IB Diploma

Early in July, students across the UK and the world receive their International Baccalaureate Diploma results. This news, which to them is so important, passes largely unnoticed by the British media, unlike the furore which greets A Level then GCSE results later in the summer.

Schools in the UK offer several different qualifications to students completing their Sixth Form studies. These include the vocational BTECs (certificates awarded by the Business and Technology Education Council); the Cambridge Pre-U, which prepares learners for the skills and knowledge they need to succeed at university, and, in Scotland, the Scottish Highers, which provide certification for a broad general education and have been the main route to higher education since 1888.