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What happens if I miss an A level exam?

I always wondered what will happen if someone miss an A level exam, with a valid reason.. Do they get No Result on the statement of result or do they automatically fail? If they get No Result on the statement of result, will they get the same mention on their certificate? And will universities be aware of it?

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Reply 1

lucyhol1012

It depends what your valid reason is.
In some cases if you are deemed too sick to get out of bed, let alone take an exam... then you may be give your predicted grades.

Reply 2

krisblade

I don't think you get predicted grades at A-level. I got some predicted grades at GCSE, due to me being in hospital, so pretty valid reason, lol. But I was concerned it may happen again during A-levels, many uni's stated that if I didn't sit the exam, they could let me defer the offer but I will still have to sit the exam in my gap year. I think possibly if you missed one exam you might get away with it, but a whole AS or A2, I think you'd just get no result for it. The universities would know, as they get sent our results through UCAS, so they'd get told you didn't show up or whatever and hence got no grade.

And which certificate are you refering to, the one we get on results day declaring results, or the official one you get to prove you have an A-level? It would obviously be on the first one, but you wouldn't even be able to claim the second certificate if you haven't sat all the modules, as you technically wouldn't even have the A-level yet.

Reply 3

lucyhol1012

reaper246

does they actually give predicted grades if you are a private candidate with no predicted grade?

Also what about a student who voluntarily misses an exam? are they failed, with a U on their certificate?

If you don't turn up then yes you'll fail as you'll get a lot less than 40 UMS which means you get a U.

I think there are special circumstances which require you having a Doctors note. If you're a private candidate your best bet is to ring your exam board and speak directly to them as all exam boards will differ.

Reply 4

krisblade

reaper246

I was referring to the second certificate.. the official confirmation of the A level.. The problem is, I have been ill for weeks, unable to revise for both subjects I decided to take. But in one of them, I managed to learn the notes.. and managed to write something in the exams.. but for the other one, i cudnt do well as i cudnt revise for it at the same time i was lightly revising for the other.. am expecting to fail (35/100) in the first paper.. n it has only 2 papers, each worth 100 marks..

I can prove i was ill for weeks, and since i dont want a U on my certificate, i was thinking of a way out..

n yep, i had only 3 months (from late february to may) to work both new subjects, so my duration of illness proved significantly bad here..

Please tell me you applied for special circumstances! If you didn't do well then it will show up on the certificate, unless you don't cash in your grades and resit some units next year. If you attend the exam, the general idea is you can't get a predicted grade, but you can get extra marks. But it's at most 5% when I did GCSE, I think I only got 3% extra. Predicted grades are really only for if you didn't do the exam at all... I don't think you can show up, get a D or whatever and then expect to be allocated a predicted grade significantly higher.

Also, it sounds like you mean you were ill at the beginning of the year so missed out on school rather than actually being ill for the exams? If so (sorry if I've misunderstood!) you really have no hope of getting predicteds, its really only a "I'm in hospital and seriously can't make it" kinda thing. For my GCSE's I only got predicted for exams I was in hospital for. I got out on the Sunday and was still expected to show up to the Monday Maths exam.

Reply 5

moomin_love

reaper246

You will only get a maximum of 5% in special consideration if you submit a doctor's note... However, 5% is reserved for people whose close family or whatever just died. You will probably only get 1 or 2%, which will make no difference really. You would have been better off not taking the exams and sending a doctors note because then they take an average of your other modules (only for A2, for AS they make you resit). Your best bet would be to ring your uni and tell them the circumstances and offer to send them a doctor's note. They will be more lenient when it comes to results day :smile:

Reply 6

krisblade

reaper246

Thanks for the infos :smile:

Hmm,I did not apply for extenuating circumstances.. because i was ill before the exams (not on the days of the exams), preventing me from revising properly.. i stayed in bed most of the time, so could hardly work the second A level i was doing. The problem is I am doing CIE exams, as am an international. So, there are no AS modules marks available for me.
I guess I just have to work very very hard now to at least get some marks and avoid a U in the subject.. I already have my 3 As from a previous session, but was taking those 2 subjects additionally.. they r not needed for my choice of course at uni (which is medicine) but am afraid unis might know i got a very bad result in one subject and that might play against me, even though the subject is not related to medicine..
I plan to apply this october btw..

You have to apply for extenuating circumstances before hand, or if its really sudden on the day. You can't turn round a week after the exam or whatever. And considering in your case you were ill before the exam, you had plenty of time to put in an application before. I had long term illness that meant my attendance was bad in sixth form, my school submitted my extenuating circumstances months before my actually exams. I honestly don't think you would have much of a leg to stand on if you weren't ill for the exam and didn't apply for EC before the exam. You would have no hope of getting a predicted grade, if you haven't taken any exams from which they can base them, and you weren't even ill on the day.

I think the only thing to do is man up and take them. EC would probably only give you a few percent anyway, if you are getting U's, it's not going to bump you up to an A.

Reply 7

FranticMind

You may as well give up on the a level

Reply 8

krisblade

reaper246

Thanks a lot krisblade :smile:

but is there any chance I can cancel the exam for a resit later? because I am applying for uni for next year's entry, i cud do it in june next year or even with edexcel in january..
u think the unis might not like it that i got,suppose, a D or at best a C(if i do quite satisfactorily in the other paper) in the med non-related subject while I have 4 As in the subjects that matter?

While I have no idea why you took two sets of A-levels :p:

you do have consider that uni's normally only consider A-levels done in one sitting.... if you've done A-levels since and done badly, I honestly couldn't say how this would affect your application. For example, some people who take Maths a year early and get an A, are still expected to AAA the year after. What were they in? Were they totally unrelated?

I think you have to cancel exams a while before, I don't know if the deadline has passed yet :s-smilie:

And then if you do cancel it, I assume you will have to spend longer tha ntwo years to achieve AS+A2? Which would mean they wouldn't be accepted at all either, as you would be a resit applicant... Tbh as you have grades already this makes it a unique case, I honestly don't know how doing badly in these exams would affect your application, I can only guess. All I know is I don't think you would be entitled to predicted grades or EC.

Reply 9

Awakening

they take results of your mock

Reply 10

moomin_love

reaper246

Thanks for the infos :smile:

Well if you don't turn up for the next exam you will get a U and you don't have to declare it? If your exams are under JCQ (which all the major exam boards are - I don't know about international qualifications/exam boards or anything) then I'm afraid you can't even submit a doctors note fore being ill during the revision session :frown:

I just looked it up. I think your decision now is whether you want to risk getting a bad grade and having to declare it or not turn up to the next exam and not having to declare it to Universities or future employers or anything. If you've already got the 3 As why didn't you do something more productive with your year e.g. travelling and getting major work experience?

Reply 11

moomin_love

reaper246

I was foolish to want to do 2 A Levels more in 3 months.. and then was unlucky to fall ill for weeks during that time, thus I could only work one A level in greater detail by simply reading notes - the easier one..

I do CIE btw.. If I dont turn up for the second paper (there's only 2 paper for the subject), will that mean I get no result on my certificate? If I get a U, will it show up on the certificate?
I dont want the universities to know about the result of that subject, because they might not know why it is as such - i.e i was ill n cudnt work it out... besides i did all by myself, without any teacher's help..

No it won't show up on your certificates and you don't have to declare it to unis.

Reply 12

moomin_love

reaper246

But will it be sent to universities by UCAS? I dont want the unis to know about that bad grade at all. And do you think CIE follow the same procedures regarding awarding grades on certificates as do the other UK exam boards?

UCAS only submit the information that you give them. Have you already been offered a place at University? If so, it doesn't matter if they see the U grade because you already have the 3 As that they need. If not, you just don't need to tell them about it because you don't have to declare any U grades on UCAS when you apply to university.

Reply 13

moomin_love

reaper246

UCAS automatically get results from UK boards like CIE and then send them to the universities.. It says so on their website, so CIE would let them know I achieved U.. So maybe the universities will come to know in the end. I might need to mention all my results on the UCAS form before they find out officially from UCAS itself.. :s-smilie:

Do you have a conditional or an unconditional offer?

Reply 14

moomin_love

reaper246

I dont have any offers yet, because I am applying this year for next year's entry. I'm applying for medicine btw.

Oh then it doesn't matter if you get a U because you don't have to declare Us on UCAS. You only have to declare the subjects you got an A*, A, B, C, D or E in :smile:

so if you feel like you wouldn't get a great grade if you turned up to the exam then don't bother. You have the 3 As, that is all you need. AAA will look better than AAAE or AAAD or even AAAC really. Also, are you aware that medical schools usually want all your A levels to have been taken over just 2 years? I find it weird that you have taken 2 A levels this year in irrelevant subjects... have you done lots of work experience and stuff this year as well yeah?

Reply 15

moomin_love

reaper246

I think if I prepare extremely well I might get a B for the second subject (i.e the tough one), but I might also hamper my chances of getting an A in the subject I have worked well till now.. I believe I might get a D or C if I do the second paper for the tough subject satisfactorily..

Hmm, regarding telling UCAS about the grades, well, someone sent me a link recently on UCAS (http://www.ucas.com/students/applying/howtoapply/education/) It says u shud declare the qualification even if you are unsuccesful in it.. :confused:

that's quite bad.. what do u think about that?

I really dont want to get that other subject on my certificate, nor do I want universities to know about it.. but.. I'm worried UCAS might find out from the exam board that I got a U (if I dont turn up) and tell the universities I apply to..

Hmm I did some work/volunteering while I was not ill, i.e during the small and very hectic period I revised for those additional 2 A Levels.. and am planning to do much much more after the exams..

Well considering you don't receive a certificate for subjects you get a U in UCAS won't know and we've all been told not to declare subjects we got a U in. Well it seems that you've made up your mind to take them so just go for it. You should get a doctor's letter or something to send to the Universities though so they know why you didn't get As in them.

Reply 16

moomin_love

reaper246

I will take them but I will give priority to the one subject I had time to learn the notes.. so I might well get a bad result in that other subject (a D perhaps :frown:

) Do u know if UCAS receives information about U from the exam boards?

I think you are right. I'll keep the Doctor's letter with me so that during interviews I can let the universities know about my particular case. I hope though that despite all that, the bad result in that one subject does not swing their mind away from a positive outcome for me (if there is one).. :smile:

No, UCAS does not know whether you got a U or not. My friend didn't put down his bad results (Cs, Ds, Es) and UCAS did not tell any of the univerisities he applied to. You need to have your circumstances written in the section that your school/college write about you because if the grade is that bad they probably won't bother giving you an interview. Next year is supposed to be the most competitive year ever for university applications.

Reply 17

Pandaboo

What happens if a student misses their AS exam? Will the certificate still say "U", or will there be no certificate for it at all?

Reply 18

tomski_92

My friend was hospitalised the night before an AS maths module (I'm not sure of the exam board) last year and so couldn't sit her exam and she was awarded her predicted grade.