Results Day: 2025 marks 'landmark year' of achievement by Scotland's learners
Tuesday 5 August 2025
Around 147,000 learners across Scotland will receive their results today - and their hard work has made 2025 a ‘landmark year’ of achievement and success for them.
The Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) - which will be replaced by Qualifications Scotland in December - confirmed that the 2024-2025 session resulted in:
- Overall attainment rates at A-C increasing at all levels of National Qualifications (National 5, Higher, and Advanced Higher)
- The poverty-related attainment gap narrowing at all levels of National Qualifications (National 5, Higher, and Advanced Higher)
- Total number of vocational and technical qualifications – the skills-based awards that unlock training and career opportunities – surging past 100,000 for first time ever
- More than 200,000 Higher entries for first time since Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) qualifications were introduced in 2014.
All learners will receive their results and qualifications certificates by post. More than 60,000 of them have already received their results via email or text from 8am today, having signed up for MySQA digital services.
Donna Stewart, Scotland’s Chief Examining Officer, said: 'Scotland’s learners should be rightly proud today – and we are proud of them.
'Their hard work and commitment has made 2025 a landmark year. The rise in overall attainment at all three National Qualification levels will rightly be welcomed in classrooms and staffrooms across Scotland. Higher entries have also risen beyond 200,000 for the first time since Curriculum for Excellence was introduced.
'The number of vocational and technical qualifications passed the 100,000 landmark for the first time, with record numbers of learners embracing the wide range of skills-based learning that schools, colleges, teachers and lecturers are working so hard to offer and that employers are crying out for.
'2025 has also seen the poverty-related attainment gap narrow at all levels of national qualifications. We welcome that progress towards the shared national mission to reduce inequality.
'All of those achievements are to be celebrated – and they belong to Scotland’s learners.
'I also want to thank my fellow teachers, not only the thousands of them who also play a critical role as SQA markers and so make Results Day possible but every educator across Scotland for the work they do every day to support learners.
'Today is the last Results Day for SQA, after three decades of service to Scotland. We are already working hard to ensure that Qualifications Scotland builds upon the best of SQA while delivering positive change that will be felt long before Results Day 2026.'
The headline figures for 2025
| Category | National 5 | Higher | Advanced Higher |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entries | 333,995 | 202,490 | 28,610 |
| A-C attainment rate | 78.4% | 75.9% | 76.7% |
| A attainment rate | 39.2% | 30.8% | 31.4% |
National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher attainment, 2023, 2024 and 2025
| Year | National 5 A-C attainment | Higher A-C attainment | Advanced Higher A-C attainment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 78.8% | 77.1% | 79.8% |
| 2024 | 77.2% | 74.9% | 75.3% |
| 2025 | 78.4% | 75.9% | 76.7% |
Number of qualifications at Scottish Credit & Qualifications Framework (SCQF) levels 1-6 in 2025
2025 attainment – vocational and technical qualifications
| Awards | National Progression Awards | National Certificates | Skills for Work |
|---|---|---|---|
| 48,240 | 38,445 | 5,460 | 18,235 |
| TOTAL | 110,390 (up 22.6% on 2024) |
2025 attainment – National Courses
| National Course | Course entries | Number attained |
|---|---|---|
| National 2 | 3,085 | 2,390 |
| National 3 | 31,630 | 27,760 |
| National 4 | 133,785 | 115,065 |
Record-breaking year for vocational and technical qualification awards as 100,000 landmark reached
2025 saw learners achieve a record number of vocational and technical qualification awards, with an increase of 22.6% taking the total beyond 100,000 (110,390) for the first time ever. The awards included a wide range of areas including leadership, employability and personal finance, as well as a range of Skills for Work courses, Awards, National Certificates and National Progression Awards.
These include skills-based qualifications in areas such as Cybersecurity, Computer Games Development, Sports and Fitness: Team Sports, Employability, Personal Finance, Modern Languages for Life and Work and Sports Development. Other valuable and popular course choices include Mental Health and Wellbeing.
Donna Stewart added: 'Our ‘Your Voice’ national engagement programme has taken us to schools and colleges across the country to listen and learn from educators and learners. A central theme has been the huge amount of work being done to broaden the curriculum offering and unlock the potential of every learner.
'These landmark results show that hard work has been rewarded. We are also celebrating those who receive certificates throughout the year for other qualifications, including for Higher National and Scottish Vocational Qualifications and for those undertaking Foundation Apprenticeships.
'The wide range of qualifications is supporting young people in reaching their full potential as they progress to college, university, apprenticeships, other learning, training and employment.'
2025 in numbers
National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher
More than 130,000 learners from over 480 schools, colleges and training providers took these courses.
More than two million exam papers and more than 465,000 items of coursework.
Around 7,550 markers and 128 Principal Assessors (experienced teachers and lecturers).
123 Grade Boundary meetings over four weeks.
Support for learners
SQA’s Appeals 2025 service is free of charge and can be accessed directly by learners or on their behalf by their school or college. It opens at 9am on Results Day. More information will be sent to learners and is available at sqa.org.uk/appeals.
If learners have a query about their certificate, they can call SQA’s Candidate Advice Line on 0345 279 1000.
Skills Development Scotland’s Results Helpline: 0808 100 8000.
UCAS: 0371 468 0468 / Clearing resources can be found at ucas.com/clearing-launch.