Here's How Each Member Of The British Royal Family Fared In Their A-Levels

In J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter" universe, students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry take two big exams in their fifth and seventh years, respectively: O.W.L.s and N.E.W.Ts. While these academic milestones are fictional, they're based on very real examinations in the United Kingdom: O-Levels and A-levels. A-levels, or Advanced Levels, are taken after O-levels (which are now called GSCEs, or General Certificates of Secondary Education) and are a pre-university qualification system. A-levels were introduced in 1951 and have remained a core educational standard since. 

Since A-levels are a relatively new concept, several members of the British royal family never actually sat for them: those on the list include Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Diana, Queen Camilla, and Princess Margaret. (Diana, who left school when she was 16, reportedly felt insecure about not only not taking the A-levels, but failing her O-levels.) Then, of course, we've got people like Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, an American who married into the family post-schooling (if we tried to compare, the UK's A-levels are probably closest to the AP classes offered in the United States). Plenty of royals have earned A-levels, although not all have been publicized. That said, here are all of the results that have been reported over the years. 

Here's a fun fact about King Charles III: he's the first British monarch to rule with a university degree (Queen Elizabeth II was privately educated, aka homeschooled; her father, King George VI, went to a naval college). As a child, Charles attended several private schools: Hill House, Cheam School, Gordonstoun School, and Geelong Grammar School, with the last one located in Australia. 

After his brief stint at Geelong, Charles returned to Gordonstoun to finish his secondary education. He graduated in 1967 with two A-levels: a B in history and a C in French. And as is true in the United States, these were (and continue to be) relatively average grades. "[Gordonstoun] was only tough in the sense that it demanded more of you as an individual than most other schools did — mentally or physically," Charles later remarked in 1975 (via The Telegraph). 

Charles immediately continued his education at Trinity College, University of Cambridge. He studied history, archaeology, and anthropology. He graduated from Cambridge in 1970 and has been a patron of the Cambridge Trust since the '80s. 

Anne, Princess Royal, the only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, was privately taught at Buckingham Palace at first. She was initially educated by Catherine Peebles, a governess who also oversaw King Charles III and Prince Michael of Kent. As a teenager, Anne attended Benenden School, a private boarding school for girls. 

At Benenden, Anne received six O-levels (these examinations were replaced by GCSEs in 1988) and two A-levels. According to The Royal Family official website, Anne's A-levels were in history and geography, although her specific results weren't revealed. Some sources have reported that Anne earned additional A-levels in English and politics, but we can't find any official confirmation in support of this claim.

"One of the charities I'm doing puts children into boarding schools, and the thing they always say is that it gives them stability. I think that's true for a lot of people, that level of stability, because otherwise it leaves gaps in your life which are difficult to manage," Anne remarked in 2025, as reported by Hello! magazine.

William, Prince of Wales, the heir apparent to the British throne since 2022, attended several private schools like his father. William first attended a pre-preparatory school run by Jane Mynors; in 1986, The New York Times reported that it cost $850 a year, or about $2,520 today. William then attended Wetherby School, an all-boys institution, and Ludgrove School, which boards boys between 8 and 13 years old. 

William entered Eton College, a historic male boarding school founded by King Henry VI, in 1995; he was the first high-ranking British royal to attend. William earned a whopping 12 GSCEs and then graduated from Eton in 2000 with three A-levels under his belt: an A in geography, a B in art history, and a C in biology. Per The Guardian, King Charles III said at the time, "I know how hard William worked to achieve these excellent results and I am very proud that he has done so well."

As things tend to go for the British royal family, history repeated itself in September 2026. That month, William's eldest child, Prince George, was sent off for his own first day at the eye-wateringly expensive Eton College. Fortunately for the Waleses, Eton is only a 10-to-15-minute drive from their Forest Lodge residence. 

Before there was Catherine, Princess of Wales, there was Kate Middleton, an ordinary British citizen from a modest background. Prince William and Catherine met in 2001 while both were students at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. And while we could doa  full deep dive into the stunning transformation of William and Catherine's relationship, instead, let's get into Catherine's academic career. The wife of the future monarch graduated from St Andrews in 2005 with a degree in Art History. 

Before Catherine enrolled at St Andrews, she completed her secondary education at Marlborough College in Wiltshire, England. Catherine earned 11 GCSEs and then three A-levels: an A in art, an A in mathematics, and a B in English. After Catherine passed her A-levels, she took a gap year. During this time, she enrolled at the British Institute in Florence and Raleigh International in Chile. 

In 2018, Catherine reportedly told a group of Norwegian students that she studied physics and chemistry as part of her A-levels, which she then corrected to biology and chemistry, as reported by The Mirror. While this information subsequently spread online, it doesn't appear to be true, either. If we had to guess, Catherine simply got her educational experiences mixed up. 

Much like Prince William, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, is no stranger to prep school. The royal brothers had nearly identical educational experiences. Harry also attended Jane Mynors' school, Wetherby School, and Ludgrove School. While it wasn't that Harry didn't take school seriously, it became quickly apparent that he was more interested — and better at — sports. When Harry enrolled at Eton College, he joined the polo, cricket, and rugby teams. "Sport held me together," he told Time in 2026. "I was one of those kids at school who did not enjoy classroom work. If it wasn't for the sports field, and the amount of sports that were on offer, there's no way I would have stayed in school."

Harry earned 11 GCSEs at Eton, but only two A-levels: a B in art and a D in geography. He initially studied history of art too, but eventually dropped it. "I'm hugely grateful for the education I was lucky enough to have. At the time I certainly probably wasn't as grateful, but looking back at it now, I'm very, very blessed with having such an amazing opportunity," Harry told Malala Yousafzai in a 2020 for the Malala Fund.

After Harry left Eton with his A-levels, he took a gap year in Australia and Lesotho. Instead of going to a traditional university, Harry enrolled at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. He ultimately served in the British Army for 10 years and was deployed to Afghanistan twice. 

Princess Beatrice, the eldest daughter of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Sarah Ferguson, initially attended Upton House School, a preparatory institution that admits children between 2 and 11 years old. After Beatrice spent time at Coworth Park School (now called Coworth Flexlands School), she continued her education at St George's School, Ascot, an all-girl boarding school originally founded for boys; its alumni include Winston Churchill and Kimberley Garner. 

Beatrice lived a busy life at St George's, Ascot: she was a part of the school's choir and elected head girl (the closest American equivalent would probably be class president). Beatrice left in 2007 with three A-levels: an A in drama, a B in film studies, and a B in history. 

Though Beatrice was a star student, her academic career was not without its challenges. When she was 7 years old, she was diagnosed with dyslexia; Beatrice's husband, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, is also dyslexic. "I think life is about the moments, it's the challenges that make you," Beatrice told Hello! in 2021. "[What] inspired me to talk about dyslexia the way that I have, is because I really want to change the narrative around the diagnosis."

Princess Eugenie, Princess Beatrice's younger sister, started her educational journey at Winkfield Montessori School. After a couple of years there, Eugenie similarly transferred to Upton House School and Coworth Park School. Eugenie briefly attended St George's School, Windsor Castle, until she enrolled at Marlborough College.

Eugenie graduated from Marlborough in 2008 with similar A-level results as Catherine, Princess of Wales: an A in English, an A in art, and a B in history of art. (And before that, she earned two A*s, four As, and three Bs in her GSCEs.) While Eugenie's A-levels were worthy of discussion, her social life at school was what tended to be reported. Right before Eugenie left Marlborough, for instance, she was reportedly reprimanded for nude shenanigans.

Eugenie, who later graduated from Newcastle University, has returned to Marlborough several times in recent years. In 2018, Eugenie wrote on Instagram, "Such a lovely day going to see my old school, Marlborough College and opening the newly refurbished Memorial Hall...So many happy memories visiting my old art school and house." Eugenie also returned in 2021 to deliver a speech about slavery. 

Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh — the youngest child of Queen Elizabeth II and youngest sibling of King Charles III — was also initially taught by governess Catherine Peebles. Edward first attended Gibbs School (now called Collingham College), a private institution in Kensington, one of London's most affluent areas. In the early 1970s, Edward was educated at Heatherdown Preparatory School before he transferred to his elder brother's alma mater, Gordonstoun. 

While Edward did leave Gordonstoun with three A-levels, his results weren't the best: Edward received a C in English, a D in politics, and a D in history. To put it into perspective, A-levels are broadly graded from A* to E in descending order, with U being an either ungraded or failed test. Yes, Edward passed all his A-levels — but let's just say he didn't hit a home run like Princess Catherine or Princess Eugenie. (That said, Edward did achieve nine O-levels at Gordonstoun — four more than the future king racked up.)

After a gap year in New Zealand, Edward gained admission to Jesus College, University of Cambridge. Though there was controversy surrounding his acceptance due to his A-levels falling below the typical acceptance standard, Edward graduated in 1986 with a degree in history.  

Lady Louise Windsor, the elder child of Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, initially attended St George's School, Windsor Castle. Louise then continued her education at St Mary's School, Ascot. Louise left St Mary's in 2022 with four A-levels in English, drama, history, and politics. Her grades were not released to the public. 

After Louise obtained her A-levels, she enrolled at the University of St Andrews. Louise graduated with a degree in English and international relations in July 2026, with the occasion announced by the royal family on Instagram. "Congratulations to Lady Louise on her graduation from St Andrews University!" the account captioned photos from the occasion. "Lady Louise was joined by her parents, The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, as they celebrated the end of her degree."

Louise, whose style transformation can't go unnoticed, will reportedly take a gap year before making any post-graduation decisions. Louise is one of the more private British royals; she has no social media and has only granted one major interview to date, which aired in 2021. 

As the younger child of Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, it should come as no surprise that James, Earl of Wessex, lives a lavish life. For most of his childhood, James attended Eagle House School (now called Wellington College Prep), a private school that accepts students between three and 13 years old. He then attended Radley College, a male boarding school in Oxfordshire. 

It seems James not only did well for himself at Radley College, but is eager to continue to build his academic career. He graduated in 2026 with enough A-levels to secure himself a place at university, although his exact results weren't revealed. Per People, Buckingham Palace announced in August, "The Earl of Wessex will be going to the Royal Agricultural University to study Rural Land & Property Management. He will head straight there without taking a year out." 

King Charles III, who was the President of the Royal Agricultural University in the '80s, has been a patron since 2024. The institution was founded in 1845 and is located in Cirencester, a town in Gloucestershire, England.