Dublin, Ireland – This year’s Leaving Certificate results have marked a significant shift, with a planned grade deflation taking hold after five years of artificially high outcomes. The class of 2025 has been awarded fewer top marks, a direct result of the first step in a gradual return to pre-pandemic grading levels.
The proportion of students receiving the highest grades has fallen, with H1s (Higher Level Grade 1s) down by 2.6% and O1s (Ordinary Level Grade 1s) down by 2.1% compared to last year. The decline is most pronounced at the very top of the grading structure, where H1s now account for 11.7% of all grades, a notable decrease from 14.3% in 2024.
For the past four years, students’ raw scores have been subject to a post-marking adjustment to artificially boost results. While this year’s results also benefited from this intervention, the extent of the boost was significantly less. The adjustment this year increased just 52.4% of all grades, a sharp drop from 68% in 2024 and 71% in 2023.
This reduction in the post-marking boost, which was applied on a sliding linear scale to give a greater hike to lower marks, has contributed to an overall aggregate result that is lower than any of the past five years. The State Examinations Commission (SEC) has stated that this outcome is in line with the government’s commitment to a “modest gradual reduction” to minimize the impact on students, avoiding a “cliff-edge” drop.
The long-term objective is to bring results back to 2019 levels, the last year without an artificial intervention. While this year’s results remain 5.9% higher than those of 2019, the trajectory towards normalization has begun.
Concerns Over College Places
The grade deflation has raised concerns among students vying for university and college places through the CAO. With applicants from the past four years holding more inflated grades, the class of 2025 may find themselves at a disadvantage in the points race for highly competitive courses.
The SEC noted other factors contributing to pressure on college places, including a trend of more students opting for higher-level papers. The proportion of students taking higher-level exams has risen from 68% in 2019 to 72% this year, which naturally leads to a fall in the proportion of higher grades.
Record Number of Candidates
Adding to the competitive landscape is the almost-record number of students who sat the Leaving Certificate this year. The candidate total grew by 7.4% to 65,444, an increase of over 4,000 students compared to last year. This is the highest number in three decades, with a single previous year in 1995 recording a slightly higher total, albeit with a large number of repeat candidates. The current increase is attributed to population growth, resulting in more students competing for a finite number of college spots.
In a new development, 549 candidates sat Ukrainian as a non-curricular exam subject, a move introduced to accommodate the growing number of Ukrainian students in the Irish school system.
