Even the highest scorer among more than 13,600 students cannot be declared a topper. Here’s why.
Dubai: More than 13,600 CBSE Grade 10 students in the UAE are expected to receive their results soon, but there is an important caveat—the scores released now are not final, and today’s top performer may not remain at the top once final results are issued.
Schools and educators across the UAE are advising families not to place too much emphasis on the provisional marks, even as results are expected shortly on the DigiLocker platform. In a first for the Board, no physical mark sheets will be issued, a change that applies to CBSE students worldwide, not just in the UAE or Gulf region.
Why results aren’t final
The change is linked to a new two-stage policy introduced by CBSE from 2026. For the first time, Class 10 students—both in India and abroad—can opt to take improvement examinations in up to three subjects to enhance their scores. As a result, the results declared now are provisional, with final mark sheets to be issued only after the second round of examinations scheduled for May.
“If the students are happy with the result, this is final for them. But the final mark list will come after the second exam happens,” explained Dr Pramod Mahajan, Director-Principal of Sharjah Indian School and CBSE City Coordinator for schools in Sharjah, Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah.
This improvement window—not any external factors—is the primary reason the results being declared now are provisional. As per CBSE guidelines, students will have five days after the declaration of results to apply and submit their List of Candidates (LOC) forms, including the subjects they wish to improve in the second examination.
Scores without recognition
There is another dimension to the situation that matters particularly for high achievers: CBSE has not declared national toppers or published merit lists for the past three years. The Board has fully transitioned to a competency-based assessment system, removing the merit certificates that once formally recognised top performers.
“From CBSE, there is no India topper, there is no merit list,” said Dr Mahajan. However, schools in the UAE continue to acknowledge their top scorers internally.
Even that school-level recognition becomes complicated due to the provisional nature of the results. A student who scores 98% today could opt for the improvement exam and later raise their marks, requiring any earlier announcements to be revised.
“Suppose my school topper has got 98%, and she applies for the second exam for improvement and makes it 99.5. If today we say she is the topper, then after one month we have to change it. There is no authenticity for the topper concept based on this result because this result is not final,” Dr Mahajan explained.
New assessment due to war
The UAE’s 13,669 enrolled Grade 10 students, previously confirmed by Dr Ram Shankar, Professor and Director of the CBSE Regional Office and Centre of Excellence in Dubai, are also dealing with a separate war-related factor in how their marks were computed.
CBSE cancelled the remaining Class 10 board examinations in the Middle East on March 5, 2026, after a review of the security situation linked to the US–Israel–Iran conflict across Bahrain, Iran, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. Only papers conducted between February 17 and February 28 proceeded as scheduled, covering 44 subjects in total.
To assess results for the missed papers, CBSE applied a category-based formula. Students who appeared for four papers had their missing subjects calculated using the average of their best three scores. Those who completed three papers had remaining subjects derived from the average of their best two, while students who attempted only two examinations had those results extrapolated across the remaining subjects.
Many likely to reappear
With improvement exams now available, schools across the UAE expect a significant number of students to opt in, as previously reported.
Dr Mahajan had earlier said that around 40 to 55 per cent of students in Sharjah, Fujairah, and Ras Al Khaimah had indicated interest in appearing for the improvement examinations. In Dubai, the numbers are expected to be lower, with some schools estimating around 30 per cent of students opting to retake one or two subjects.
However, a clearer picture will emerge once schools submit the List of Candidates (LoC) for the second examination within five days of the results declaration.
Dr Mahajan also noted that the second exam will be conducted at the same centres as the original, meaning students who have relocated to India but wish to reappear for any paper will need to return to the UAE.
Classes already under way
Meanwhile, Grade 11 classes have already begun for students in the UAE, as schools in the region traditionally start the new academic year before Grade 10 board results are announced.
Dr Mahajan reiterated that schools will support students through remedial and enrichment sessions if they choose to sit the improvement examinations alongside their Grade 11 studies.
The results, once declared, will be available through each student’s DigiLocker account. While the absence of a physical mark sheet is new for students and parents, the digital certificate will include complete details, including percentages and subject-wise scores.
“It will be a complete record. The only difference is that a hard copy will not be issued,” Dr Mahajan confirmed.
