Sitting GCSEs and A levels as a private candidate
Most online schools don't enter your child for exams. You find an exam centre that takes private candidates, book the papers and pay. For summer 2027 that usually means £200 to £325 per GCSE and £340 to £400 per A level.
Two charges in one price
The exam board charges the centre an entry fee. For summer 2027 that's about £48 to £53 per GCSE at AQA, £56 to £58 at Pearson Edexcel (£69.05 for an International GCSE) and £55 to £58 at OCR. A levels are about £110 to £167. The centre then adds its own charge for taking you as an outside candidate: rooms, invigilators, admin.
What centres charge
| Centre | Per GCSE | Per A level |
|---|---|---|
| A state school in Gloucester | board fee + £30 | board fee + £30 |
| Tranby, Hull | £200 | £400 |
| London PT College | £210 to £240 | £340 to £370 |
| Ealing Independent College | £300 to £325 | £375 |
State schools that take private candidates are the cheapest, but few do and their places go early (the Gloucester school's form closes on 1 December 2026). JCQ keeps a list of about 190 centres that accept private candidates.
The extras that catch people out
- GCSE English Language has a spoken language endorsement: Ealing charges £90 more for it.
- A level biology, chemistry and physics need a practical endorsement: £850 at London PT College, and £895.50 to £1,170 at the National Extension College's partner centres. International A levels from Pearson don't have one, which is one reason online schools teach them.
- Late entries cost double, then triple: AQA and Pearson's normal deadline for June 2027 is 21 February 2027.
Online schools that help
A few schools run an exam centre or offer Pearson's remote invigilation, so a child can sit some papers at home: King's InterHigh, Minerva's, Sophia High, Queen's, Cambridge Online and Highgrove. Even then the fees are usually extra.