This article is more than 10 years old

This article is more than 10 years old

A-level pass rates today rose to another record high of 97.6% while an unprecedented 27% of entries achieved an A, in results which will sharpen the intense battle for places at university this year.

Just over 8% of the entries were awarded the A* grade, which was introduced this year and is meant to help the most competitive universities select the best candidates.

As students find out today whether they have achieved their predicted grades, it will trigger a desperate scramble for places in clearing. Around 170,000 people are predicted to miss out on a place on a degree course this autumn after applications surged to another record high this summer.

The A-level pass rate rose for the 28th successive year, in results published today for candidates in England, Northern Ireland and Wales, increasing by 0.1% from 97.5% who passed at grades A to E in 2009.

A-level pass rate Photograph: Guardian

An increased proportion of entries passed at grade A, including A*, which requires marks over 90% in a candidate's second year exams. Last year, 26.7% passed at grade A.

The increased proportion of A grades will intensify competition for university places. Nine of the elite Russell Group universities have said they will offer some places through clearing. Cardiff said it would have around 260 places available, Manchester 120 and Newcastle around 100.

Leading universities are split over whether to use the A*. Among the Russell Group, Cambridge has made A*AA its standard offer in most subjects, while Imperial has requested it in seven courses, UCL in four and Warwick in one.

But some top universities including Leeds have declined to use the A* this year, partly because of fears that private schools will perform disproportionately well. Oxford has declined to use it because of concern about the accuracy of teachers' predictions.

In 2009, more than 50% of A -levels taken by privately educated pupils scored an A compared with 20% of those in state schools, widening the gap in achievement between the sectors.

Today's results are the last A-levels to have been taken, in part, under a Labour government that came to power promising to transform education.

The rise in the pass rate over the last three decades has prompted concerns that A-levels have got easier while candidates' abilities have remained the same.

Research at Durham University has found that a candidate who would have got a C two decades ago would get an A now.

The study by Dr Robert Coe found that "candidates of comparable ability are being awarded higher grades each year, both at A-level where the trend has been consistent and substantial since 1988, and at GCSE."

The research was based on comparing A-level grades over the years with scores for tests that looked at general ability rather than curriculum knowledge.

Coe said it could be that exam performance had improved; there was more focus on preparation and schools were being more selective about who sits exams. Changes such as coursework or modules made it easier for today's candidates to shine with the same quality of work as in previous years, he said.

Meanwhile, Britain has slipped in comparison with other countries.

According to a respected international study, the OECD's Pisa survey, the UK fell from fourth in the world for school science in 2000 to 14th six years later. It slipped from 7th to 17th for reading and eighth to 24th in maths. The findings were based on independent tests of children's ability.