTEC Level 3 qualifications.

A Levels are recognised by many universities as the standard for assessing the suitability of applicants for admission in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and many such partly universities base their admissions offers on a student's predicted A-level grades, with the majority of these offers conditional on achieving a minimum set of final grades.

The Higher School Certificate is an academic qualification in Mauritius awarded upon the completion of Upper 6 Form, the final stage of secondary school. The qualification is awarded upon earning passing marks on the A-level exams administered by the Mauritius Examinations Syndicate, in conjunction with the University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate of the Cambridge International Examinations board.

Editions

Higher School Certificate (HSC)

The traditional Higher School Certificate (HSC) is the main school-leaving qualification awarded by Mauritian secondary schools. Requirements include A Levels and AS Levels in subjects chosen by the student.

Successful students may receive academic recognition and are eligible to compete for laureateship, a scholarship scheme offered by the Mauritian government for students pursuing higher education.

Higher School Certificate Professional Qualification (HSC Pro)

The Higher School Certificate Professional Qualification (HSC Pro) is an alternative school-leaving qualification with a modified curriculum and structure, which allows students to pursue both an academic curriculum and vocational training, to be prepared for tertiary studies as well as employment. The qualification will be introduced as a pilot in 2015.

The Sri Lankan Advanced Level (A-level), is a General Certificate of Education (GCE) qualification in Sri Lanka, conducted by the Department of Examinations of the Ministry of Education. Similar to the British Advanced Level. It is usually taken by students during the optional final two years of Collegiate level (Grades 12 & 13 or external (non-school) candidate, after they have completed GCE Ordinary Level exams. The majority of candidates enter the exams via their respective schools, while candidates who have finished school education can also apply as a private applicant. The qualification is also used as an entrance exam for Sri Lankan state universities. The exams are held in three mediums Sinhala, Tamil and English.

Fields of Study

The students should study for 2 years at collegiate level before taking the examination. The examination diversifies over 5 major fields of study,

In Uganda, students receive the Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) when they finish the 2-year upper secondary school which is also called the HSC. It is comparative to GCE A-Level in the UK. UACE is also known colloquially as "A-Level". The examinations for the UACE are administered by the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB).

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these examinations are administered countrywide to all registered schools and students. All students are subjected to the same grading scale.