Results day and next steps

A-level resits: how to arrange a retake

Work out which exams you need, find an exam centre and check the costs, practical requirements and application rules before you commit.

Editorial

Lead authorRobin GibbonsFounder & CEO·Latimer Tuition
Reviewed byHeather LatimerTutor Matching & Customer Service·Latimer Tuition

When can you retake your qualification?

Start with the exact qualification name and specification code on your results statement. “A level” alone does not identify the resit rules. An exam series is the period in which a board runs a set of exams.

The differences come from WJEC’s resit guide, CCEA’s entry and resit rules, Pearson’s International A-level guidance and Cambridge’s qualification guidance. An international autumn series does not create a November resit for your existing domestic A-level specification.

Qualification	Timing and retake rule	What to confirm
Domestic linear A levels in England	Summer retake; all written papers for the subject are retaken. Eligible NEA or science endorsements may carry forward.	Confirm the specification and every component with the centre.
WJEC A levels approved by Qualifications Wales	Unitised AS/A2 structure. WJEC allows each unit to be resat once under its resit rules; further attempts trigger fresh-start rules.	Use the Wales section of WJEC’s guide. Do not apply it to Ofqual-accredited Eduqas qualifications.
CCEA A levels in Northern Ireland	AS/A2 units and qualification cash-ins are available in the summer series. CCEA has unit resit rules.	Ask the centre which units and cash-in code are needed. Cash-in combines unit results into a qualification award.
Pearson Edexcel International AS/A levels	Most subjects are modular; Law is an exception. January, June and October assessment opportunities are available in most subjects.	Check subject availability. This is not the domestic Edexcel GCE qualification.
Cambridge International AS & A Level	June and November series.	Check the syllabus, entry option and any staged-assessment or carry-forward conditions.

Can you retake without going back to school?

Yes. AQA defines a private candidate as someone entering through an approved school or college without being enrolled there. You can study independently, through distance learning or with private tuition. Not every centre accepts private candidates or every specification, so find a willing centre well before its entry deadline.

Return to your school or join a college

Ask whether there is a resit place for your subject, which teaching you would attend and whether the provider will make your exam entry. Compare the timetable, assessment feedback and total charges before accepting a place.

Study independently and use a private exam centre

You organise your learning and find a centre willing to enter you for the exact specification. This gives you control over study time, but you need a separate plan for feedback, deadlines and any coursework or practical requirements.

Take a taught course or use subject tuition

Ask exactly what is included. Teaching, marking practice work and making an exam entry are different services. Get written confirmation of who books the exams and handles any non-exam assessment before paying for a course.

What happens to coursework and science practicals?

Non-exam assessment (NEA) means assessed work outside the written exam papers. A science practical endorsement is a separate reported result. Treat them as different questions when you contact a centre.

Carrying forward an eligible NEA mark

Under AQA’s carry-forward rules, an eligible mark can be carried forward for the lifetime of the specification. AQA’s general rule uses the most recent non-absent result, but subject exceptions apply: for History (7042), AQA uses the best attempt where there is more than one previous result. The centre must check the subject’s rule, use the same unique candidate identifier (UCI), and request carry-forward by the component submission deadline. Do not assume that changing board or specification lets you transfer an ordinary coursework mark.

Carrying forward a science practical endorsement

For AQA Biology, Chemistry and Physics, the practical endorsement can carry forward across JCQ awarding bodies. AQA uses the most recent endorsement grade, even if it is Not Classified. This exception concerns the endorsement, not the written papers or ordinary NEA. Give the centre the latest result and ask it to confirm the required evidence and entry process.

The centre still has an assessment job

For new AQA NEA, the accepting centre must supervise, authenticate and assess the work under the specification’s requirements. AQA’s private-candidate NEA guidance explains those responsibilities. For OCR carry-forward, you must previously have received a qualification grade, including Unclassified, and the centre must use the correct carry-forward entry option. Subject-specific exceptions also matter: AQA Art and Design can carry forward one of its two moderated NEA components within a title, while the other must be retaken.

Your A-level resit entry checklist

Work through this before buying a course or assuming you have an exam place.

Define the result you need
Write down the subject, achieved grade, target course or next step, and the grade or practical requirement you need to meet. Ask admissions about its resit policy for your intended entry year before committing to a retake.
Collect your qualification details
Have your results statement, awarding body, full specification code, previous exam series and candidate identifiers ready. Include your coursework result or practical endorsement outcome where relevant. For AQA, pass the exams officer your existing UCI and unique learner number (ULN), if you have them.
Get a centre to confirm the whole entry
Ask whether it accepts private candidates for that subject and specification, whether it can handle each required component, and what evidence it needs for any carry-forward. A place for written papers alone may not meet your needs.
Record the centre’s dates and arrangements
Get its registration, payment and document deadlines, the exam location and any assessment dates. Raise access-arrangement needs early and ask what evidence the centre requires; do not assume arrangements transfer automatically.
Check the itemised price and terms
Confirm exam-board entry charges, centre administration and invigilation, any NEA or practical assessment, late fees and cancellation terms. Keep tuition, travel and accommodation separate so you can compare like with like.
Check your entry confirmation
Ask for written confirmation of the subject, specification, series and components entered, including any carry-forward. Check your personal details and query errors promptly. Put every exam and assessment date in your calendar.

Note

How much does it cost to resit A levels?

There is no single price that covers every A-level retake. Your total depends on the subject, centre and services included. A board’s published entry fee is not necessarily the amount a private candidate pays the centre. Ask for a written quote covering the components in the checklist above.

Compare a total for the same arrangement: exam entry and centre charges + any NEA or practical assessment + tuition you choose + travel or accommodation. A low written-exam quote can be a poor comparison if another centre includes practical assessment that you also need. Ask your school or college what support or funding is available for your circumstances rather than assuming a retake will be free. AQA’s entry and fee guidance explains additional centre charges and possible late fees; National Careers Service guidance treats free school or college resits as dependent on your circumstances.

Exam-entry enquiry

A message you can send to an exam centre

When this applies

Use this after finding a centre that may offer your board and subject. Replace the brackets with your details.

Suggested wording

Hello, I would like to resit [full qualification, subject and specification code] in [exam series]. I last sat it with [board] in [series].

Do you accept private candidates for this specification, and can you enter me for every required component? My previous NEA/practical endorsement result is [result or not applicable]. Please confirm whether it can be carried forward, the evidence you need and whether changing board would affect this.

Please send your registration and payment deadlines, an itemised total, assessment locations and cancellation terms. I also need to discuss [access arrangements, if applicable]; what evidence and lead time do you need?

Please confirm what document I will receive to show that the entry has been made. Thank you.

Why this helps

This asks the centre to resolve the subject-specific entry and assessment questions before you pay, rather than confirming only that it offers A-level exams.

Two examples of planning a retake

These are illustrative situations, not individual admissions or exam-entry advice.

One subject needs a higher grade

A student has the grades they need in two subjects but wants to improve the third for a particular degree. First they ask that course whether a later resit result would meet its policy. For an England linear A level, their study plan then covers the whole subject and all its written papers, even if one paper went particularly badly. They ask the centre separately about any eligible NEA carry-forward.

Science retake after leaving school

A student wants to study at home and has a Pass as their most recent practical endorsement result. Before choosing a centre, they ask it to confirm the evidence and entry process for carrying that Pass forward. If the latest result is not a Pass, they ask how the practical assessment can be completed and what it costs. An offer to host the written exams does not answer that practical question.

Note

Resits and university applications

Check the policy for your chosen course and intended entry year before paying for a resit. National Careers Service guidance notes that some universities accept resit marks only in particular circumstances. Ask admissions about your achieved grades, the subjects you plan to retake and the date of the new results. Where science is relevant, ask whether a practical endorsement Pass is required. A higher resit grade does not itself guarantee an offer.

For 2027 UCAS applications, UCAS’s document-upload guidance says to enter the qualification twice in Education: the original achieved result and the resit with its result marked pending. Its advice that you do not need to upload the original certificate solely because you are resitting does not mean you should leave out the original grade. A university may still ask you for documents through its own portal.

If you are applying independently after leaving school, agree with your former school, college or other appropriate referee how your reference and any predicted grades will be handled. Do this alongside arranging exams, rather than waiting until the application is ready to submit.

Support and clarity

Frequently asked questions

Straight answers to the questions people ask most often.

Should I look at a review of marking before arranging a resit?

If you think the original marking may be wrong, speak to your school or exam centre promptly about the available post-results services and their deadlines. A review examines the original assessment; a resit means taking exams again. Do not assume that a planned retake extends any review deadline. Our reviews of marking and appeals guide explains the separate process.

What if a centre offers the written exams but cannot assess my coursework?

Ask it to confirm whether a valid carry-forward is possible for your exact specification. If new non-exam assessment is required and the centre cannot handle it, you still need an arrangement that covers that component. Use the board’s private-candidate guidance to approach another suitable centre; do not pay on the assumption that the written-exam booking covers everything.

1.
Ofqual: What people working in schools and colleges need to know about the period after exams and assessments
Ofqual
England post-results options, including summer A-level resits.
2.
OCR: Entry rules
OCR
OCR linear entry, carry-forward and endorsement rules.
3.
AQA: Private candidates
AQA
Private-candidate definition and subject availability.
4.
AQA: Exam entries and fees
AQA
Entry details, additional fees and access-arrangement contact.
5.
AQA: Finding a school or college
AQA
Finding a centre willing to make your entry.
6.
AQA: Carry forward of marks
AQA
AQA NEA and science endorsement carry-forward conditions.
7.
AQA: Non-exam assessment (NEA)
AQA
Responsibilities for private-candidate NEA.
8.
National Careers Service: Exam resits
National Careers Service
Resit costs and university acceptance caveats.
9.
UCAS: Uploading documents to your application
UCAS
2027 application disclosure and certificate-upload distinction.
10.
WJEC: Guide to resit requirements
WJEC
Wales unitised resits and separate Eduqas rules.
11.
CCEA: GCE AS/A Level Entry, Re-sit and Aggregation Rules
CCEA
Northern Ireland CCEA unit entries, resits and cash-ins.
12.
Pearson: About Edexcel International Advanced Levels
Pearson
International modular series and subject limits.
13.
Cambridge International: Cambridge International AS & A Level: qualification
Cambridge International
Cambridge International June and November series.

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