Private schools matric pass rate up

The Independent Examination Board (IEB) has recorded a 98.76% matric pass rate for 2017, a slight improvement from 2016.

More than 12 000 candidates sat for the IEB exam and received their results at midnight on Tuesday.

The IEB says all of the students who passed qualify for tertiary education.

• 88.50% (compared to 87.61% in 2016) of the cohort achieved entry to degree study. 

• 8.96% (compared to 9.83% in 2016) qualified for entry to diploma study. 

• 1.30% (compared to 1.23% in 2016) achieved entry for study at the Higher Certificate level.

"The IEB has consistently maintained a pass rate of between 98 and 99%, which is probably about as good as it can get," says the IEB's Anne Oberholzer. "So we are very happy with the consistancy of the IEB results and the fact that they are very good."

She commended those who passed matric describing it as a "commendable achievement".

Of the more than 12 000 candidates 533 are from neighbouring Mozambique, Namibia and Swaziland.

The number of pupils who participated in the IEB exams have also gone up by 1109.

Pupils who want to submit any of their papers for remarking can do so by the 10th January.

Supplementary exam applications need to be in by the 12th of February.