IGCSE exam dates, mocks and results day: a term-by-term guide to Year 11 in Dubai

The short answer: the main IGCSE exams run from late April to early June, results come out in mid to late August, and there is a November series with results in January. That holds for Cambridge IGCSE, Pearson Edexcel International GCSE and OxfordAQA International GCSE.

The dates that decide outcomes are the quieter ones: when entries close, when tiers are locked, when forecast grades are submitted, and how long you have after results day to request a review or book a resit. Several close months before the first paper.

This guide sets out Year 11 as a calendar, using each board's published key dates. Where dates move each year, we describe the pattern and link the page to check.

First, find out three things from the school

Ask the Head of Year or exams officer these in September.

1. Which board each subject is entered with. Many schools mix boards, for example Cambridge for Mathematics and Edexcel for the sciences. Our comparison of AQA, Edexcel and Cambridge explains how the boards differ.
2. Which tier each subject is entered at, where tiers exist, and when that decision is final.
3. Whether any subject is taken on a modular route, with units sat in different series, or entirely at the end of the year.

Every date below depends on the answers.

The IGCSE exam dates that actually matter, by board

Here is the June 2026 cycle as each board published it. The pattern repeats with small shifts each year, so check the current documents for your own series.

Sources: Cambridge's key dates and activities for each exam series, the key dates section of the Pearson Qualifications Information Manual, and OxfordAQA's results page.

One caveat for UAE families. In 2026, Cambridge, Pearson and OxfordAQA all cancelled their May/June exams in the UAE because of the regional conflict, and awarded grades from evidence submitted by schools instead. Cambridge used its portfolio of evidence route, Pearson its International Contingency Grading, and OxfordAQA an evidence submission process. Results still came out on the dates above. The table shows the normal calendar a school plans around; confirm with the school that each series is running at your centre.

Two things in that table catch families out every year.

The "June" series starts in April. Cambridge's June 2026 exams began on 23 April and OxfordAQA's on 27 April. If your child has a written paper in the last week of April, their revision calendar has to finish around Easter, not in late May.

Entries close in the winter term. Cambridge's final entry deadline for June 2026 was 21 February. After that, adding a subject or changing a tier means a late entry or is not possible. Mock results are the evidence behind those decisions.

The Year 11 plan, term by term

Here is the year as a plan, for a Dubai school year starting in late August or September.

The revision method behind the student column is set out in our guide to revision that actually works for IGCSE and the IB. If a chatbot is part of your child's revision, this guide to using AI to study without cheating is a sensible read before the mocks.

IGCSE mock exams: what they are for

Mocks are set and marked by the school and appear on no certificate. They still do three jobs.

They set the tier. In tiered subjects the tier caps the grade. In Cambridge IGCSE Mathematics (0580), for example, the Core papers lead to grades C to G and the Extended papers to A* to E, as the June 2026 threshold table for that syllabus shows. In Pearson Edexcel International GCSE Mathematics A, Foundation tops out at grade 5 and Higher awards 9 down to 3. A wrong tier caps the grade whatever happens in June.

They feed the forecast grades. Cambridge asks schools to submit forecast grades during the June series (by 30 April for June 2026). Our guide to predicted grades explains how schools arrive at them.

They show you the gap while there is still time. A mock in January leaves three months to fix a weak topic. A bad surprise in the final exam leaves none.

9–1 or A*–G: which scale your child is on

Pearson Edexcel International GCSE and OxfordAQA International GCSE are graded 9 to 1, with 9 the highest.

Cambridge IGCSE is traditionally graded A* to G. Cambridge also offers 9 to 1 versions of its most popular syllabuses, but only to schools in one of its administrative zones (zone 3), and each has a different syllabus code, so check which version your child is entered for. Cambridge states that the standards at grades 7, 4 and 1 match those at A, C and G. Grades 8 and 9 sit above 7.

In practice, a Dubai student can finish Year 11 with a mix: A* to G grades in Cambridge subjects and 9 to 1 grades in Edexcel subjects. Cambridge says universities have told it they will treat 9 to 1 and A* to G grades equally.

IGCSE grade boundaries: how a mark becomes a grade

After marking, the board sets the minimum raw mark for each grade in that series: Cambridge calls these grade thresholds, Pearson grade boundaries. Cambridge explains that if a paper turns out harder than usual the thresholds go down, and if it is easier they go up, so the standard stays constant between years.

So there is no fixed percentage for an A* or a 7. Boundaries can also differ between versions of the same paper in the same series, because boards set different versions for different regions.

A worked example from June 2026

Look at Pearson Edexcel International GCSE Mathematics A, Higher tier, out of 200 marks, in the June 2026 grade boundaries.

Pearson's information manual requires schools in a list of countries, including the United Arab Emirates, to use the regional "R" option codes where they apply. So a Dubai student converting a Higher tier mock score using May/June boundaries should use the R column. The standard column would have understated the mark needed for a grade 7 by eight marks. The November series does not use R papers.

Cambridge shows the same effect. In June 2026 Cambridge IGCSE Mathematics (0580), an A* on the Extended route needed 162 out of 200 on one variant and 177 out of 200 on two others.

The practical rule: when a mock is converted to a grade, ask which series and which variant's boundaries were used.

IGCSE results day and the first week after

Results go to the school, which decides how students receive them. On the day, do three things.

1. Check each subject grade against what the school forecast.
2. For any grade that is one grade below the forecast, ask the school for the component marks and compare them with the published boundaries for that series and variant.
3. If a mark sits a few marks below a boundary, ask the school about a review of marking straight away.

Reviews go through the school, not directly to the board, and the deadlines are short. For Cambridge's June 2026 series, enquiries about results closed on 20 September. Pearson and OxfordAQA publish their own deadlines in their key dates documents.

IGCSE resit in November: when it makes sense

Cambridge and Pearson both run a November series, and OxfordAQA's key dates calendar lists one for International GCSE too. The timings are tight. For the November 2026 series, Cambridge's final entries deadline was 16 August, before June results were out. It then allowed retake entries from the June 2026 series until 21 September. Pearson's entry deadline for November 2026 was 12 September, with late fees from 13 September, and its November 2026 timetable runs from 27 October to 19 November. November results come out in January.

How much has to be resat depends on the route. Pearson's information manual states that a student retaking a linear International GCSE must retake all the written papers, although non-exam assessment marks can usually be carried forward. On Pearson's modular route, available in some subjects at schools outside the UK, units are sat and resat individually.

A November resit makes sense when:

• The grade is one below what the sixth form or the university course requires, such as a 6 when the sixth form asks for a 7 in that subject
• The weakness is specific and fixable, such as one topic area or exam timing
• The student can prepare while starting Year 12 without damaging the new courses

Resitting a grade that already meets every requirement rarely pays, because Year 12 is where the university application is built. Our guide to IB Diploma or A Levels covers why that first sixth form term matters. The official board links for timetables and results are collected on our resources page.

Frequently asked questions

When are IGCSE exams held?

The main series runs from late April to early June, even though the boards call it the June or May/June series; for June 2026, Cambridge's window was 23 April to 9 June. Cambridge and Pearson also run a November series. In 2026 the boards cancelled May/June exams in the UAE and graded students from school evidence instead.

When is IGCSE results day?

For the June 2026 series, Cambridge released IGCSE results on 18 August, and Pearson Edexcel and OxfordAQA released International GCSE results on 20 August. The date shifts slightly every year, so check the board's key dates for your series.

Can you resit an IGCSE in November?

Yes. Cambridge and Pearson Edexcel both run a November series, with results in January. Retake entries close in the weeks after August results, so the decision has to be made quickly and through the school.

Are IGCSE grade boundaries the same every year?

No. Boundaries are set after marking for each series, and they go down when papers are harder and up when they are easier. Different variants of the same paper in the same series can also have different boundaries.

Is a 7 the same as an A?

Cambridge states that the standard at grade 7 matches the standard at grade A, grade 4 matches C and grade 1 matches G. Grades 8 and 9 sit above 7.

When should IGCSE mock exams happen?

Schools set their own mock dates. They are most useful before the board's entry deadlines, because mock results drive tier decisions and forecast grades.

Career Launcher UAE tutors Cambridge IGCSE and Pearson Edexcel International GCSE subjects in Dubai and Sharjah, working from the current specifications, past papers, mark schemes and the published boundaries for the right paper variant. If your child is in Year 11 and you want a clear view of the gap before the mocks or before a November resit decision, see our IGCSE and GCSE programme.

Related reading: AQA, Edexcel and Cambridge compared, Revision that actually works for IGCSE and the IB and IB Diploma or A Levels after Year 11.