When is Scottish exam results day 2019?

Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) results day is Tuesday 6 August.

How to get your SQA results

Students will receive their results by first-class post on Tuesday 6 August.

If they have signed up for the MySQA service, students can receive their National 4, National 5, Higher or Advanced Higher results via text and/or email. Nearly 59,000 candidates will receive their results this way, from 8am onwards. Let’s hope the nerves don’t keep anyone up all night.

If you wanted to receive your exam results by email and text on Tuesday 6 August 2019, you would have had to sign up already. The deadline was 5pm on Tuesday 16 July 2019 and the account had to be activated by 5pm on Wednesday 17 July 2019. Those who haven’t signed up shouldn’t worry - they will still receive their results by post on 6 August as usual.

For students applying to university, there’s good news: the SQA will send their results to admissions service Ucas automatically for them.

If your results don’t arrive

If the post has been delivered but your certificate isn’t there, or you’ve signed up for MySQA but not received anything, contact your school or college for your results. If they cannot provide them, contact the SQA candidate advice line on 0345 279 1000.

S4-5 candidates

Some students will unfortunately not pass all of their exams at National 5. In this case, the decision whether or not to accept those students to study Highers is ultimately up to the school or college. If you think you were on the borderline, there is no harm in contacting your teachers as soon as possible to explore the possibilities.

S5-6: Which results are needed to apply to university?

Universities tend to be looking for four or five Highers in S5. Once you have these results, you can then start applying for university courses. 

Many universities don’t require Advanced Highers, but most recommend it. Very competitive courses, such as medicine or law, are the exception and more often than not do require Advanced Higher results. No matter which course you’re applying for, it is definitely encouraged to stay on to study Advanced Highers, as it will improve your chances of receiving an offer the following year.

Can I apply despite not meeting entry requirements for a course?

Yes, this is perfectly fine if you believe you can achieve those results by the end of S6. However, some courses will advertise the fact that they need all of your results “in one sitting”, rather than across different years. If the course isn’t advertised this way, then you can take another Higher in S6 to add to your S5 results and meet the requirements.

Similarly, if a course requires a certain subject and you haven’t taken that course, you will have to take it in S6.

What can I do if I’ve exceeded my offer and want to apply for a different course?

If you have met AND exceeded your offer, this means that you’re eligible to register for “adjustment” via Ucas Track. Read more about adjustment on the Ucas website here.

Can I appeal my results?

If you think you might need to, talk to a teacher as soon as possible to see what your school or college can do for you. The SQA has a “post-results service”, through which a request can be made for a “clerical check” or a “marking review”. The decision is up to your school or college, and only a headteacher or principal can submit a request. The SQA won’t accept requests from teachers or students.

A clerical check makes sure that:

• All parts of the materials have been marked;
• The marks given for each answer have been totalled correctly.

A marking review makes sure that:

• All parts of the materials have been marked;
• The marking is in line with the national standard;
• The marks given for each answer have been totalled correctly;
• The correct result has been entered.
   

A priority-marking review can be requested if the candidate requires a result to secure a conditional place at university or college.

The service opens on results day - 6 August 2019.

Priority marking review requests must be submitted by 16 August 2019.

Marking review and clerical check requests must be submitted by 27 August 2019.

Clearing dates 2019

For those who don’t meet their offers, or meet their insurance offer but no longer want to go to that university, clearing is the next option. Here are the key dates for clearing 2019:

31 August: Remaining offer conditions must be met and adjustment ends

The deadline for any remaining conditions to be met - otherwise the university or college might not accept you.

Adjustment ends (adjustment is a chance for you to reconsider where and what to study. If you’ve met and exceeded conditions for your firm choice, you can look for an alternative course).

20 September: Final deadline for 2019 entry applications

This is the last day on which you can submit applications to 2019 entry courses. Applications must arrive at Ucas by 6pm.

30 September: 2019 entry clearing vacancies removed from Ucas search tool

The ability to search for 2019 clearing vacancies will no longer be available on the Ucas website.

22 October: Last date to add 2019 entry clearing choices and for universities/colleges to make decisions

This is the final deadline for entries via clearing for both students and institutions.

If you still have questions or would like to talk to someone about your future, there is help, advice and support available, should you need it. You can contact the Skills Development Scotland helpline on 0808 100 8000 from 8am or online: www.myworldofwork.co.uk

If you need to contact SQA on exam results day, there are several ways:

Email: Completing the candidate enquiry form at  www.sqa.org.uk/candidate

Phone: 0345 279 1000

Facebook: facebook.com/ScottishQualificationsAuthority

Twitter: @sqasupport

*Information sourced from SQA and Ucas