Boost in numbers taking GCSE separate sciences

Professor Jim Iley, the Royal Society of Chemistry's Director of Science and Education, said today:

"Today's GCSE results reveal students are studying the separate sciences in increasing numbers, and particularly pleasing for chemistry is that the numbers are up from around 92000 in 2009 to nearly 122000 in 2010.

"It is especially notable that, compared with Science or Additional Science, students following the individual science disciplines gain higher grades, with A*-C being achieved by nearly 94% per cent for chemistry, compared with 61% who gained an A*-C grade for Science and 63% for Additional Science.

"For a discipline that is essential to developing solutions to the challenges faced by society, and that makes an enormously important contribution to the economic prosperity of the UK, it is pleasing that significant and increasing numbers of students are attracted by the creativity it affords."