'It's totally unjust. I know I deserved an A'

Andrea Nagel from Ashtead in Surrey should be starting an English degree at Durham University this week. Instead she has been forced to take a year out while she appeals against her A-level grade in English literature.

The 18 year old, who took her A-levels at Epsom College in Surrey, had her heart set on studying at Durham like her older sister, but lost her place after she gained grades A, A and B at A-level: the B was in English literature.

"With all the modules my teachers had marked me for a top A," she said. "But my coursework was downgraded by 11 per cent and this brought the mark down to a borderline A/B and they gave me a B.

"The situation is totally unjust, and very frustrating. I can see it from Durham's point of view: they won't settle for the B because they are so oversubscribed.

"I know I deserve an A because I've put so much work in over the last two years and have got consistently high grades throughout. The university even wrote to me after my application and told me that I could choose whichever college I wanted to go to."

Andrea, who also lost her place at Sheffield University – her second choice – will now have to watch most of her friends leave home and begin their higher education.

"I'm just devastated, so upset," she said. "I don't want to take a gap year: I was ready to go to university, and now I'm going to have to get a job, or do something constructive until I can reapply next year.

"The whole system is completely screwed up. We knew something was wrong as soon as the results came out. People should have owned up and they should have done something about this sooner.

"If I have to, I'm going to re-sit the module in January. I'm determined to go to Durham next year."

The headmaster of Epson College, Stephen Borthwick, said Andrea was not the only student at the school who had received suspiciously low marks. "We had 170 pupils taking A-levels this year and we've had to put in 236 remark requests," he said. "Of those, 183 were with OCR.

"There needs to be re-grading in order to obtain justice for pupils whose exam marks have been depressed artificially. It's down to the stupidity of the system that students like Andrea Nagel now have nowhere to go."

How to make the grade

What should I do if I think I have been given the wrong grades?

Wait for the announcement on which subjects will be regraded. Tens of thousands of students are likely to be affected, said John Dunford, general secretary of the Secondary Heads Association. Both AS and A2 exams will be affected.

When will I know if my paper will be included in the regrading exercise?

Mike Tomlinson, the inquiry chairman, plans to announce a full list of subjects and the total number of candidates affected on Tuesday.

How long will the regrading take?

Mr Tomlinson hopes to issue the new grades by 11 October.

Could my grades go down as well as up as a result of this process?

Estelle Morris, the Education Secretary, and Mr Tomlinson have pledged "no grade will go down" as a result of the regrading exercise.

If I get better grades will I be allowed to switch universities to a more prestigious institution?

Yes, but you will probably have to take a gap year. The new grades are likely to be issued after the start of the academic year and universities are unwilling to take students once term has begun. Ms Morris has promised extra funding to guarantee affected students places at the universities they should have started at this autumn in 2003. Universities UK has promised to do all it can to accommodate students' preferences.

How do I arrange my place?

Students are advised not to telephone universities but to call the UCAS helpline on 01242 227788.