After some searching I have finally discovered what this whole %UM saga is about.
Your %UM is not the raw marks or percentage mark that you scored, it is a way for CIE to assess the difficulty of each component and compare them on the same marking scale.
For example in Component 1 of an exam you may have scored 86% because that exam was slightly easier than normal.
However in Component 3 you may have only scored 74% because the exam was harder than expected.
In order for CIE to compare the relative difficulty of papers without compromising your marks from now onwards they will use the %UM system whereby your mark in each component will be converted to a %UM. For example in the easy component 1 84% could be equal to a %UM of 90% (The minimum for A*).
However because Component 3 was HARDER you would only need say 74% for a 90%UM (A* again). CIE then add your %UM to give you an overall grade, the %UM's for grades have been listed below by me:
A* = 90%UM
A = 80%UM
B = 70%UM
C = 60%UM
etc.
I hope this clarifies things once and for all.
I would just like to add that in the past CIE has used a 'curve' system to state where the grade boundaries lie. However this can be inaccurate in giving an overall grade in some exams that have lots of components (eg. languages that have 4) or in exams with coursework components because some components may have been easier/harder than others so it is unfair to compare them on the same scale. The new %UM system seeks to resolve this problem and is set to be used in all CIE exams.
Your %UM is not the raw marks or percentage mark that you scored, it is a way for CIE to assess the difficulty of each component and compare them on the same marking scale.
For example in Component 1 of an exam you may have scored 86% because that exam was slightly easier than normal.
However in Component 3 you may have only scored 74% because the exam was harder than expected.
In order for CIE to compare the relative difficulty of papers without compromising your marks from now onwards they will use the %UM system whereby your mark in each component will be converted to a %UM. For example in the easy component 1 84% could be equal to a %UM of 90% (The minimum for A*).
However because Component 3 was HARDER you would only need say 74% for a 90%UM (A* again). CIE then add your %UM to give you an overall grade, the %UM's for grades have been listed below by me:
A* = 90%UM
A = 80%UM
B = 70%UM
C = 60%UM
etc.
I hope this clarifies things once and for all.
I would just like to add that in the past CIE has used a 'curve' system to state where the grade boundaries lie. However this can be inaccurate in giving an overall grade in some exams that have lots of components (eg. languages that have 4) or in exams with coursework components because some components may have been easier/harder than others so it is unfair to compare them on the same scale. The new %UM system seeks to resolve this problem and is set to be used in all CIE exams.