A Level Scoring Change in 2026 : Impact on Univeristy Admission score

Planning to go to JC in 2024?

Do you know that there will be a scoring change for A levels in 2026 that will impact you?

University Admission Score (Pre 2026)

Currently, to qualify for a local university, the University Admission Score (UAS) is used for calculation. Before the change, Students in JC must take a minimum of 3 H2 subjects and 1 unrelated H1 subject or a combination of 4 H2 subjects. All subjects taken will be considered for the scores.

Project Work Grading will also be included in the calculation of UAS.

Here is how H2 an H1 was calculated

Changes to A Level scoring in 2026

Removal of H1 from UAS

From 2023, the H1 subject will not be included. This means that students will have more time to focus on the H2 subjects while taking an H1 subject close to their interest instead of choosing an H1 subject they feel they will score well. The H1 subject scores may not be included, but it could be a possible tie-breaker in situations such as scholarship consideration or University admission.

Impact: This will lead to a lesser workload for JC students as they only need to concentrate on 3 instead of 4 subjects. It will bring more balance to the infamous workload for JC students.

Project Work to be removed from UAS

Project Work will now be a Pass/Fail grading instead of included in the calculation of UAS. This will be effective for students from 2024 ( JC1 and MI 2 level). Students will need to pass Project Work for university applications.

Impact:  Project Work is a year-long project that involves identifying a societal problem and developing a solution. At the end of the day, students must present their findings through written and oral presentations. This has been a bedbug for the current cohort as it takes up too much time and adds unnecessary stress.  While Project work will likely be common for Poly students, a year-long project collaboration between students is too much for one to take, as could be seen by complaints made by past students in this Reddit thread who had undergone this route.

Removal of Mid-Year Exams

In line with the emphasis on school-based assessment changes implemented in Primary and Secondary Schools, MOE has decided to remove Mid Year Exams for JC from 2024.

Impact: While some students may find this less stressful, most especially Y2 students had commented that Mid-Year exams are useful to help them gauge their standards for A Levels and to be exposed to an examination setting to prep for the final exams. 

General Paper is a compulsory Subject

Previously, Knowledge and Inquiry, which focuses on the nature and construction of knowledge, can be offered instead of General Paper. It will continue to be offered, but it will not impact UAS.

Impact: Knowledge and Inquiry will likely have less student interest as it is not a tested subject. In time to come, it may be removed from the syllabus. This also means that more focus will be on the General Paper, as no clear options exist to replace the scores.

UAS to drop from 90 to 70

As a result of the removal of H1 and Project Work from UAS, it will now drop from 90 to 70.

Impact: The past Indicative Grade Profile of the University will probably be revised. As a result of all these changes, JC students will likely find it more balanced regarding study commitments.

With the changes, it looks like UAS will be reverting to its 'familiar' scoring that had been in place since decades ago (i.e. 3 main subjects + GP). At the end of the day, it should bring relief to new JC students from 2024 as these changes are introduced to reduce stress in A Level education.