Northern Ireland teenagers celebrated being top of the class yet again today when, like A-level students last week, those receiving GCSE results today outdid their counterparts in England and Wales.
There were more A*'s, A's and A-C grades than across the rest of the nation — and the marks were up on those achieved in Northern Ireland a year ago.
Over 25 per cent of pupils scored an A grade and almost 75 per cent achieved an A-C grade.
The percentage of pupils achieving the top A* rose to 8.9 per cent — up from 8.2 per cent a year ago and well ahead of the national figure of 6.8 per cent.
A* and A grades were achieved by 26.4 per cent — up from 24.8 per cent a year ago and compared to a national figure of 20.7 per cent.
A*-C grades were achieved by 74.5 per cent — compared to 72.4 per cent last year and 65.7 per cent nationally.
Only when it came to the total pass rate of A*-G did Northern Ireland match England and Wales — 98.4 per cent, up from 98 per cent last year.
It is the first time Northern Ireland students received their results on the same day as their British counterparts.
The exams body in the province, the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA), has in the past released its results a few days early — leaving an anxious wait for those who sat exams set by English boards.
Commenting on the results, CCEA director of qualifications Anne Marie Duffy said: "Northern Ireland GCSE students continue to excel and should be proud of the results they have produced this year.
She said the largest entries continued to be in more established subjects such as English, maths and double award science.
PA