BTec results 2020: when revised grades are out, why Pearson delayed results - and how marks have been calculated

Thousands of young people across England were awarded their GCSE results last Thursday (20 August), with grades surging to a record high this year.

A last-minute U-turn from the government, which came after almost 40 per cent of A level results were downgraded the week before (13 August), meant that results could be based on teachers’ estimated grades after exams were forced to be cancelled.

However, around 200,000 BTec pupils were forced to wait even longer for their final results.

When will BTec results be out?

Pupils will begin receiving their BTec results from Tuesday (25 August), after exam board Pearson delayed their planned publication on 20 August.

Cindy Rampersaud, senior vice-president for Btec and Apprenticeships at the company, said all eligible results will be available by Friday (27 August).

Around 200,000 level one and two entries were due to receive grades last week, while 250,000 level three grades have already been awarded but were part of the reassessment.

The exam board apologised for the changes and acknowledged the uncertainty the decision caused to pupils.

Why have results been delayed?

Pearson said the last-minute decision to delay was to allow it to regrade all of the results to bring them in line with A levels and GCSEs, which have now been awarded based on teacher assessments.

The late decision caused significant disruption to those seeking to secure places in further and higher education, with universities across the UK already struggling to cope with the impact of the grade changes on their admissions process.

BTec grades were not included in the government U-turn on exam grades, but 19 August, just hours before results day, examiner Pearson said it would regrade the results to “address concerns about unfairness in relation to A-levels and GCSEs and ensure no Btec student is disadvantaged.”

In a statement, Pearson said: “BTec qualification results have been generally consistent with teacher and learner expectations, but we have become concerned about unfairness in relation to what are now significantly higher outcomes for GCSE and A levels.”

Some 38,000 pupils who took Cambridge Technicals, run by exam board OCR, were also affected by the review. However, the board let schools know about this on 18 August, with those results now due to be issued on 25 August.

How have grades been calculated?

GCSE and A level pupils in England, Wales and Northern Ireland were originally awarded a moderated grade, which was calculated using an algorithm based largely on schools’ previous results.

The system resulted in schools in more disadvantaged areas being penalised, while those in private schools benefitted, with more than 40 per cent of A level pupils being downgraded when results were released last week (13 August).

In response to the outcry from pupils across the country, the government agreed that pupils can now instead be awarded their school or college estimated grade, or the moderated grade from exam regulator Ofqual - whichever is the highest.

The proportion of GCSE entries in England awarded top grades surged to a record high following the U-turn, with more than one in four (25.9 per cent) scoring one of the three top grades this year.

As for BTec pupils, they have been forced to endure a longer wait before finding out their final results.

A Department for Education (DfE) spokesman said it understood pupils’ frustration at the delay, but stressed that awarding organisations had taken more time to ensure pupils weren't inadvertently left worse off due to the switch to centre-assessed grades.

The DfE said: "Critically no students will see their result downgraded as a result of the review, so results already issued will either stay the same or improve."