Exam season is coming to an end for A-level and other students across the UK.
For many pupils, it was the first time they sat formal exams, because GCSEs did not go ahead as normal during the pandemic.
This year, exams mostly returned to what they were like pre-Covid, but there were still some changes to how things will work, depending on where you lived.
When is A-level results day 2023? When are other exam results published?
In Scotland, SQA results (Highers and Advanced Highers) will be published on 8 August.
In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, AS and A-level results will be released on 17 August.
Vocational and technical qualification students, including BTec (Business and Technology Education Council) Level 3s, T-levels, and Cambridge Technicals will receive their results on or before 17 August.
How can I appeal against exam results?
If you are unhappy with your result, you should talk to your school or college.
In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, your school will contact the exam board on your behalf and ask for your marks to be reviewed.
If you still think you have been unfairly graded after a review, you can ask your school or college to appeal.
The exam board will consider correcting your mark.
BTec students can also appeal directly to the award body.
If you are still not satisfied, you can request a review from the exams regulator, Ofqual.
In Scotland, the process is slightly different.
If you have concerns about your final grade, you can appeal directly to the SQA for free. Speak to your school or college first.
If your appeal is accepted, the exam board will look at the marks you received.
What if I don't get the grades I need?
The charity YoungMinds points out that results are not the only measure of success - and if things do not turn out how you had hoped, there are lots of ways to get you to where you want to go.
If you only just miss out on the grades you need to get on to a university or college course, the admissions office might accept you anyway, or offer you a place on a different course.
It may also be possible to resit some or all of your exams. Talk to your school or college if you want to explore this route.
Alternatively, you can consider an apprenticeship or a traineeship. There are also entry-level jobs for those who want to go straight into work.
You could also consider taking a gap year to give you more time to decide on your future path.
How does clearing work?
Another option is applying to Ucas's clearing process.
It matches students with university and college courses that still have spaces, across the UK.
Students can use it if they
- fail to achieve the grades for their conditional offer
- fail to receive any offers they want to accept
- decide after 30 June to apply for university
Each year, more than 70,000 students find university places through clearing.
It opens on results day.
Will 2023 grade boundaries be lower than usual?
As usual, senior examiners will decide the minimum marks needed for each grade.
However, because of the disruption caused by Covid, in England exam boards will be "slightly" more lenient than before the pandemic when deciding grade boundaries.
This will protect students who performed slightly less well in these exams than expected.
Results are predicted to fall back in line with pre-pandemic levels this year, after three years of higher grades.
Exam papers in the same subject were more spaced out than they were before the pandemic, to give students more time to revise between papers.
T-levels will be graded generously, as they are relatively new qualifications.
In Wales, grades will continue to be awarded more generously than before the pandemic, midway between the 2019 and 2022 results.
The Welsh Joint Education Committee exam board provided advance information for its papers across a range of subjects - revealing the focus of some of the questions - to help pupils revise.
There was no advance information for any other papers taken in Wales.
And unlike last year, Qualification Wales, which oversees Welsh exams, says there were no changes to the content of courses.
The Scottish Qualification Authority (SQA) said its grading would be "sensitive" due to the continuing impact of the pandemic.
It took similar steps to last year to help students, such as removing or reducing exams or elements of coursework. It plans for exams to go fully back to normal next year.
The Council for the Curriculum, Examinations & Assessment (CCEA), the exam board which covers most pupils in Northern Ireland, provided advance information for most subjects and says examiners will take Covid disruption into account.