Results & Destinations 2026
Our Results The 2026 examination results reflect another year of outstanding achievement at The King’s School Canterbury, with pupils securing excellent outcomes at both A level and GCSE.
Behind these headline figures were many exceptional individual performances – 19 pupils achieved a clean sweep of grades 9 and 8 at GCSE, while nine secured at least eight grade 9s.
At A level, 51% of all grades awarded were at A*-A. More than 80% of all grades were at A*-B, while 68 pupils achieved AAA or better. At the very highest level, 14 pupils achieved at least A*A*A*, including 10 who secured a clean sweep of A* grades.
These results are testament to King’s pupils’ ambition and commitment as well as the expertise and encouragement of their teachers. They also provide an excellent foundation for what comes next, whether that is progression to leading universities in the UK and overseas or the many other ambitious paths our pupils choose to pursue.
GCSE and IGCSE results were equally impressive. 74% of all grades were awarded 9-7, with 54% at grades 9-8 and almost a third at grade 9, which was the most commonly awarded grade across the cohort.
A levels
51% of all grades were A*- A
81%
of all grades were A*- B
47 pupils achieved results of straight A*- A
21% of all grades were A*
GCSEs
54% of all grades were 9-8
74% of all grades were 9-7
9
pupils achieved at least 8 grade 9s
31% of all results were grade 9
Destinations The outstanding results King’s pupils achieve at GCSE and A level open doors to leading universities in the UK and overseas, and exciting careers and opportunities. Of 2026 Upper Sixth leavers choosing to go to university, 80% are going to a Russell Group university, with 45 pupils going to a ‘G5’ university* (Oxford, Cambridge, LSE, UCL and Imperial), which are amongst the best universities across the world. With 20 pupils making it their first choice, Durham was The King’s School Canterbury’s most popular UK university in 2026, followed by 15 starting at UCL, 13 to King’s College London and 12 to Exeter. Other popular destinations in 2026 included Bristol, Manchester and Warwick.
The USA continues to be a popular option for pupils looking to study overseas. This year’s US destinations included New York, California. Michigan and Boston. Over the last three years, King’s leavers have chosen more than 20 top US universities including Brown, Duke, NYU, Caltech, Berklee College of Music, University of Chicago and University of California, Berkeley. Other elite overseas universities chosen by Upper Sixth leavers over recent years include the University of Melbourne, The Chinese University of Hong, Bocconi University, Kong Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and TU Delft.
*according to 2027 QS World University rankings, Imperial (2nd), Oxford (4th), Cambridge (6th) and UCL (9th) are within the top 10 universities in the world.
UK University Destinations 2026
International University Destinations 2024 - 2026
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