IN light of recent public discussion regarding the award criteria for the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC)’s Regional Top Performer designation, the Ministry of Education (MoE) has issued this advisory to provide clarity on the rules that govern this prestigious regional accolade.

The source of the authority is the Caribbean Examination Council (CXC).

The criteria used to determine the overall CSEC Top Student are mandated entirely by the Caribbean Examinations Council. The Ministry of Education – Guyana, as a participating territory, is obligated to adhere strictly to these pre-established, uniform, and very public criteria. The Ministry has no jurisdiction to modify or override these regional rules.

THE MANDATORY SUBJECT CLUSTER RULE

The CXC criteria require candidates to achieve the highest possible grade—Grade One—in every subject within a specific mandatory cluster to qualify for the Regional Top Performer Award.

This mandatory cluster is structured and designed to ensure comprehensive excellence across foundational areas. It routinely includes English A (Language), Mathematics, a foreign language (Spanish, French, or Portuguese), a science subject (e.g., Biology, Chemistry, Physics, or Integrated Science), a Humanities/Social Science Subject (e.g., Social Studies or Caribbean History).

For consideration for the highest regional awards, the CXC policy dictates that failure to meet the Grade One requirement in any single subject within this mandatory cluster, regardless of the total number of subjects written or the volume of other Grade One passes, results in ineligibility for the award.

These rules are applied uniformly across the entire Caribbean region.

While these strict regional criteria limit the eligibility for the CXC Top Performer Award, the ministry continues to celebrate all of Guyana’s high-performing students, their teachers, and their parents.

Persons can also visit CXC’s official website for more information. (MoE)