The world’s most prestigious pre-university qualification, International A-Levels offer a blend of academic rigour and flexible assessment. Their modular structure allows students to build confidence and progress consistently across two years of focused study.
What are the International
A-levels?
A-Levels are the qualifications taken in the UK during the last two years of secondary education, typically for students between the ages of sixteen and eighteen. They are renowned for their academic depth and are considered the gold standard for university entrance.
International A-Levels (IALs) are the global counterpart to the UK’s traditional A-Level qualification. Rigorous, internationally recognised, and designed to prepare students aged 16 to 18 for entrance into top universities worldwide. Offered by prestigious examination boards such as Pearson Edexcel and Cambridge International, IALs carry the same academic weight and prestige as their UK equivalents, and are accepted by all leading institutions across the globe.
Peter Ustinov
Why do we choose
the International A-Levels?
At Virtus College, we choose International A-Levels not only for their academic depth but for their modular structure.
Unlike the linear format of traditional A-Levels, which are assessed through final exams at the end of two years, IALs allow students to take exams in individual modules across January and May of both Year 12 and Year 13. This division into four examination series enables students to master content gradually and reflect on their progress.
The modular nature of IALs offers the flexibility to build confidence step by step, while still demanding the highest academic standards. It’s a structure that rewards perseverance, encourages reflection, and gives our students the best chance to achieve their full potential.
This flexibility—combined with the academic rigour of the A-Level syllabus—makes International A-Levels the ideal foundation for success at university and beyond.
Examination with the International A-Levels
Year 12
Year 13
Examination with other programmes
Year 12
Year 13
The advantages of International A-Levels compared to
UK A-Levels or the IB
Same international recognition by universities: IALs are no exception, all universities in the world accept them and grant the same prestige.
Better results: separating the exam content into four different series increases the probability of achieving better results.
Credible and endorsed predicted grades: obtaining official grades in Year 12 means that the predicted grades are backed by an official grade, giving universities greater confidence in their offers.
Better management of pressure and stress: as there are four different examination series, students face the same content but in small doses, thus reducing stress. In addition, they gain more experience sitting official exams and learning to deal with pressure.
Better control of expectations: regular exams are the “acid test” for meeting expectations. Students are more efficiently tracked in four separate exam series.
Allows for second chances: as the International A-Level subjects are organised into separate modules, students who want to improve their grades can retake a particular module more than once.
Our subject offer.
Virtus College offers 14 International A-Level subjects of which each student chooses four, based on their university application strategy and advice from the staff.
Click on each of the links below to explore the qualification in more detail.