A-level blow as Baccalaureate given same rating as 5 A grades

A-level blow as Baccalaureate given same rating as 5 A grades


The credibility of A-levels received a fresh blow after it emerged that an alternative sixth form qualification is academically superior.
The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas) has developed a new tariff system which gives the International Baccalaureate an A-level equivalence for the first time.
An IB score of 38 points out of a maximum of 45 - which is achieved by more than 200 pupils a year at Sevenoaks School in Kent alone - is deemed to be equivalent to a staggering five A grades at A-level.
Oxford and Cambridge typically ask for 40 points which equates to five-and-half A grades.
A relatively modest IB score of 35 points is worth four-and-a-half A grades at A-level.
Even 30 IB points reflects three-and-a-half As at A-level which is enough to secure entry to most academically selective universities. And an IB pass is worth two As, according to the tariff being introduced in 2008.
A report by Ucas justifies the huge number of points credited to the top end of the IB, claiming that