Several schools that offer the Cambridge curriculum said they have maintained a steady growth in the number of high achievers at both IGCSE (Class X) and A-levels (Class XII).
The results of the March series of the Cambridge International Education (CIE) of IGCSE, AS (Class XI), and A-level were published on Tuesday.
In total, 23,000 students at 447 schools in India sat for the exam in the March series. The Cambridge offers three exam series: March, June, and November.
“The continued growth of the March series — the largest of Cambridge’s three exam series in India each year — reflects a sustained acceleration in how Indian schools and families are embracing the academic pathways offered by Cambridge IGCSE and International AS & A Level,” the board said in a press release.
The March exam series is aligned to the Indian academic calendar, enabling students to meet local admission deadlines or explore international opportunities, CIE said.
The March exam had about 91,000 entries, which is an increase of 7% from the exam in March 2025, Cambridge said.
The entries mean exam per subject.
The entries for Cambridge International AS level grew by 16% and Cambridge International A level entries by 8%.cAt the Cambridge IGCSE level, exam entries grew by 6%.
“We have sustained the results that we usually have every year. We will be waiting for the Cambridge Learner Awards, which are given to top scorers in each subject across India. We have some contenders for it, though it would depend on the performances of students in the rest of the country,” said Sarojesh Mukerjee, director, The Cambridge School.
School heads said Cambridge International Education gives students flexibility to pursue subjects at different levels.
“If a student has not done very well in mathematics or the sciences up to Class VIII, they might pursue basic-level maths or science at IGCSE. There are three levels of maths and two levels of sciences,” said Seema Sapru, principal, The Heritage School.
Sapru said a student could choose a core maths (basic) and then migrate to extended, advanced (third level) or vice versa during an academic year.
The flexibility to appear for the exam at different times of the year is an advantage that students do not enjoy in other Indian boards.
“A large number of students do not opt for the Cambridge board in our school, but since 2009, when I started, we have had a steady number of students. Some of them consider the global level certificate to be an advantage if they want to go overseas for higher education,” said Saswati Dutta, principal, Vidyanjali International School, which also offers the state board.
At Calcutta International School, the bulk of the students take the May-June series
“Some of our children who had the NEET or other exams in May wanted to finish the A-level earlier and appeared for the March series. They have done very well,” said Tina Servaia, senior school principal, Calcutta International School.