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The Specialist Schools Programme was launched in England in 1993. Under the programme, schools submit a bid to central government to specialise in specified curriculum areas. To qualify to participate they must raise private sponsorship to contribute to the cost of their development plans and set targets, including targets for pupils' attainment. The paper uses multiple linear regression and multi‐level modelling to examine pupils' attainment. Our evidence suggests that, in 2001, pupils at Specialist Schools achieved better examination results than pupils at non‐specialist schools and that those attending the earlier cohorts of Specialist Schools performed particularly well. We also suggest that some cohorts of Specialist Schools were achieving enhanced GCSE results before they became Specialist Schools but also that, for the earlier cohorts, the improvement in examination results associated with specialist status increased as schools had been part of the programme for a longer period. Analysis of GCSE results in specialist and non‐specialist subject areas indicated that Language and Sports Colleges achieved better than expected examination results in their specialist areas, Technology Colleges achieved better results in both specialist and non‐specialist areas but that Arts Colleges did not achieve significantly different results in either specialist or non‐specialist subjects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]