Withington is celebrating yet another set of exceptional A Level results, with 82% of subjects passed at the top A* and A grades and 92% of all subjects passed at grades A*, A or B.

From this year’s Upper Sixth cohort of 67 girls, an impressive 38% of all A levels taken were passed with the elite A* grade. Nearly two-thirds of Withington’s Upper Sixth year group (43 girls) passed all their examinations with all A* or A grades.  No fewer than fifteen students each gained 3 or more A* grades, with eight students achieving a clean sweep of A*s in all subjects taken.

As in previous years, Withington’s A Level cohort achieved highly in the core STEM subjects (including Mathematics, Further Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry and Physics) with around half of the Upper Sixth girls choosing to go on to university to study  for degrees in STEM-related subjects.  These STEM subjects accounted for one half of all A Levels entered this year and 44% of these subjects were passed at the top A* grade. A breakdown of results by subject can be read here.

Withington offers only the most rigorous academic subjects for A Level study and is proud of its girls’ consistently high levels of achievement, which, once again, have enabled the vast majority of students to gain admission to their first choice university and degree course. This year, eight girls will take up their places at Oxford or Cambridge to read for degrees in a variety of subjects including philosophy, politics and economics, medicine and law. Other popular university destinations for 2016 include Durham, Bristol, London (LSE, UCL, KCL and QMUL), Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham, Sheffield, St Andrews and Warwick. The girls’ chosen degree courses include medicine, dentistry, civil engineering, English, modern foreign languages, economics, law, mathematics, natural sciences, physiotherapy, politics, philosophy, psychology, and anthropology.

Withington’s Headmistress Mrs Sue Marks, who is retiring at the end of August after leading the School for the past six years, said of the A-Level results:

“I am absolutely thrilled for our girls, for their families and their teachers. These wonderful results are a reflection of our students’ high academic ability, and of their determination and resilience. Just before the start of the A-level examinations, our school was devastated by the sudden death of Lucy Goldstone, a talented and popular member of our Upper Sixth. Despite their sense of shock and sadness, Lucy’s friends all wanted to honour her memory by caring for each other and for their teachers, and by continuing to work hard and to give of their very best. Having been extremely well-taught by our outstanding academic staff, the girls have produced fantastic results which will enable them to move on to the courses and universities of their choice, and will help prepare them for their future careers. I couldn’t be more proud of them all –and I know that Lucy would be very proud of them too.

“At Withington we aim to provide a broad education for life, and so these examination successes are part of a wider picture of teaching and extra-curricular activities which help students to develop their skills and values alongside their knowledge and understanding.”