Boys outperform girls in terms of top A-level grades for the first time in seven years across England, Wales and Northern Ireland
Get in touch: It's also BTec and T-level results day and we're answering your questions about clearing, resits and more - WhatsApp us, external your queries
Headline stats: Record numbers get their first-choice university place, top A-level results rise, while T-levels in England grow in popularity
Regional differences: The gap between the highest-performing region (London) and the lowest-performing region (the North East) has grown, with Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson calling grade inequalities a "national outrage"
'Time to celebrate': One Belfast student tells us he's off to Red Bull's F1 team as an apprentice, while these twins in Wales look forward to being "more individual" at separate universities
Imogen James
Live reporter
More advice now, this time from Freddie Fraser who starred in the hit BBC show The Traitors.
He says getting your results "is the scariest thing ever" but "this is just the first hurdle".
You can find out the rest of his message to those finding out their results today below.
Freddie Fraser: 'There's always options'
Hazel Shearing
Education correspondent
Let’s have a look now at the biggest winners and losers when it comes to A-level subject choices.
There’s a clear picture here – with STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) subjects growing in popularity.
Entries for key arts and humanities subjects, though, are down.
Jake Wood
BBC News NI, reporting from Bangor
For Evie at Bangor Academy in Northern Ireland, there weren't too many nerves this morning.
Evie got merits in her BTECs in Travel and Tourism and business.
“I just want to travel the world,” she tells BBC News.
She says she would love to become an air hostess but is keeping an open mind to all jobs in the travel industry.
“I was shocked by my results - but for now it’s time to fly,” she says.
James Kelly
Your Voice Your BBC News reporter
Image source, Lily-Rose WilliamsonLily-Rose is one step closer to achieving her dream of becoming a paediatric surgeon
Lily-Rose Williamson, from Walton, Liverpool, has achieved her dream of studying medicine at Oxford after achieving three A* grades.
Lily-Rose, who studied maths, biology, and chemistry at The Belvedere Academy in Liverpool, has her heart set on becoming a paediatric surgeon.
“It was a lot of work," Lily-Rose tells the BBC.
"I wasn’t supposed to do maths originally, but it ended up being my favourite subject of them all. I’m that annoying person who really likes school.
“Since I was 12 or 13 I’ve been saying I would go to Oxford, so this is the culmination of a lot of hard work. The sacrifices have paid off."
She says she feels at home at Oxford and is going to celebrate by having her hair done and enjoying a meal with her family, before going on a night out with friends.
Emily Holt
Reporting from Manchester
We've been speaking to University of Manchester president and vice chancellor Duncan Ivison, who says they see clearing "as a springboard" for students and the institution gets "a lot of good quality students" through this way.
The university has had 5,500 calls come through to the centre so far, with 150,000 people coming to the university's clearing website, he says.
He expects clearing will be closed by Friday afternoon.
Ben Price
Reporting from Cardiff and Vale College
Meghan Cotty, 18, from Caerphilly, balanced her studies alongside being a carer as a part-time job.
Alongside her mother, she cares for her brother, who has learning difficulties.
“It’s taken a lot of work and patience but I’m so glad it paid off", she says, adding that support from her family and college has been “really helpful”.
She got two A*s and a B and is going to the University of Birmingham to study law with business.
“I want to be a solicitor so it’s a stepping stone to get that. I am just so glad my hard work paid off.”
Emily Holt
BBC News, reporting from Manchester
As we've been reporting, record numbers of students have secured places at their first-choice universities this year (more on that here).
Daisy Blackmore is one of them. The student, from Connell Co-op College in Manchester, says she didn't get the exact grades that were required, but she still secured her place at the University of Chester to study biology.
She says her morning was "very nerve-racking", but she is relieved with the outcome and is looking forward to the independence university can bring.
Ellen Knight
Reporting from Telford College
Olivia Melville at Telford College says she’s “going to Nando's” to celebrate her T-level success (other restaurant chains are available).
The 18-year-old achieved a distinction in her health T-level and is hoping to get a place on a university midwifery course through clearing.
Olivia says she chose a T-level over A-levels because she liked the idea of being "hands-on" and going on placement.
“I knew I was in the first cohort of T-levels which was really exciting, and I just feel really good about it.”
Abu Bakar Yasin
BBC Newsbeat
Evie (left) and Erin have both reckon BTECs have set them up for a good career in performing
BBC Newsbeat has been joining BTec students at Manchester College who have been finding out their results today.
Evie, 18, got a distinction* in Performing Arts (Musical Theatre), which she says really helped her "gain experience... and encouraged me to push myself to new limits”.
And she's not the only one celebrating, as 18-year-old Erin also got the top distinction* grade in Performing Arts (Acting).
"Doing a BTec has provided me with the connections I need and professional experience I need to be prepared for the industry, something you wouldn’t necessarily get with A-levels," she says.
Gemma Simmons-Blench
Deputy CEO of Leeds City College
Some of you have written in to ask this question.
Although exam boards aim to maintain a consistent level of challenge each year, the actual difficulty of a paper can vary.
This is because it's not possible to know how students will respond to the questions until the exam has been taken.
For this reason, grade boundaries are adjusted annually to match the difficulty of that year's paper, ensuring that achieving a particular grade remains fair and consistent over time.
Gemma Simmons-Blench
Deputy CEO of Leeds City College
Exam papers are written and reviewed well in advance of the exam windows, usually 18 months before.
These papers are then standardised to ensure a consistent level of difficulty and then are approved for use.
If the difficulty of an exam paper varies between years, grade boundaries can shift to ensure consistent grading. Once students have completed their papers, the marks are submitted and further reviewed to make sure no student is disadvantaged.
Correction: This post has been amended to make clear that the exams regulator does not standardise or approve papers. This is done by exam boards.
Kate Arif
Careers Adviser, National Careers Service
One from our BBC News Instagram account: "If I resit my exams, do I have to wait for next year? Or can I resit later this year?"
Resits will take place in line with A-level exams, so prepare to take resits the following summer (May/June).
Charlotte O'Regan
Senior Schools Engagement Manager, Sutton Trust
Another question about clearing, which our panel of experts have answered.
No, they will use the personal statement in your original Ucas application.
You should make sure you have your Ucas details, grades and contact information to hand. It can be helpful to have an idea of what courses you are interested in and which universities you would consider attending.
Hannah Imran
Law Student & Clearing Adviser, Kingston University
Another question from Instagram
No, you don’t necessarily have to reject your insurance offer before going through clearing but you can’t accept a clearing offer until you reject any others.
However, be careful and think about your decision before rejecting anything.
You can now add a university clearing choice on the Ucas hub on the website.
This is the alternative way to get into university if you didn't get the grades for your first choice or don't have an offer that you want to accept.
Admissions offices at universities remain open for clearing until 20 October. Ring them up and see what you can do.
We've just heard more on these grade disparities from Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson, following her interview with BBC Breakfast this morning.
"I am very concerned about the deep-rooted inequalities that we see in our society”, she says.
She adds that many of these gaps start from a young age, which is why Labour is focusing on early years.
She says it is a "national outrage" that certain groups underperform, particularly white, working class students.
Hayley Clarke
Education reporter
More now on the rise in the gap between the highest and lowest-performing regions in England, as a think tank says there are "significant and deep-seated regional disparities".
Henri Murison, chief executive of think tank the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, says there is a gap opening up between students in London and those in many parts of the north of England.
In London, 32.1% of A-Level students got A’s or A*s, compared with 22.9% of students in the north east - a difference of 9.2 percentage points.
“The grades our young people are using to apply for the most competitive university or apprenticeship places remain lower than those in regions such as London,” Murison says.
He adds that there are many who choose not to study for A-levels at all, or who underperform, as a result of their background.
Gem O'Reilly
BBC London
Sagal with her teacher Edward
What a day it's been already. I've been down at Enfield County School for girls in north London and the young women here have done brilliantly.
The results room feels alive with energy and there are tears of relief from many of the students.
Mia got A* in English literature, A in sociology and a B in French. She is heading to do a law degree apprenticeship in central London for six years and says she "really happy".
Sagal got a B in politics, C in English literature and D in computer science and is going on to study computer science at Aberystwyth.
"It's amazing to take a leap away from London and to experience independence," she says.
"I've never done anything for longer than a day on my own, so going to Wales is a big step."
Imogen James
Live reporter, reporting from Leeds
It's been a whirlwind of a morning - we've had released results, a whole host of data, and lots of exam takers telling us how they feel.
Now that results for A-levels, BTec Nationals, T-levels and other Level 3 results have been released, we learned:
We've heard from lots of students across the nations. One told us he's straight off to work at Red Bull F1 as an electronics apprentice. Another says she's "really happy" after getting a surprise A in chemistry.
So what's next?
Well, for those with the next steps secured, we hope it's celebrations.
Others will now be wondering what to do if they didn't get the results they wanted. We have a handy guide on university clearing, and you can pick your choice of university this way from 13:00 BST. It's already open to add a choice to.
We have had experts answering you results-related questions throughout the morning, and you can continue to send your queries to us via Whatsapp., external
Emily Holt
Reporting from Manchester
We are here at the clearing centre at the University of Manchester.
President and vice chancellor of the University, Duncan Ivison, is taking calls from students trying to find a spot on a course.
There's rows of staff poised at computers, helping prospective students out.