‘A’ Level results, pass rate climbs to 84.67 percent

…fewer candidates sat for the 2021 exams, compared to previous year…

The Zimbabwe Schools Examinations Council (ZIMSEC) on Tuesday released delayed results for last November’s Advanced Level exams, showing an 84.67 percent pass rate.

ZIMSEC board chief Professor Eddie Mwenje said there was a 3.6 percent improvement in the pass rate from the 80.98 percent in 2020.

Results will be accessible from the exam centres or schools from Wednesday, April 6.

Mwenje said the results would be accessible online on the ZIMSEC portal from 6PM on Tuesday. The portal will be open for five days only.

ZIMSEC is yet to release the Ordinary Level results for last year, which it blames on a change in the exam timetable caused by Covid-19. The delay has meant that Lower Sixth classes did not open for the first term.

The Advanced Level exams were written between December 1, 2021, and January 31, 2022, when previously they ran from early November into early December.

An analysis of the results provided by ZIMSEC showed 2.03 percent fewer candidates sat the exams – 49,128 compared to 50,287 in November 2020.

Of these, 48,234 wrote two or more subjects compared to 49,153 in 2020. For those who wrote two or more subjects, 40,842 obtained Grade E or better in two or more subjects, translating to an 84.67 percent pass rate.

The total number of school candidates in November 2021 was 40,806. Of these, 40,599 wrote two or more subjects and 35,276 obtained Grade E or better yielding a percentage pass rate of 86.89.

Private candidates were 8,322. Of these, 7,725, wrote two or more subjects and 5,566 obtained a Grade E or better in two or more subjects, which translated to a percentage pass rate of 72.05 percent.

The total number of female school candidates who sat for two or more subjects in November 2021 was 20,262. Of this number, 18,043 passed two or more subjects yielding an 89.04 percent pass rate, up 3.24 percent from 85.8 percent in 2020.

Male school candidates who sat for two or more subjects were 20,337 and 17,233 passed two or more subjects, which translates to 84.72 percent, an increase of 4.61 percentage points from 80.31 for 2020.

ZIMSEC is yet to announce the release date for the Ordinary Level results. -Zimlive