What is the UCAS Tariff?

• It is a points system used to report achievement for entry to higher education (HE) in a numerical format.

• It establishes agreed comparability between different types of qualifications.

• It provides comparisons between applicants with different types and volumes of achievement.

Download a copy of the UCAS Tariff (382KB Word document).

How does the Tariff work?

• Points can be aggregated from the different qualifications included in the Tariff.

• There is no ceiling to the number of points which can be accumulated.

• There is no double counting - applicants cannot count the same or similar qualifications twice

• Achievement at a lower level will be subsumed into the higher level, ie, AS points will be subsumed into the A level points for the same subject. The same principle applies to Scottish Highers and Advanced Highers, VCE A levels and Double Awards, Key Skills and Music awards at different levels or grades.

• All certificated Key Skills in Application of Number, Communication and IT will attract points whether achieved through proxy or not.

What qualifications are covered by the Tariff?

• Advanced Extension Awards

• Advanced Placement Programme

• British Horse Society Stage 3 Horse Knowledge & Care, Stage 3 Riding and Preliminary Teacher's Certificate (from 2008 entry onwards)

• BTEC National Award, Certificate and Diploma

• CACHE Diploma in Child Care and Education

• Certificate in Financial Studies and Diploma in Financial Studies

• COPE - Certificate of Personal Effectiveness

• Core Skills at Higher and Intermediate 2

• Diploma in Fashion Retail (from 2008 entry onwards)

• Diploma in Foundation Studies (Art and Design)

• Free standing Mathematics qualifications

• GCE AS, AS Double Award, A level and Double Award

• International Baccalaureate (from 2008 entry onwards)

• iPRO Certificate and Diploma (from 2008 entry onwards)

• Irish Leaving Certificate - Higher and Ordinary levels

• Key Skills at Levels 2, 3 and 4

• Music examinations at grades 6, 7 and 8

• OCR National Certificate, Diploma and Extended Diploma

• Scottish Standard Grade, Intermediate 2, Higher and Advanced Higher

• Speech and Drama examinations at grades 6, 7 and 8 (from 2008 entry onwards)

• VCE AS, AVCE and AVCE Double Award

• Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Diploma

Have any new qualifications been incorporated in the Tariff?

• For 2008 entry, the following qualifications will come into the Tariff:
  - Advanced Placement Programme
  - British Horse Society awards
  - Diploma in Fashion Retail awarded by ABC
  - Diploma in Financial Studies awarded by IFS
  - International Baccalaureate Diploma
  - iPRO Certificate and Diploma awarded by OCR
  - Speech and Drama examinations (grades 6,7 and 8)

• New qualifications are regularly being added to the Tariff and it is our aim to include as wide a range of achievement used for entry to higher education as possible

• Updates on the Tariff, including details on the incorporation of any new qualifications, are posted here.

Do students' points scores give them an entitlement to entry to HE?

• No. Students can assemble points in a variety of ways and not all of these will necessarily be acceptable for entry to a particular HE course. The achievement of a points score therefore does not imply an entitlement to entry, and many other factors are taken in account in the admissions process.

How are new qualifications brought into the Tariff?

• Providing a qualification has been accredited into the National Qualifications Framework and is used as an entry route to higher education, it will be considered for inclusion in the UCAS Tariff once we have received a request from the Awarding Body or Bodies offering the qualification, government department or regulatory body.

• Qualifications are benchmarked against an existing qualification in the Tariff by an independent Expert Group using a protocol designed specifically for this purpose.

• Recommendations are put before the UCAS Board for approval.

Where can I find details on new qualifications in the Tariff?

• Reports written by the Expert Groups considering qualifications for inclusion in the Tariff, which give details of both the qualification seeking inclusion and the qualification against which it has been benchmarked, the process involved, and the recommendations reached, can be accessed through the title of the qualification appearing in the UCAS tariff points tables below.

Are points for qualifications new to the tariff available for use straight away?

• In view of the lead time necessary for the collection and publication of entry requirements, points for qualifications new to the Tariff do not take effect immediately. However, UCAS gives details of new developments in the Tariff well in advance, and HEIs may choose to use Tariff points scores informally in advance of their official introduction.

Any more questions?

• Contact the Qualifications Hotline on:
  
  Tel: 01242 544900
  E-mail: quals@ucas.ac.uk

GCE/VCE Qualifications				Points	BTEC Nationals1			OCR Nationals2
GCE AS/ AS VCE	GCE AS Double Award	GCE A level/ AVCE	GCE/ AVCE Double Award		Award	Certificate	Diploma	Certificate	Diploma	Extended Diploma
				360			DDD			D1
				320			DDM			D2/M1
				280			DMM			M2
			AA	240		DD	MMM		D	M3
			AB	220
			BB	200		DM	MMP		M1	P1
			BC	180
			CC	160		MM	MPP		M2/P1	P2
			CD	140
	AA	A	DD	120	D	MP	PPP	D	P2	P3
	AB			110
	BB	B	DE	100
	BC			90
	CC	C	EE	80	M	PP		M	P3
	CD			70
A	DD	D		60
B	DE			50
C	EE	E		40	P			P
D				30
E				20

¹The points shown are for the newly specified BTEC National Award, Certificate and Diploma introduced into centres from September 2002

²Information on OCR grades and Tariff points can be found by clicking here.

Irish Leaving Cert		Scottish Qualifications				Points	Advanced Placement Programme3
Higher	Ordinary	Advanced Higher	Higher	Int 2	Standard Grade		Group A	Group B
		A				120	5
		B				100
A1						90	4
		C				80
A2						77
		D	A			72
B1						71
B2						64
			B			60	3
B3						58
C1						52
						50		5
			C			48
C2						45
			D	A		42
C3	A1					39
					Band 1	38
				B		35		4
D1						33
				C	B and 2	28
D2	A2					26
D3	B1					20		3
	B2					14
	B3					7

³ The Points for Advanced Placement Programme subjects come into effect for entry to higher education in 2008 onwards. A list of the subjects in each group can be found by clicking here.

International Baccalaureate4	Points
Diploma
45	768
44	744
43	722
42	698
41	675
40	652
39	628
38	605
37	582
36	559
35	535
34	512
33	489
32	466
31	442
30	419
29	396
28	373
27	350
26	326
25	303
24	280

⁴ The points for the International Baccalaureate (IB) come into effect for entry to higher education in 2008 onwards and are awarded to candidates who achieve the IB Diploma

BTEC Nationals in Early Years			CACHE Diploma in Child Care & Education		Points	Diploma in Foundation Studies (Art and Design)	Level 3 Diploma in Fashion Retail5
Theory		Practical	Theory	Practical
Certificate	Diploma
	DDD				320
					285	Distinction
	DDM				280
	DMM		AA		240
					225	Merit
	MMM				220
DD			BB		200
					165	Pass
DM	MMP		CC		160		Distinction
MM	MPP	D	DD	A	120		Merit
				B	100
MP	PPP	M	EE	C	80		Pass
				D	60
PP		P		E	40

⁵The points for the Level 3 Diploma in Fashion Retail awarded by ABC, come into effect for entry to higher education in 2008 onwards

Speech and Drama Examinations6			Points	Music Examinations7
				Practical			Theory
Grade 6	Grade 7	Grade 8		Grade 6	Grade 7	Grade 8	Grade 6	Grade 7	Grade 8
			75			D
			70			M
		D	65
		M	60		D
	D		55		M	P
	M		50
		P	45	D
D			40	M	P
M	P		35
			30						D
			25	P					M
P			20					D	P
			15				D	M
			10				M	P
			5				P

⁶ The points for speech and drama examinations come into effect for entry to higher education in 2008 onwards for LAMDA, LCM and Trinity Guildhall examinations. A list of the subjects covered can be found by clicking here.

⁷ Points shown are for ABRSM, Guildhall, LCM and Trinity examinations.

Free standing Maths8	COPE9	Advanced Extension Awards10	Points	Core Skills11	Key Skills12	Welsh Baccalaureate Core13
			120			Pass
	Pass		70
		Distinction	40
			30		Level 4
A		Merit	20	Higher	Level 3
B			17
C			13
D			10	Int 2	Level 2
E			7

⁸Covers level 3 free-standing Mathematics qualifications - Additional Maths, Modelling with Calculus, Using and Applying Decision Maths, Using and Applying Statistics, Working with Algebraic and Graphical Techniques.

⁹The points shown are for the Certificate of Personal Effectiveness (COPE) awarded by ASDAN and CCEA

¹⁰Points for Advanced Extension Awards are over and above those gained from the A level grade

¹¹Covers the five Scottish Core Skills - Communication, Information Technology, Numeracy, Problem Solving & Working with Others

¹²Covers the six Key Skills - Application of Number, Communication, Improving Own Learning and Performance, Information Technology, Problem Solving, Working With Others

¹³Points for the Core are awarded only when a candidate achieves the Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Diploma

British Horse Society14			Points	Institute of Financial Services		LEVEL 3 iPRO17
Stage 3 Horse Knowledge & Care	Stage 3 Riding	Preliminary Teacher's Certificate		CeFS15	DipFS16	Certificate	Diploma
			100				Pass
			80			Pass
			60	A	A
			50	B	B
			40	C	C
Pass	Pass	Pass	35
			30	D	D
			20	E	E

¹⁴ The points for the British Horse Society Awards (BHS) come into effect for entry to higher education in 2008 onwards

¹⁵ The points shown are for the revised Institute of Financial Services Certificate in Financial Studies (CeFS) taught from September 2003

¹⁶ The points shown are for the Institute of Financial Services Diploma in Financial Studies (DipFS) and come into effect for entry to higher education in 2008

¹⁷ The points shown for OCR's Level 3 Certificate and Diploma for IT Professionals (iPRO) come into effect for entry to higher education in 2008 onwards

 back to curriculum & qualifications
 to top