UCAS Offer Requirements

Hello there,

I have received my offer from King's College London and it states the following:

"Congratulations! King's College London (University of London) is offering you a place for Computer Science, G404; starting on September 0016, at point of entry 1.This offer is subject to your obtaining this offer is subject to you obtaining By 18th August 2016 obtain grades AAB in three A-level subjects including grade B in one of the following subjects: Mathematics, Computer Science/ICT, Computing, Electronics, Physics or Statistics, and excluding General Studies/Critical Thinking."

Now I'm expecting my results for maths and further maths to both be A*'s (Especially since how well the M3 exam went) however I'm not 100 % sure I'll get a B in Computer Science - due to the absence of a teacher (Long story short, we haven't had ANY teacher since AS). In the unlikely event where I don't reach a B in Computer Science, I am also retaking AS physics. With mocks etc, I am achieving A-B's, however this is only a retake for AS and not A2's.

If I missed the B in Computer Science, does the B/A I might get in Physics, count as an A level? When submitting my UCAS application, I did state that I was resitting AS physics.

Thankyou in advance,

M3WIZARD

Reply 1

jelly1000

Original post by M3WIZARD

I'm afraid the AS wouldn't count instead and it would be up to the university to decide if they were going to be lenient if you miss you offer.

Reply 2

M3WIZARD

Hello! Wow thanks for the fast response. Yeah I kind of assumed they wanted the A2 - that's unfortunate. As for contacting them goes - I actually did this in an email directly to Andrew Coles (lecturer in Computer Science) after meeting him on an open day. Also, I have untaken many programming projects, such as creating apps and software for arduinos (I have a very long list of achievements in IT) - all of which I made him aware of in the email.

His reply to me was that, although couldn't change my grade requirements - had put me at a top priority for 'near misses'. However, I was a little skeptical of this, as I wonder how many people of the 'near misses' they allow into a russel group UNI.

So for the background in IT, I definitely expressed that in my UCAS application and in an email to one of the lecturers of the department - He's also the person who gave me the offer.

If you have any "Go and do this, so it acts like a backup plan" I would be most grateful.

All the best,
M3WIZARD

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 3

M3WIZARD

Original post by jelly1000

I'm afraid the AS wouldn't count instead and it would be up to the university to decide if they were going to be lenient if you miss you offer.

Yes, that's what I thought. Hopefully I will get the B! :smile:

All the best,
M3WIZARD

Reply 4

Doones

Original post by M3WIZARD

Hello! Wow thanks for the fast response. Yeah I kind of assumed they wanted the A2 - that's unfortunate. As for contacting them goes - I actually did this in an email directly to Andrew Coles (Head of Computer Science Dept at Kings) after meeting him on an open day. Also, I have untaken many programming projects, such as creating apps and software for arduinos (I have a very long list of achievements in IT) - all of which I made him aware of in the email.

His reply to me was that, although couldn't change my grade requirements - had put me at a top priority for 'near misses'. However, I was a little skeptical of this, as I wonder how many people of the 'near misses' they allow into a russel group UNI.

So for the background in IT, I definitely expressed that in my UCAS application and in an email to the Head of Department - He's also the person who gave me the offer.

If you have any "Go and do this, so it acts like a backup plan" I would be most grateful.

All the best,
M3WIZARD

When you wrote to KCL did you mention your teaching problems? If not it's worth contacting them again - especially if you could get your UCAS referee (or similar senior teacher) to send them a follow-up email.

And given the extenuating circumstances I wouldn't be surprised if they agree that A*A*C was acceptable. But no, your AS won't help much.

Good luck.

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 5

M3WIZARD

Original post by jneill

Yes, I did tell them that we hadn't had a teacher for the entirety of the A2. Also, my reference email from my form tutor to the UNI's also stated that we hadn't had a teacher - however they sugar coated it, to make it seem less of a problem by the school. Thats why I seeked out a contact in the first place.

In an ideal world, I will reach that B anyway (My AS grade is only a few ucas off a B, and my controlled assessment was 72/80) - some tests go either way, and I'm retaking all three tests - so hopefully I won't have to rely on A*A*C to get me in.

On a side note, late january I asked for my tests back (F451 and F452) to see where I royally messed up (Grade boundaries were really low, and I still only got a C (50% of the marks), even though in mocks I was hitting 90/100 marks). I believe they incorrectly marked my tests, and missed about 12 marks at least - and 60% was roughly an A!!! But that's only my opinion, If anyones willing to remark my June 2015 papers, and let me know if you think im right, I would appreciate it. I believe it's too late to get a remark, but I'd still like to know. If you need the MS, I have a copy.

All the best,
M3WIZARD

Reply 6

M3WIZARD

If you don't mind me asking, what UNI did you end up going to? I'm curious. With results like that, I suppose one of the russell group ones?

Also, was it OCR computing that you took? F45(1/2/3/4)

All the best,
M3WIZARD

Reply 7

username853993

Original post by M3WIZARD

Lots of people get into russel group unis with near misses, I know friends at southampton, bristol, leeds, kings, sheffield and nottingham that missed their offer by 1-2 grades and got in (mostly science and engineering subjects), it really isnt that hard to get into a 'russel group' university

Reply 8

yt7777

Bold:

Sometimes a general degree can be a lot better than a specialist, I would say this is very much the case for IT/Computing/CS courses, a lot of these specialist courses can be very weak, a solid foundation is usually a lot better

I recently had an interview (and got the job) for a job in Cyber Security Engineering and they told me in the 1 to 1 interview that they prefer Computer Science to Computer Security/Forensics for undergrad degrees also most of the other people at the group interview did Computer Forensics at uni so I asked if I was at a disadvantage with general Computer Science and they said they (and other companies) sort of look down on specialist security undergraduate degrees and look at general Computer Science as the best degree in industry.

Maybe just something to note if you haven't yet started uni

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBW1een0Ehc - i know its american but still applicable

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 9

yt7777

Well thats good then, I actually agree, no point spending 3 years doing something you wont enjoy, that takes a lot of dedication

Did you not look at Cardiff though? They do a joint CompSci/Security/Forensics degree, think they're the only Russell Group who specifically do Computer Forensics as a degree

Reply 10

M3WIZARD

Hello All,

After reading all your messages - I think that I should just keep my head down and keep studying until the exams are over, instead of scaring myself of not getting into kings. As for the email thing - I emailed the UNI to express that I might not reach a B in computer science, to which there response was, if I became a near miss, I would have some level of advantage over other near misses due to my circumstance. As said before, In an ideal world, I will reach my targets and get in regardless - I just wanted to open the question up in here to hear some other responses and advice.

Thanks all,
M3WIZARD