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A-level results could be available as early as the first week of July, saving pupils from an agonising wait through the summer and making it easier for them to apply to university, the chief of the exams watchdog has said.
Britain's 250,000 A-level students will find out their results on August 17, but Ken Boston, the chief executive of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, said the results could have been released to students five days earlier this year.
Mr Boston told the Independent: "There's no reason why they couldn't have ... text messages telling them their results at 7am on the Monday of the week the results come out.
"The exam boards get the results before the previous weekend. They could easily send them out by computer to each individual. This could shave up to five days off the wait for results."
Mr Boston said if results were available in July, students could apply for university courses after they had received them instead of being awarded places on provisional grades of which 45% prove to be inaccurate.
The exam board Edexcel is experimenting with online marking, which could save another week's waiting. That system is expected to be adopted nationally in the next few years.
Edexcel is also trialling an online service this summer with around 1,000 GCSE and A-Level students who will get their results on August17 and 24.
Students will be given their own login details to access a secure website where they can view an electronic copy of the paper exam-results document instead of going to collect it in person or having it delivered by post.
Mr Boston said the new technology for marking could also end the current university admissions systems of offers being made based on provisional grades.
