Certificate of Sixth Year Studies - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Prior to the year 2000, the Certificate of Sixth Year Studies (or CSYS) was the highest level of qualification available to pupils in the Scottish

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

secondary education

Secondary education

Secondary education is the stage of education following primary education. Secondary education includes the final stage of compulsory education and in many countries it is entirely compulsory. The next stage of education is usually college or university...

system.

Overseen by the Scottish Examination Board

Scottish Examination Board

The Scottish Examination Board was the academic examination board for schools in Scotland until 1997.It used to administer all of Scotland's academic qualifications, including Standard Grades and Highers....

(SEB), it was taken by students in their sixth (and final) year of secondary education (ages 16-18) and was available for a range of different subjects. Examinations were administered by the SEB (and latterly by its successor, the Scottish Qualifications Authority

Scottish Qualifications Authority

The Scottish Qualifications Authority is a non-departmental public body responsible for accreditation and awarding. It is partly funded by the Education and Lifelong Learning Directorate of the Scottish Government, employing 750 staff, based in Glasgow and Dalkeith...

, which replaced it in September 1997). Unlike the Standard

Standard Grade

Standard Grades are Scotland's educational qualifications for students aged around 14 to 16 years, which are due to be fully replaced in 2014 when Scottish Qualifications Authority's Higher Still system becomes the main qualifications as part of the major shake up of Scotland's education system as...

and Higher

Higher (Scottish)

In Scotland the Higher is one of the national school-leaving certificate exams and university entrance qualifications of the Scottish Qualifications Certificate offered by the Scottish Qualifications Authority. It superseded the old Higher Grade on the Scottish Certificate of Education...

Grade examinations, it was not a part of the Scottish Certificate of Education

Scottish Certificate of Education

The Scottish Certificate of Education was a Scottish secondary education certificate, used in schools from 1962 until the late 1990s. It replaced the older Junior Secondary Certificate and Scottish Leaving Certificate , and was the Scottish equivalent of the General Certificate of Education used...

.

The CSYS followed on from Higher Grade

Higher (Scottish)

examinations and was considered broadly equivalent to the English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

A-Level qualification. However, it never quite gained the same level of universal recognition as the Higher or A-Level. In particular, universities rarely used it when considering potential students.

Following plans for extensive reorganisation of the secondary education system in the late 1990s, the CSYS was phased out, starting in the 2000/01 examination year. By 2002/03, it had been completely replaced by its successor, the Advanced Higher.

See also