What do I need in the final?

How the final mark is worked out

Your final mark in a subject is not just the November paper. It combines your school-based assessment — the tests, assignments and controlled tests you have written all year — with the final exam.

For the NSC, school-based assessment counts for 25% and the final exam for 75%. For the IEB, internal assessment is weighted differently depending on your school and subject, and often includes portfolio or project work, which is why the weighting is something you can change above rather than a number baked into this page.

The calculation itself is one line. It is here because rearranging it correctly is the last thing anyone wants to attempt in October, and because a number you can see in September is still months of runway.

If the number comes back higher than you hoped

A mark that looks out of reach usually means the target needs checking, not the subject abandoning. Work out what you actually need for the course or the college you have in mind — it is often lower than the round number people default to — and aim at that.

And if it is reachable but far above what you have been scoring, that gap is exactly what tutoring is for. It is also the point at which starting early matters more than working harder.