Conversation Between nerd434 and dbou

I got 95% in my Higher Maths, you can go to your teacher to find out your percentages for Higher and Advanced Higher Why do you ask?

Well that is how I learnt the material, but for revising I just did past papers and occasionally scanned through the specifications to see if there was anything I hadn't picked up on. If you do maybe 5 years of past papers and make you sure you learn everything you can't do on them afterwards then you will have learnt most of the examinable material.

What was your overall mark for your Higher Maths exam? I know you got an A1 but did you get a percentage/mark given to you?

What was your actual revision method for Maths/Applied Maths/Physics like subjects? Did you just work through the textbooks given to you?

Yikes, I'm going to just say that if you don't get in then that says nothing about your ability. For every student studying Medicine at Cambridge their is another applicant who would have done just as well. Obviously I do hope you get in! Have you considered which college you want to apply for?

When I sat Higher English their wasn't a folio so I can't advise you too much. What comprises the folio?

I perhaps put too much emphasis on that, you should aim to have the majority of your revision for each exam finished a week before each exam. For sciences it is better to just bash away at the past papers, revising the things you can't do, and for the arts it is better to memorise the information you need and then do past papers.

Not really, the Scholar books were very good for H maths but I don't think you can buy them separately. Usually its the best idea to just use what your school gives you, as then the material is in the same form as it is taught.

Thanks for the reply. It was very informative, I really appreciate it.
Much like 90% of this website, I'm hoping to go into Medicine. I feel the Cambridge course would be more suited to me considering it focuses primarily on the academic/applied science aspects of medicine throughout the first three years.

Regarding Higher English, how did you ensure your folio pieces were of a high quality (A1/A2)? Were you naturally good at writing or did you just continuously re-draft your pieces?

You said I should be looking to have completed all of my revision before the study leaves begins, does this include practising past papers or should I be learning the content and then doing past papers etc in the week leading up to the exam?

Could you recommend the best textbooks to purchase for: H Maths, English, Chemistry and Physics? It isn't a problem if you can't remember, I was just wondering what I should be looking to buy before school resumes.

Anyway, thanks again!

Can I ask what subject you are planning to apply for at Cambridge? First off five A1's isn't a requirement, three A1's would make you an 'average' applicant. I think the most important advice I can give you is that you need to do enough work that you convince yourself that you deserve that A1. You need to go into the last week before your exams finishing off your revision, not starting it. Treat your prelims as if they are the real exam, I did roughly a month of solid work before both my prelims and the actual exams. I think I probably only averaged 1.5 hours of work outside of school during term time, but during exam leave I did 8 hours. The difference between an A2 and an A1 isn't as much as you would expect, although you do need to go to the effort to *learn the specifications*.

Maths:
This is the best subject for learning the specifications, as learning this inside out guarantees you the A2, and considering that you are a Cambridge hopeful your problem solving ability should give you the other 15%.

English:
This was my worst subject overall, but it is possible to do well if you put the work in. Most importantly make sure that you know enough quotes that you aren't limited in the exam! When revising try reading over past exam papers and attempting to come up with essay plans for as many of the essay questions as you can. As for close reading, I found that preparing well for the essays brought up my close reading marks.

Chemistry & Physics:
Just keep up with the work in class, practise exam papers, nothing special needed here. Hard work will get you the A1.

You might not notice that most of my advice focuses on revision of material, not on learning it. That is because despite what most people think you don't need to be working at 100% all year! Ensure you are always on top with class work, possibly slightly ahead, and make sure you try to remain familiar with the material you have already learnt.

If you have any more questions feel free to ask!

Sorry we haven't spoken on TSR before however I was wondering whether you would be able to provide advice. I will be entering fifth year this year and so I will be aiming to achieve five A1's due to the fact I'm hoping to apply to Cambridge. My Highers consist of Mathematics, English, Chemistry, Physics and History (much like yours). With hard-work I think five A's in within my capability however I'm not sure whether straight A1's is within my reach. As I saw you consistently achieved A1's throughout your Highers and Advanced Highers, I thought who else better to ask than you. What advice would you give in order to achieve these grades? How many hours a night/day did you study? Was there a large step/a lot more work required to boost your grade from an A2 to an A1? Could you possibly provide some advice for some of the subjects? I would seriously appreciate it.

Thanks a lot for your time.