Today's the big day for thousands of high school students, nervously awaiting NCEA results

Many students in Auckland, Waikato and Northland already know their marks, as NZQA applies Unexpected Event Grades to students affected by lockdowns.

But those in other parts of the country still don't know how they fared.

Secondary Principals' Association president Vaughan Couillault says people shouldn't necessarily compare lockdown results, with results in other parts of the country.

He says young people in Auckland, Waikato and Northland had a fundamentally different learning experience to everyone else.