GCSE student Shannon Sutton gets big kisses from her proud parents after picking up her results at Rainham School for Girls in 2011

Teenagers can expect tough times - whatever they choose to do after school.

Almost 36,000 people in the county are out of work and university tuition fees have gone up to £9,000 per year.

But Malcolm Scott, a personal advisor from CXK – formerly Connexions Kent and Medway - said it is important pupils do not panic if they have not got the results they wanted.

He said: "Our careers advisors will be in schools today for students who are confused or unsure about what they want to do next.

"Sometimes the grades go up, sometimes they're not so good - but what matters to us is the individual student and how we can help them to move on to a successful future."

With the added cost of university, many 16-year-olds are considering going straight into work.

Mr Scott added: "For those students who haven't got a solid grounding in GCSEs, other options that could equally lead to university could be BTEC extended diplomas, which will allow you to gain some expertise or experience in the work that you might be interested in doing.

"Students are looking at a wider range of options than they would have done say five years ago. They're looking at university abroad where the cost might be less and apprenticeships where they can get an employer, if they can find one, to sponsor them to do further training."

For more information or what to do with your GCSE results, visit www.cxk.org.