Dickwella and Gunathilaka in record double-ton stand

Highlights

• A-level results day 2026 is Thursday 13 August. Results are released from 8am, with the UCAS Hub updating at the same time and Clearing choices opening from 1pm.
• Medicine applications hit 25,770 this cycle, up 10.4% on last year, for roughly 8,000-9,000 places — meaning most applicants, regardless of grades, won't get in.
• Dentistry has drawn a disproportionately high share of Asian applicants for over a decade, at roughly double the rate of Medicine and four times the rate of higher education generally.

Thursday 13 August is A-level results day across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Results are released from 8am, the UCAS Hub updates at the same time so you can check your application status, and Clearing choices open from 1pm for anyone who needs them.

For most students, the day is about logistics: checking a portal, calling a university, deciding on Clearing. But for a specific slice of this year's cohort, there's a harder truth sitting underneath the numbers — get the grades, and you can still miss out, because the courses many students are chasing were never going to have room for everyone who wanted in.