Beyond the pass — who earns Excellence?
Endorsement is the quality signal within NCEA — passed is not enough, it’s about how well. Merit and Excellence endorsements reveal the performance gap beneath the headline pass rate, and the story by ethnicity and school equity is striking.
Endorsement rates over time
Of students who achieved the qualification, how many earned Excellence (gold), Merit (purple), or No Endorsement (dark)? Select a qualification level and switch to Ethnicity or Gender view to see how different groups trend across the decade.
Who earns endorsement?
Each bar shows the endorsement breakdown for a group in a selected year — Excellence (gold), Merit (purple), and No Endorsement (dark). Sorted by endorsed rate. Switch between Ethnicity, Equity, Gender, and Region breakdowns.
Equity group data available 2019–2024 only. Rates are among students who achieved the qualification — endorsement is separate from attainment.