YORK students have seen weeks of revision go down the drain after a blundering examination board lost their papers.

A total of 84 AS-level business studies students arrived at York College to collect their results - but the Assessment & Qualifications Alliance (AQA) had mislaid their scripts.

They must now decide whether to re-sit the examination alongside two other modules in the summer, or to accept an estimated grade based on results from other examinations which they are still to take.

Hugh Carruthers, 17, and Dan Robinson, 16, both of Poppleton, were angry when college staff broke the news.

Dan said: "We had problems when we were taking our GCSEs at Bootham School. A different exam board sent us the wrong papers and we only found out an hour into the exam."

Hugh said: "We revised all over Christmas for this exam. We're not very pleased."

Fellow student Craig Thompson, 17, of Holgate, hopes to study business at university. He was "devastated" to discover his paper had been lost.

"I said after the exam that it was the best one I had ever done," he said.

"I tried to ring the exam board, but I found them horrifically unhelpful."

College assistant principal Margaret Price said: "We are gravely concerned that this has happened and we have expressed this to the board."

She said staff had seen each student to discuss their options and had asked the AQA to write to each student.

Claire Ellis, of the AQA, confirmed that a number of papers had been lost, but said it was a rare mishap.

"We do sympathise very much with the students and understand that it is disappointing and frustrating to turn up and not have anything to show for their hard work," she said.

Ms Ellis said if the papers are found, they would be marked.

The Government's examinations watchdog, the Qualifications & Curriculum Authority (QCA), has requested a full report from the AQA.

Updated: 10:26 Friday, March 12, 2004