Student sentiment across exam season 2026

Live analysis of student discussion on The Student Room across GCSE and A-level subjects. Based on post volume, poll responses, and year-on-year sentiment tracking.

Student sentiment across exam week 11 May - 15 May 2026

Sentiment overview


Image Image

Year-on-year — 2025 vs 2026


Image
Sentiment is almost identical to 2025, showing a notably stable year-on-year picture. Positive sentiment dipped by just 0.5 percentage points, while negative sentiment increased by the same margin, suggesting overall student reaction to this year’s papers remains highly consistent with last year’s experience.

Sentiment by subject


Image
Business was the weakest-performing subject this week. Both Edexcel and AQA Business discussions ranked among the bottom five for positive sentiment, while A-level Edexcel Business saw the sharpest year-on-year decline of any paper at -38.9 percentage points.

Biggest year-on-year shifts


Most improved vs 2025
Image
Biggest declines vs 2025
Image

Biggest threads this week


Image

Want to understand what students are thinking in real time?

Speak to The Student Room about how live student insight can support your recruitment and marketing strategy.


Talk to our team