A GCSE, or General Certificate of Secondary Education, is an academic qualification in a specific subject, usually studied during the ages of 14-16, with an exam taken at 16. It is typical for students to sit around 10 GCSEs. At the end of the two-year GCSE course, candidates receive a grade for each subject that they have sat. The pass grades, from highest to lowest, are: A* (pronounced 'A-star'), A, B, C, D, E, F and G. However, only grades A* to C are given much credence by most employers.
The GCSE is predominantly used in England, Northern Ireland and Wales. The Standard Grade is the Scottish equivalent.
Often, candidates from outside the UK will have the International Baccalaureate qualification. Employers will use conversion tables to estimate what grade the candidate would have achieved had they sat the UK, and is not prejudiced against.
