A-LEVEL results in Cardiff this year were lower compared to last year, but they were also higher than the Welsh average according to the city council.
Cardiff Council said provisional WJEC GCE results announced today show that 37% of A-level results for 2024 were graded A* to A, compared to the Wales figure of 29.9%.
The percentage of A-level entries in Cardiff resulting in A-C grades was 83.1% compared to 76.5% across Wales. Again, these are provisional statistics based on WJEC GCE results.
In a statement on A-level results this year, the Cardiff Council said outcomes were higher than 2019, but lower than 2023.
Summer 2024 marked the final step in a return to the usual way that exams in Wales were graded before the Covid-19 pandemic.
Cardiff Council’s deputy leader and cabinet member for education, Cllr Sarah Merry, said: “On behalf of the Local Authority I would like to congratulate all of Cardiff’s pupils who have today received results for A-Level and equivalent qualifications.
“Their achievements are a testament to the hard work, determination and resilience they have shown throughout their educational journey to date, and I would like to wish them the very best of luck as they begin a new chapter of their lives, whether they are moving onto university, employment or training.
“It is pleasing to see that performance across the city this year has continued to rise and that results are above the Welsh average for 2024.”
We spoke with students at Cardiff and Vale College who received their results on Thursday, August 15. Daisy Clark, 18, was delighted with her three As and an A and she said will be going to University College London (UCL).
However, the year was not all plain sailing for Daisy. She added: “It has been more difficult than last year.
“I was diagnosed with ADHD… at the beginning of the school year, so that was really hard navigating that and starting medication.
“The exam time, the first time being on medication and everything – it was just quite intense.
Another student, Lacey Williams, also found the year to be a lot of hard work and “a lot of stress”, but added that it was all worth it in the end to get the results she needed to go on and study law at University of Nottingham.
Tom Davies, 18, got two A’s and an A and he’ll be going to University of Bristol to do French and Russian studies.
He said: “I was certain of the results I was going to get, but then I opened it and it wasn’t entirely what I was expecting.
“I was thrown and I don’t think it has really sunk in.
“I’m so pleased and I am just glad that it is all over to be honest.”
Ella Moyse, 18, was pleasantly surprised with the results she got and said she convinced herself that she was going to fail maths.
Ella said: “I genuinely blocked it out of my mind and I didn’t even think it was a possibility to pass, but seeing that I got a C is just so relieving actually.
“As soon as my alarm went off, I was just excited but at the same time I was trying to drag it out for as long as I could l.”
Ella got three As in business, psychology and extended project qualification (EPQ) and she is going to Aberystwyth University.
She added: “I am excited, but it is the first time that I have ever gone away from home.”
Summer exams were cancelled in 2020 and 2021 because of the Covid-19 pandemic and grades were determined by teacher assessments.
Schools started to transition back to pre-pandemic assessment arrangements in 2022 and 2023, but support remained in place for learners.
However, this year there has been no advance notice provided for learners and no adaptations made to assessments.
Cardiff and Vale College student Rhys Ioan Gibbs, 18, got two As in biology and maths and two As in chemistry and physics.
“It’s weird because usually I would feel stressed,” he said.
“This morning, I felt at ease. As soon as I got handed the piece of paper, everything changed.
“I opened the [results] paper next to my mum and dad in the car so I was well nervous.”
He added that he was “really pleased with his results” and that his parents were overjoyed as well.
Rhys said he is taking a gap year before going to do mechanical engineering at University of Bristol.
Lance Macaraig, 18, from Barry got two Cs in digital technology and maths and he got a B in PE.
He’s going to study maths with a foundation at Queen Mary University of London. He’s also the captain of the Cardiff and Vale basketball academy, which has had a lot of success this year, winning a number of championships.
On balancing his sport with studies, Lance said: “It is a challenge because it is time management and it is not something that can be taken lightly.”
He said his coach was very influential, adding that he put an emphasis on studying coming before basketball.
“This has stuck with me for the two years I have been at college,” said Lance.
“Being able to have a coach who can give you a push in the back on what you need to do, it is really helpful.” Carys Williams, 18, got two As in sociology and psychology and an A in religious studies.
“I had mixed feelings after my exams. I wasn’t too sure how I had done, so I tried to put it out of my mind, but I was hopeful.”
Carys will be going to University of Cambridge to study human social political sciences.
Carys added: “I feel really good and really excited.
“It is daunting and now it is that situation where because I wasn’t 100% sure I couldn’t really mentally prepare, but now that it is confirmed, I am really excited.”
Cardiff and Vale College principal, Sharon James-Evans, said: “It is always a pleasure to celebrate our learners on A Levels and Level 3 Results Day as these young people embark upon the next chapter of their lives. Well done everyone!
“We are very proud of all of our learners who are picking up their results today.
“Their achievements are a testament to their hard work over the last two years, and to the College staff who have worked incredibly hard to support their learners to achieve these outcomes.
“It is fantastic to see so many take these results, and the wider skills and experiences they have gained during their time at CAVC, and stand out from the crowd and progress on to leading universities and fantastic alternative progression routes including higher apprenticeships.”
