GCSE stands for General Certificate of Secondary Education. It is an academic qualification taken mainly by students aged 14 to 16 in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. GCSEs cover a wide range of subjects and are important qualifications valued by schools, colleges, and employers. They usually involve studying the theory of a subject, alongside some practical or investigative work, and are typically completed over five terms of full-time study. GCSEs were introduced in 1986 to replace the O Levels and CSEs and have since evolved to use a numerical grading system from 9 to 1.
