The Zimbabwe Schools Examination Council (ZIMSEC) announced the release of the November 2024 Advanced Level examination results on Friday, revealing a notable achievement for female candidates. The results, released ahead of the 2025 school year, show a significant performance gap favouring girls, marking a shift from the previous year’s results.
ZIMSEC chairperson, Paul Mapfumo, confirmed the release, stating, “The Zimbabwe School Examinations Council board and management would like to advise the nation of the release of the 2024 November Advanced Level examination results.” He indicated that the results are accessible via the ZIMSEC online portal for five days, after which candidates will need to access their results through other channels. Heads of examination centres can collect physical copies of the results from regional offices beginning Monday, 13 January 2025.
A total of 33,585 candidates sat for the examinations, slightly fewer than the 34,437 candidates in 2023. Of these, 33,246 sat for two or more subjects, with 31,443 achieving a Grade E or better in at least two subjects. This translates to an overall pass rate of 94.58 percent, a marginal decrease from the 94.60 percent recorded in 2023. However, a closer look at the results reveals a significant gender disparity.
Girls significantly outperformed boys, achieving a pass rate of 95.94 percent compared to 92.05 percent for boys – a difference of 3.89 percentage points. This contrasts sharply with the 2023 results, where boys achieved a slightly higher pass rate (93.95 percent) than girls (93.32 percent). In the 2024 examinations, 17,306 female candidates sat for the exams, compared to 16,092 male candidates.
The performance of school candidates also differed from that of private candidates. School candidates achieved a higher overall pass rate of 95.18 percent compared to 90.52 percent for private candidates. This suggests potential factors influencing performance, such as access to resources and support structures, which warrant further investigation.
The release of these results marks a significant milestone in the Zimbabwean education calendar. The success of the female candidates is a noteworthy achievement, highlighting the importance of continued efforts to promote gender equality and support the academic aspirations of all students.
