In the Harry Potter series of books by J. K. Rowling, an Ordinary Wizarding Level (often abbreviated O.W.L. or OWL), is the first official academic hurdle required of students at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. After passing an examination testing his or her knowledge and ability within a particular subject area, the student is awarded an O.W.L. in that subject. The concept of the O.W.L. is based upon the British system of secondary education, in which students first work towards nationally-set examinations to be taken at the age of 15 or 16. The O.W.L. designation is intended to mirror the real-world British GCSE or, perhaps more accurately, its predecessor, the O Levels. This article is about the Harry Potter series of novels. ... Joanne Jo Rowling OBE (born 31 July 1965[1]) is an English fiction writer who writes under the pen name J. K. Rowling. ... Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... To examine somebody or something is to inspect it closely, hence an examination is a detailed inspection or analysis of an object or person. ... This does not cite any references or sources. ... The General Certificate of Education or GCE was introduced in England, Wales and Northern Ireland in 1951, replacing the older SC and HSC. It was intended to cater for the increased range of subjects available to pupils since the raising of the school leaving age from 14 to 15 in...

O.W.L. practices

O.W.L. examinations are taken by Hogwarts students in their fifth year. They are not devised or graded by school faculty but by officials from the Ministry of Magic's Wizarding Examinations Authority. The examinations do, however, take place at Hogwarts, and Ministry officials make an annual trip to the school to administer these examinations. Hogwarts teachers heavily emphasise the importance of the tests, as they play an important role in determining each student's course of study in his or her remaining two years of school, assuming that a student wishes to continue his or her education. Many N.E.W.T. classes require high O.W.L. grades as prerequisites, and various post-Hogwarts careers demand passing grades in certain O.W.L. subjects. In the wizarding world, a fictional universe developed by J.K. Rowling and presented in her best-selling Harry Potter series, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a school of magic for witches and wizards aged between eleven and eighteen. ... In the fictional universe of the Harry Potter series as written by J.K. Rowling, the Ministry of Magic is the governing body of the magical community of Britain and succeeded the earlier Wizards Council. ... The Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Test (often abbreviated N.E.W.T. or NEWT) is a highly-advanced test of magical ability in a particular field in the fictional Harry Potter series. ...

Students take an O.W.L. for each subject that they have studied. The tests take place in the month of June (at the end of the school year), and they are spread out over the span of a couple of weeks. Each examination comprises a theoretical portion and a practical portion, unless the examination is for a subject that only involves the learning of textual information (such as History of Magic and Ancient Runes), in which case only a theoretical examination is administered. The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ...

The theoretical portions of the examinations are written and administered in Hogwarts' Great Hall, which changes layout from four long tables to many individual desks when it comes time for O.W.L. exams to be administered. The practical portions of the examinations are performed by each student individually before a Ministry official, who sets the student various tasks that pertain to the specified subject (for example, demonstrating a series of defence spells for a Defence Against the Dark Arts examination or making a particular potion for Potions). The official then evaluates the student on his or her performance based on a six-letter grading scale. The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... A potion (from Latin potio, potionis, meaning beverage, potion, poison) is a drinkable medicine or poison. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ...

Grading

When a student passes an O.W.L. examination, that student is said to have obtained an "Ordinary Wizarding Level" (O.W.L.) in that particular field of magical study.

O.W.L.s are graded on the following scale:

Passing grades

• O for Outstanding
• E for Exceeds Expectations
• A for Acceptable

Failing grades

• P for Poor
• D for Dreadful
• T for Troll

Available subjects

O.W.L.s can be taken in the following subjects:

Compulsory subjects include Defence Against the Dark Arts, Potions, Transfiguration, History of Magic, Charms, Astronomy and Herbology. The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ...

Electives include Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Divination, Care of Magical Creatures and Muggle Studies. Students must take at least two elective classes starting in their Third Year. The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ...

Harry Potter's O.W.L.s

Harry Potter takes his O.W.L.s in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. He receives his grades in the following book, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Harry James Potter is a fictional character and the main character of J. K. Rowlings Harry Potter fantasy series of books. ... Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film) or Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game) “OOTP” redirects here. ... Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, released on July 16, 2005, is the sixth of seven novels in J.K. Rowlings popular Harry Potter series. ...

In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry is told that Professor McGonagall accepts only students who have achieved at least Exceeds Expectations on their O.W.L.s into her N.E.W.T.-level Transfiguration classes. Professor Snape only accepts students who have achieved Outstanding on their Potions O.W.L.s into his N.E.W.T.-level classes. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film) or Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game) “OOTP” redirects here. ... Professor Minerva McGonagall (born October 4, c. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ... Severus Snape is a fictional character in the Harry Potter book series written by J. K. Rowling. ... The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. ...

In Half-Blood Prince, Harry receives his O.W.L. marks:

• Astronomy: Acceptable
• Care of Magical Creatures: Exceeds Expectations
• Charms: Exceeds Expectations
• Defence Against the Dark Arts: Outstanding
• Divination: Poor
• Herbology: Exceeds Expectations
• History of Magic: Dreadful
• Potions: Exceeds Expectations
• Transfiguration: Exceeds Expectations

As can be seen, out of the nine subjects he took, he passed seven.

At first it seems his chance of being an Auror is shattered because Professor Snape only accepts students who have achieved an Outstanding into his N.E.W.T. class, and Potions being an essential study for Aurors. However, once at Hogwarts, Harry learns that Professor Snape was finally allowed to take the Defence Against the Dark Arts job and his replacement, Professor Slughorn, was accepting students (like Harry) with "Exceeds Expectations" to continue with N.E.W.T.-level Potions. Severus Snape (born January 9, c. ... Horace Slughorn is the current Potions Professor in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. ...

Other characters' known O.W.L.s

• Hermione Granger takes ten O.W.L.s and receives nine Os and one E (Defence Against the Dark Arts). The original version of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince states Hermione took eleven O.W.L. tests, despite the fact Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix said she took ten. This error was corrected in later editions of the book. [1]
• Ron Weasley received seven O.W.L.s with similar grades to Harry, passing and failing the same subjects, but he received no Os. Observing that one would need an Exceeds Expectations to progress to N.E.W.T. level in Potions and Transfigurations, Ron received at least two Es amongst his 7 O.W.L.s. It is also stated that he cecieved an E in Defence Against the Dark Arts.
• Neville Longbottom received at least four O.W.L.s in DADA (an E), Herbology (an O), Charms (an E), and Transfiguration (an A).
• Lavender Brown received at least 4 O.W.L.s in Charms, Transfiguration, DADA and Divination.
• Parvati Patil received at least two O.W.L.s in Divination and Defence Against the Dark Arts.
• Draco Malfoy received at least three O.W.L.s in Defence Against the Dark Arts, Potions(E or O) and Transfiguration.
• Fred and George Weasley received three O.W.L.s each but do not mind because their ambition of opening a joke shop does not require O.W.Ls (Mrs Weasley is very disappointed in them for their poor performance, after Bill and Percy, their older brothers, received twelve O.W.L.s each.). They take only three subjects: Transfiguration, Defence Against the Dark Arts and Herbology. However they are also commented on in taking charms when they are describing Professor Umbridge inspecting Professor Flitwick, they might not have taken herbology.
• Percy Weasley received twelve O.W.L.s.
• Barty Crouch Jr received twelve O.W.L.s.
• Bill Weasley received twelve O.W.L.s.

• Everyone in the DA received an O.W.L. in Defence Against the Dark Arts.

Hermione Jane Granger is a fictional character in the Harry Potter book series written by J. K. Rowling. ... Ronald Bilius Ron Weasley is a fictional character in the Harry Potter book series written by J. K. Rowling. ... Neville Longbottom is a character in the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling. ... This article is about minor Harry Potter characters who are Gryffindor students in the same year as Harry. ... This article is about minor Harry Potter characters who are Gryffindor students in the same year as Harry. ... Draco Malfoy is a fictional character in J. K. Rowlings Harry Potter books and Harry Potters principal rival and a foil. ... Fred and George Weasley (born April 1 1978)[1][2] are fictional characters in the Harry Potter series. ... Percy Ignatius Weasley is a fictional character in the Harry Potter book series written by J. K. Rowling. ... Bartemius Barty Crouch Junior is a fictional character from the Harry Potter series of books. ... Bill Weasley (born 29 November, 1970)[1][2] is a fictional character in the Harry Potter series, the oldest son of Molly and Arthur Weasley and the brother of Charlie, Percy, Fred, George, Ron, and Ginny. ...

References

Shortcut: WP:-( Vandalism is indisputable bad-faith addition, deletion, or change to content, made in a deliberate attempt to compromise the integrity of the encyclopedia. ... Shortcut: WP:-( Vandalism is indisputable bad-faith addition, deletion, or change to content, made in a deliberate attempt to compromise the integrity of the encyclopedia. ...

See also

• Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Test (N.E.W.T.)