The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification awarded in a specified subject, generally taken in a number of subjects by students aged 14–16 in secondary education in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and is equivalent to a Level 2 (A*- C) and Level 1 (D- G) in Key Skills. (In Scotland, the equivalent is the Standard Grade.) Some students may decide to take one or more GCSEs before or afterwards; people may apply for GCSEs at any point either internally through an institution or externally. The education systems of other British territories, such as Gibraltar, and the former British dominion of South Africa, also use the qualifications, as supplied by the same examination boards. The International version of the GCSE is the IGCSE, which can be taken anywhere in the world, and which includes additional options, for example relating to coursework and the language used. When GCSEs are taken by students in secondary education, they can often be combined with other qualifications, such as the Business And Technology Education Council (BTEC), the Diploma in Digital Applications (DiDA), or diplomas.

Das General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) und das International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) entsprechen etwa dem deutschen Realschulabschluss. Das GCSE gilt im britischen Schulsystem als die wichtigste Abschlussprüfung für die Sekundarstufe I (High School).

Mittlere Reife ist ein früher in Deutschland weit verbreiteter, heute offiziell nicht mehr benutzter Begriff (Ausnahme: Baden-Württemberg und Mecklenburg-Vorpommern) für einen mittleren Bildungsabschluss.

Le General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE, que l'on peut traduire en français par « Certificat général de l'enseignement secondaire ») est le nom du diplôme obtenu généralement vers 16 ans dans les pays anglo-saxons, sanctionnant la fin de l'enseignement général. Il peut s'obtenir dès 14 ans. En Écosse, on parle de Standard Grade.

El Certificado General de Educación Secundaria (en inglés: General Certificate of Secondary Education o, en sus siglas, GCSE) es el nombre de un grupo de títulos británicos obtenidos a través de exámenes tomados a estudiantes de entre 14 y 16 años en las escuelas secundarias de Gales, Inglaterra e Irlanda del Norte (en Escocia, el Grado Estándar es su equivalente). A pesar de que por lo general los exámenes son tomados entre esas edades, algunos estudiantes pueden llegar a tener la oportunidad de rendir uno o mas GCSEs antes.