The number of exam appeals by schools and students increased in 2025, according to Scottish Qualifications Authority data.
Overall, 9 per cent of grades for National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher were appealed in 2025; in 2024 the appeal rate was 8.1 per cent.
However, last year’s rate was lower than in 2022, when, overall, 11 per cent of grades were appealed and the appeal rate for Higher was 14 per cent.
Highers most likely to be appealed
In 2025, Higher grades were most likely to be appealed - the qualification had an appeal rate of 12 per cent.
At National 5 the appeal rate in 2025 was markedly lower, at 7.2 per cent; for Advanced Higher, the rate was 8.7 per cent.
In 2025, some 5.1 per cent of National 5 appeals were successful and resulted in an improved grade being issued; at Higher that figure was 6.7 per cent and at Advanced Higher, 7.8 per cent.
Of those appeal requests where a grade change was applied, 3,035 (99.2 per cent) changed by one grade, 25 (0.8 per cent) changed by two grades, fewer than five changed by three grades, and fewer than five changed by four grades.
There were fewer than 10 appeal requests resulting in a downgrade in 2025.
When looking across all three qualifications - N5, Higher and Advanced Higher - appeal rates did not vary significantly between the most and least deprived areas, but appeal outcomes did.
The upgrade rate was lowest for the most deprived areas, at 4.2 per cent, and highest for the least deprived areas (7 per cent).
English courses had the highest appeal rate (11.2 per cent); while languages had the lowest appeal rate (5.7 per cent).
Big differences between subjects
In terms of appeal outcomes, there were large differences in upgrade rates between subjects.
The lowest upgrade rates were found in science (2.4 per cent) and technology (4.7 per cent).
The highest upgrade rates were in creative subjects (9.8 per cent) - which includes music and art and design - and home economics (9 per cent).
The SQA publication states: “A number of factors are likely to play a part in these differences. Including the nature of the subject and the weighting of question papers (external examinations) versus other assessments (such as coursework completed throughout the academic year) towards the overall grade.”
The local authority with the highest appeal rate at Higher in 2025 was Argyll and Bute Council, where 16.4 per cent of grades were appealed.
The authority with the lowest appeal rate at Higher in 2025 was Midlothian Council (8 per cent).
Although these authorities were at opposite ends of the scale when it came to Higher appeal rates, they were equally unsuccessful in securing improved grades. At Higher the upgrade rate for both authorities was 4.8 per cent - the joint lowest rate across Scotland’s 32 councils.
The most successful authority for converting Higher appeals into improved grades was South Ayrshire. It appealed 15.3 per cent of Higher grades in 2025, with 10.4 per cent resulting in an upgrade.
Overall, the upgrade rate for appeals from state schools (5.9 per cent) was lower than the upgrade rate for independent schools (7.1 per cent).
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