Quick answer: can you do A Levels in Spain? Yes. British schools across Spain teach A Levels in Years 12 and 13, including The British School of Barcelona, Hastings School in Madrid and the British School of Valencia. Students sit Cambridge or Pearson Edexcel papers in May and June, and UNEDasiss turns the grades into a Spanish access mark out of 10, which PCE exams can lift to 14.
Last reviewed: November 2026 by David from ISA. Fee ranges are indicative; always confirm with the school.
Key takeaways
- UNEDasiss converts the UCAS points of a student's best four A Level or AS grades into a mark from 5 to 10 under Orden EFD/550/2025: AAA gives 7.73, A*A*A* gives 8.41 and A*A*A*A* gives 10.
- The minimum for Spanish university access is five IGCSEs at A* to C (or 4 to 9), three A Levels at A* to E and at least 48 UCAS points, according to annex I of the same 2025 order.
- PCE exams run by UNED can add up to 4 points to the access mark, with each subject weighted 0.1 or 0.2 depending on the degree, as Cambridge International explains in its guidance for Spain.
- For UK entry in 2027, the UCAS equal consideration deadline is 13 January 2027 at 18:00 UK time; the deadline for Oxford, Cambridge and most medicine courses passed on 15 October 2026.
A Year 12 student in a British school in Barcelona has two university systems on the table at once. The Spanish one closes its applications in early July, weeks before A Level results arrive in August. The British one asks for an application by January with predicted grades. Getting both right is mostly a question of timing.
This guide explains how A Levels in Spain work: which schools offer them, which boards set the papers, how UNEDasiss converts grades to the Spanish 0 to 14 scale, where PCE exams fit and how UCAS works from Spain.
Can you do A Levels in Spain?
Yes, and not only in Madrid and Barcelona. A Levels are the standard sixth form route in British curriculum schools, taken in Years 12 and 13 after GCSE or IGCSE exams. Spain recognises them directly: the United Kingdom is listed in annex I of Orden EFD/550/2025, so a student who meets the minimum does not need to homologate A Levels into the Spanish Bachillerato.
In Barcelona the picture is mixed. The British School of Barcelona lets students choose between A Levels and the IB Diploma, while other international schools in the city, such as St Peter's School, follow the IB through to the Diploma Programme, according to its website. If A Levels specifically matter to you, ask each school which route it offers before you shortlist it. Families still weighing the two systems can compare them in our guide to IB vs A Levels and which suits your child.
A level schools in Spain: three examples
The British School of Barcelona
Students sit 9 or 10 GCSE subjects at the end of Year 11 and then choose between the IB Diploma and A Levels for their last two years, taught in the school's Nexus sixth form building. The school says its A Level route is supplemented with Spanish qualifications where a student needs them for a Spanish degree. Ask how many students take each route, as that shapes subject choice.
Hastings School
The Madrid school also runs both routes in its Nexus Sixth Form. A Level students choose three subjects with no compulsory ones (Maths is optional), and most add Spanish as a fourth. Alongside them, students can take the Extended Project Qualification, IELTS and PCE subjects. The school states that A Level students in 2026-27 need two PCE subjects to reach the maximum 14 points for Spanish public universities.
British School of Valencia
BSV follows Cambridge International AS and A Levels: AS exams in Year 12 and the full A Level in Year 13, with four A Levels required by the end of Year 13. Its published subject list runs from Maths and Further Maths to Sociology, Digital Media and Design and Music. Students also take PCE subjects at UNED in Years 12 and 13 and leave with both a British and a Spanish Bachillerato certificate, according to the school.
Other schools follow similar models. Thames British School in Madrid teaches Cambridge International A Levels, with students taking four: Spanish plus three options. El Limonar International School Murcia combines International Advanced Levels with the Spanish Bachillerato. In the Valencia region, the Colegios Británicos group offers A Levels with PCE preparation and has added a sixth form at its Gandia school for 2026-27.
Exam boards, subjects and the May to June series
The boards families come across are Pearson Edexcel, Cambridge International, AQA and OCR, and schools choose which to use. Among the schools above, BSV and Thames British School follow Cambridge International. Pearson Edexcel International A Levels are modular, available in 21 subjects and examined in January, May to June and October, according to Pearson. Cambridge International offers 55 subjects in almost any combination, and its main series is in June, with results released in August.
The usual load is three A Levels, often with a fourth A Level or an AS. That fourth subject matters more in Spain than in the UK. UCAS gives an A Level the same tariff points whichever board sets it (A* is 56 points, A is 48, down to 16 for an E; an AS at grade A is worth 20), and the Spanish formula counts the best four AS or A Level results.
How do A Levels convert for Spanish universities?
Through UNEDasiss, the UNED service that accredits international students for Spanish universities. It adds up the UCAS points of the best four AS or A Level grades and applies the formula in annex III of Orden EFD/550/2025, which maps 48 points to 5 and 224 points to 10. Cambridge International publishes the resulting table for students in Spain; these are its figures.
| A Level grades | UCAS points | UNEDasiss mark (0 to 10) | What it shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| EEE | 48 | 5.00 | Minimum accepted |
| BBB | 120 | 7.04 | Three A Levels, mid grades |
| AAA | 144 | 7.73 | Three A Levels, top grades |
| A*A*A* | 168 | 8.41 | Ceiling with three A Levels |
| AAAA | 192 | 9.09 | Four A Levels |
| A*A*A*A* | 224 | 10.00 | Maximum before PCE |
Source: Cambridge International's guidance for Spain, based on the UNEDasiss formula and Orden EFD/550/2025. UCAS points follow the 2027 UCAS Tariff tables.
The table explains the push for a fourth subject: three A* grades stop at 8.41, while AAAA reaches 9.09. Because Spanish universities allocate places in July and results come out in August, schools send predicted grades and UNED issues a provisional accreditation for pre-registration, corrected in September once final results are in, according to Cambridge International.
What are the PCE and do you need them?
The Pruebas de Competencias EspecĂficas are UNED exams in Spanish Bachillerato subjects, sat in Spanish. They are optional, but they are how an A Level student climbs from 10 towards 14. Each university publishes a weighting grid every year, and a subject counts 0.1 or 0.2 depending on its relevance to the degree; Chemistry, for example, weighs 0.2 for Medicine. Under Real Decreto 534/2024, the admission mark adds the weighted grades that are most favourable to the student. UNEDasiss recommends taking at least two.
For the 2026 sitting, applications ran from 16 March to 28 April 2026, exams in Spain took place from 25 to 29 May, and a September sitting followed from 2 to 8 September. UNEDasiss had not published its 2027 dates when this guide was reviewed; its online accreditation window opens on 4 February and closes on 1 December each year. The price list on its website, dated 2025 and still the one posted in November 2026, shows 70 euros for the access mark, 60 euros for two PCE subjects and 100 euros for four, plus 30.30 euros to open a file and 15.15 euros in administration fees.
Applying to UK universities through UCAS from Spain
Students applying to the UK from a school in Spain use UCAS like any UK applicant, with the school writing the reference and predicting grades. For 2027 entry, applications could be submitted from 1 September 2026; the deadline for Oxford, Cambridge and most medicine, dentistry and veterinary courses was 15 October 2026. The equal consideration deadline for most other courses is 13 January 2027 at 18:00 UK time, and applications received by 30 June 2027 go to universities before Clearing opens on 2 July.
Many students in Spain do both: UCAS in the autumn of Year 13 and UNEDasiss in the spring.
A Year 12 and 13 timeline that works
- Year 12, autumn: settle on three or four A Levels with the degree in mind, and ask the school which PCE subjects it prepares.
- Year 13, September to January: send the UCAS application, earlier for Oxford, Cambridge or medicine.
- Year 13, February to April: open the UNEDasiss application with predicted grades, and register for PCE in the spring window.
- Year 13, May to June: sit A Levels and PCE; apply to Spanish public universities by their early July deadline (7 July in 2026).
- August to September: A Level results arrive and UNEDasiss updates the provisional mark.
Families moving to Spain mid-way through secondary should read our guide to international school admission requirements in Spain, since sixth form places often depend on IGCSE results.
Compare schools in Barcelona
To see which schools in the city teach A Levels, the IB Diploma or both, start with our list of the best international schools in Barcelona and check each sixth form route with the admissions team.
More guides to schools in Barcelona
- Best international schools in Barcelona
- International school fees in Barcelona
- Bilingual schools in Barcelona
- International school admissions in Barcelona
- How to choose an international school in Barcelona
- best international schools in Barcelona
Frequently asked questions
Are A Levels equivalent to the Spanish Bachillerato?
For university entry, Spain accepts A Levels directly, without homologation, when a student has five IGCSEs at A* to C, three A Levels at A* to E and at least 48 UCAS points (Orden EFD/550/2025). UNEDasiss then converts the grades to a mark out of 10. Some schools, such as the British School of Valencia, also award a Spanish Bachillerato certificate alongside A Levels.
How many A Levels do you need to go to a Spanish university?
Three is the minimum, but the conversion counts a student's best four AS or A Level grades, so a fourth subject raises the ceiling: three A* grades give 8.41, while AAAA gives 9.09 and A*A*A*A* gives 10. Hastings School students usually add Spanish as a fourth A Level; at Thames British School and BSV, four is the standard load.
When should a Year 13 student apply to UNEDasiss?
The online accreditation window opens on 4 February and closes on 1 December each year. UNEDasiss advises applying at least six weeks before university pre-registration closes, which for international students at public universities was 7 July in 2026. Processing usually takes about three weeks once documents and payment arrive, and can take up to three months.