No, not English as in the subject English. English as in qualifications from England. More specifically, what would four A-C grade A-levels be equal to in America and Australia?
Huh???
Do you mean like grades a student earns in class?
If that’s the case, yer average low-rent public school in America has a grading scale like this:
90-100% = A
80-89% = B
70-79% = C
60-69% = D
<60% = F, for a failing grade.
A school with higher standards has a scale more like this:
94-100% = A… and so on, where <70% is a failing grade. YMMV.
No, I mean like what would final grades of an A, two Bs and a C at A-level (a set of exams in England) translate over to in American and Australian terms. Seeing as you don’t have A-levels in either country.
There isn’t a straightforward answer.
The A-levels are a set of exams taken by English school leavers, the results of whichdetermine (along with other factors) eligibility for admission to university courses. The more prestigious the university, and the more popular the course, the higher A-level grades you need to be offered a place.
The question, then, comes down to this. If a US or Australian university received an application from a candidate presenting the A-level grades which adamthewarrior mentions, how would they view his application? How would they compare him with a candidate presenting US or Australian exam results?
I don’t know, is the answer. There are institutions which (presumably for a fee) offer advice on the international equivalency of educational qualifications, but I would guess that they focus on undergraduate and professional qualifications, rather than school leaver qualifications.
The problem is compounded still further by the fact that, in different countries, different weight may be attached to exam results in the university entrance process. In Ireland, which I happen to know about, admission to most university courses is determined exclusively by exam results; in other countries universities may look at a much wider range of factors; other attainments, personal or family links with the university, national or ethnic heritage. There may be different entry streams which depend on different factors.
Probably the closest thing to an objective answer could be arrived at by the following process.
Where would a student with the grades that adamthewarrior mentions find himself placed on the range of attainment of all UK school leavers? The tenth percentile? The twentieth? The fiftieth?
Then look at the standard measure of academic attainment for US and Australian school leavers, and find the corresponding percentile. What grades to you need to be in that percentile? You have your answer.
It doesn’t follow that you are as well-educated, or as knowledgeable, as the person in the corresponding percentile in the US or Australia, of course. The English educational system may have higher or lower standards, or it may measure attainment in a different way.
I picked an American uni website at random (UCLA), and found this:
“Students who have attended school under the British system must present five GCSE/Ordinary-Level examinations and at least three Advanced-Level examinations with superior grades. Results of Advanced-Supplementary or Higher-Level exams should also be submitted.” (http://www.admissions.ucla.edu/prospect/intl.htm)
I’d guess that in reality, ‘superior’ grades probably means at least a couple of As. So comparable to what a decent British university expects.
I studied (and live) in England, but grew up in the US and did apply to some universities there, so perhaps I can offer some insight. As GorillaMan mentions, standards expected by American universities will be roughly comparable with equivalent standards in the UK; e.g. somewhere like MIT or Harvard will expect 3 or probably 4 A grades; a solid state university might want something like ABB, while the University of Hicksville is probably happy with any grades at all.
Assuming this question is coming from the standpoint of applying to US universities (I know nothing about the Aussie system, so can’t help there) you should also know that US universities almost universally require the general Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT-I, very different from the English SATs) and the first rank of university will sometimes require a subject area specific SAT-II. These are administered world-wide fairly regularly; details can be found at www.sat.org
On the plus side, A levels are somewhat more detailed than your average American high school course in the same subject, so you’ll sometimes be able to test out of freshman-level courses in subjects that you studied at A-level, giving you free credit.