The UK Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, wants to reform A-levels and create a British version of The International Baccalaureate (IB) qualifications, according to BBC News.
He would like to see students studying maths until the age of 18 (currently only required to the age of 16) and to undertake broader qualifications which will better prepare them for the future employment market.
Nothing has been decided yet and reforms are unlikely to take place until after the next election. The next UK general election must be held before the deadline of 28 January 2025, which means an election will take place at some point next year, with educational reform likely to be a key agenda item.
The opposing Labour party, led by Sir Keir Starmer, wants young people to have increased skills in maths, reading and writing alongside compulsory creative and vocational subjects. Therefore an overhaul of the UK education system is likely to be made by either party.
What does this mean for international students looking to study in the UK?
We need to see which party wins the next UK general election to understand exactly which educational reforms will be implemented.
However, we do know that all UK political parties, schools and employers consider Maths, English and ‘human skills’ such as critical thinking, resilience and collaboration as key skills for the future. Therefore, applicants to schools in the UK should focus on exceling these skills as their priority.
Halil Bal, CEO at HBA London, thinks that the IB qualification is better at preparing students for university compared to A-level qualifications. This is due to students studying six subjects for IB while A-level students typically study three to four subjects. In addition, assessment for IB includes essay writing and collaborative projects which are core skills needed for university.
As an example, for the IB physics qualification, students need to prepare an experiment and a lab report in class which then contribute to their final grade. Whereas in A-level physics, grades are mostly dependent on how well students perform in their end of year exams. This puts students who do not perform as well in exams at a disadvantage.
A-level classes also cover a larger amount of topics than IB, meaning that students do not have time to study the topics to a specialist level. Therefore, the idea of reforming the British A-level system seems like a positive move for students.