Advice on how to do well in A-Levels?

I start year 12 in September, and whilst I have chosen 4 subjects to study, I have been advised to drop one and only do 3. The thing is, I find all these subjects (maths, biology, chemistry, physics) to be useful to get into the university I would like to go to (Imperial College) to study Chemical Engineering. So I was wondering if anyone can give me any tips on how to do well in my A-Levels, seeing as I am planning to take up 4 subjects instead of 3.Thank you :smile:

Reply 1

username2015015

I've just done my AS exams this year, and even though I did all humanities, I have friends who took STEM subjects and so hopefully I can use their experience to help you!

Those sound like a really good collection of subjects, and it's great that you know where you want to go! What reason has your school given for dropping one of your subjects? It's true that those subjects will be very demanding, and so for that reason I can see why they might encourage you to only take 3, to maximise your marks at AS/A2.

Some general A Level tips:
Do not be afraid of talking to your teacher! I know too many people who have gone through the year thinking oh, I don't want to bother Mr Smith with my concerns over polynominals, but trust me when I say that Mr Smith very much wants to be bothered! Teachers absolutely love it when students come talk to them and make deliberate effort in the subject, it shows them that their hard work is paying off as a student has clearly listened well enough to realise they don't understand something. I know it sounds counter-intuitive, but if Mr Smith is able to give you half an hour's extra help in October, it beats you stressing in April and needing hours of extra work and effort. Another thing - these teachers will be writing your reference at the end of May, so if you go and chat to them every now and again, you'll both have a better understanding of the course, and the teacher will be able to give a detailed and specific reference rather than just this student is in my physics class, they understand most of the material and seem to enjoy lessons...
Make notes throughout the year. This advice is constantly, constantly given by people the year above you, and no one ever heeds it. But if you're planning on doing 4 high intensity courses, I'd recommend putting aside half an hour every day just to look over your notes and if there's anything you're unclear about, highlight it immediately and either read it over again, or make some additional notes. You don't have to do it for everything (unless you're incredibly focused with 0 out of school life!), but just half an hour a day will put you in the strongest position possible for your exams.
Keep a tidy folder with all your notes in it. I cannot stress enough the pain of sitting down to do some serious revision over Easter and realising you need to dedicate 3 or more hours to tidying up notes and getting your work in order. Got away with having half a folder for each subject? Think you'll need fewer folders because, well, ~6 subjects fewer? Think again. I had about 8 full folders for my subjects, and I know people studying STEM subjects who had more. You'll be bombarded with worksheets and paper and handouts and working for biology and chemistry and physics, because let's face it you'll be studying some complex stuff.
Look up what your AS syllabus will be like, and plan ahead. You've got a ton of time this summer to get your things in order. You should know what exam boards you're studying with at AS Level, as usually they tell you that stuff before you leave, but if not you could get in contact with a teacher or an older student who did your subjects. If you're doing say, AQA Chemistry, you can look up the kinds of things you'll be studying, or the format of the papers, and very briefly look over the kinds of websites you might use for help and revision. There are plenty of examples of A Level versions of BBC Bitesize, so you'd be in a great position if you already researched some of the ways you might be able to revise in March etc.
Find out important term dates already and have a plan for the year. I have a friend who is a blooming incredible singer, and wanted to get a Cambridge choral scholarship, but she didn't plan ahead and missed the dates of application and therefore has been fighting tooth and nail to get her late application taken in. Don't make that mistake! It's always worth buying a calender or planner and making notes of the kinds of dates (eg term dates, anything even remotely university orientated etc) which you might in the future be too busy to remember.
Ask about any extra reading you might need. A Levels are very different from GCSEs (thanks, Capt Obvious!) which personally I love, but others have found the step up to be a bit of a disaster. In GCSE English Lit, all you had to do was read the book and know a bit about the author and you'd get a B. At A Level, there are reams and reams of suggested reading which, if you don't do, you'll struggle to get above a C. It might be daunting, but you could get in contact with people in the year above you and ask if they read anything which helped them, ask if they can pass down any resources they have, see what kinds of books are recommended for your interest (Chemical engineering was it?) - even though you're doing STEM, there's still a lot out there!
Don't put too much pressure on yourself. I don't know your GCSE grades or your standards, but many people in September who got A*s at GCSE were stressing out after getting Us in pop quizzes. This is natural! Especially with science subjects, most people struggle getting above a B for months and months, and then it finally clicked a month or so before the actual exam. As stressful as that was for them, the people getting Ds in January are now on track for A*A*A next August, solely because they put in the effort and perservered with the subject, whereas others complained on twitter about how dreadful the subject was and are consequently looking more at ABB... my point is, you can't expect leaping across the chasm of doom which lies between GCSE and A2 to be dauntless, but you can run at it with enthusiasm and a smile and if you fall to your death... well, A Levels have never killed anybody so far (or so I've heard).

Use this summer to relax, but bear in mind that there are things you can get doing now which will put you in the best position to start the year in!
I hope some of this helps :smile:

message me if you need any other advice or clarifications!

Reply 2

rxns_00

Original post by CookieMonster456

Literally do all your homework. That's about it. If you keep on top of it, you'll do well in the sciences.

Reply 3

Goaded

log off tsr, delete your account and dont return

also begin revision now

Reply 4

WannaBMedStudent

Original post by CookieMonster456

Lol- I've just finished Year 13 and so I don't know much about how the new system works. I did 4 AS subjects (Biology, Chemistry, Physics and English Literature). the thing about 3 sciences is that they are pretty heavy in terms of subject content and the amount of time you need to dedicate yourself to them. If you think you can go in and get your A's go ahead. I ignored all the advice to only take 2 sciences and I regretted it lol. Although I loved physics, because there was so much to do across all 3 of my sciences I didn't have the time to devote (or even know how) to hem so I ended up getting BBCC which was really disappointing. I personally would say sacrifice a subject and think long term about your motivation and work load. Is it better to apply for chemical engineering with 3 good grades than 4 okay ones. In terms of studying advice:It's Completely up to you how you do this next year and your attitude to learning. As you know, I didn't do as well as I wanted at AS and in the 2 weeks between getting my results and starting year 13 I researched all the study methods I could find and came up with a new learning and study system that worked wonders for me this school year- obviously the techniques must be tailored to you and it may seem stringent but you have to be willing to put yourself in line and sacrifice for those grades- this is my article on what I did. I obviously don't know what I got yet but I do feel as if I was very prepared for the exams and they all went alright so hope this helps:https://simplythandi.wordpress.com/2016/06/23/ace-your-a-levels/