[Mr. Confused]

Hi, thanks for your help.

First and foremost this is a serious query, I'm not just asking for the sake of it. Sorry for the length of this post.

When I originally did my A-Levels, I didn't care. I just wanted them out of the way and I wanted to get working. The results weren't good. Three years later, I had an urge to go to university and to do well there. I graduated with First Class Honours last June. Now, I'm doing my Master's at University of Manchester. It's going okay, I should get a Merit.

For years I have severely regretted what happened with both my GCSEs and A-Levels, I never saw the importance in either of them. The consequences meant huge limitations in choosing my BA (it was a "soft subject" at a "soft uni"). However, I knew if I could prove my worth through my final classification there, I could go on to a good university and study something distantly related to my BA which was more beneficial. Which is what I'm doing now.

The A-Level issue still hangs over me though, I know how insane it sounds. I really would like to retake my A-Levels once I finish my MSc. For two reasons:-

1. I want to lay my demons to rest.

2. I want that freedom of being able to study whatever I want at university. *Cues the music* I want to be able to be a doctor, or a multi-linguist, or a mechanical engineer etc. etc...

I wish I could turn the clock back and slap 16-year-old me.

So my question is this ("finally!" I here you say). Can I teach myself the relevant A-Level material and take the exams alone? I want to take Maths, Biology, and French. I don't have these A-Levels but I have the corresponding GCSEs. Is this possible? I know people might say, "you need tutoring" etc. but I have confidence and diligence, I know I can do it on my own merit.

If so, do you have any advice on how I would go about it?

Sorry this has been long-winded. I wanted to share in case anyone else has ever felt the same.

The thought of doing another undergrad has crossed my mind. I know if that's the path I take, I have to pay my own way with no funding.

Thanks again.

[Rhiani-ani-on]

Well you must have a lot of money if you are currently studying a masters but want to go back and do another degree as now with the 9000 fees its going to cost you atleast 27,000 and that is just for the degree!

I would say if you really want to go and do a-levels again getting a tutor would probably be a good idea just to make sure you are on the right track even if its just a tutor you see when you need to or every other week.

[Sheikh {/} Nykaa]

first of all WELL DONE for getting so far with sub standard alevels!

you can definitely teach yourself! I did an extra a-level out of class without a tutor and got an A and you have a degree! so there wont be any concepts that will take you long to grasp. But a tutor may be useful for exam techniques.

First of all pick an exam bored...i do aqa but there's edexcel ocr and others. Get the relevant books.
Contact local colleges and ask if they offer exams to external candidates. Then take the exam in january or may...or whenever you're ready.

Good luck

[Cirsium]

It is possible to enter for A-levels as a private candidate, but also not cheap. (I wish I could go back and take Music A-level, so had a nosey into it ) For Maths and Biology, I think it's a viable option if you have natural aptitude. I taught myself A-level Maths the first time around, and the textbooks are generally very good at explaining and provide shed loads of examples, which is all you really need. I think French is far less likely to be realistic: I did German A-level and it was the hardest thing I did (my other A-levels were science subjects). It's a hell of a lot of work compared to virtually anything else: looking up vocabulary, drilling grammar, but also you won't have somebody to read your essays and correct your oral presentations and practice speaking with. I might be over emphasising my own talent here, but I'm pretty darn smart () and I worked bloody hard, and there's no way I could have passed let alone got a good grade had I not had a fluent speaker to help me. If you want to do French then I think you'll need to think about doing a class at a local college or something.

[Mr. Confused]

(Original post by Rhiani-ani-on)
Well you must have a lot of money if you are currently studying a masters but want to go back and do another degree as now with the 9000 fees its going to cost you atleast 27,000 and that is just for the degree!

I would say if you really want to go and do a-levels again getting a tutor would probably be a good idea just to make sure you are on the right track even if its just a tutor you see when you need to or every other week.

Thanks for the reply. I'm pretty broke actually! The MSc cleaned me out. Going back to do another undergrad is a bit of a pipe dream. I would only do it if I managed to get a good job and saved for 3/4 years. I like the idea of a once a week tutor. Thanks.

[FDR]

(Original post by Mr. Confused)
x

I think the best option would be to take A levels with the board known as 'Cambridge International Examinations' (CIE), because then you won't have any coursework (at least I don't think they include coursework), plus there aren't many papers - if I remember what I've been told correctly, you'll take one paper for the AS level, and one for the A2 level, and you can choose either to take them all together or separately. To take them, I think you register on the site, and they tell you which centres you can do them at, and you sit it as a private candidate.

As for learning them yourself, you sound pretty dedicated, so I don't think it will be much of an issue, but you'll probably need to buy the textbooks (which you can buy off of Amazon) and self teach.

Here is the site, You'll get more information from it than I can give you --

http://www.cie.org.uk/qualifications...level/overview

[Data]

(Original post by Mr. Confused)
Hi, thanks for your help.

So my question is this ("finally!" I here you say). Can I teach myself the relevant A-Level material and take the exams alone? I want to take Maths, Biology, and French. I don't have these A-Levels but I have the corresponding GCSEs. Is this possible? I know people might say, "you need tutoring" etc. but I have confidence and diligence, I know I can do it on my own merit.

If so, do you have any advice on how I would go about it?

Thanks again.

Hundreds (possibly thousands) of candidates take A level privately every year. You need to pick a specification, study hard and find an exam centre (=any secondary school or college) willing to accept you as a private candidate. You pay them (the exam board entry fees plus their admin charges) and everything is arranged through them. The cost can vary wildly depending on whether it's a local school feeling helpful (as little as £12 an exam) or a private tutoring college providing the service as a business (close on £1000 for all 6 Biology units including the practicals).

A few points:

There are 5 exam boards offering A levels: 3 'English' ones, 1 Welsh (WJEC) and 1 Northern Irish (CCEA). You can choose any of them but if you're in England it will be easier to find a centre to accept you if you choose an English Board: AQA, Edexcel or OCR. Of the 3, AQA is generally the most 'private candidate friendly' but you could try finding a centre that will accept you and then choosing the specifications they use with their students as some will only accept private candidates if they do exams the centre is already running. All 5 Boards offer all 3 of those subjects, you can easily find their websites, and then the A level page with the specification and past papers for the relevant subjects. You can also buy textbooks aimed at the specific specifications (e.g. just put AQA AS Biology in Amazon).
.
For most specifications, Maths is entirely tested by exam (6 90 minute papers) and so doesn't pose too much of a problem finding a centre. You have to take 4 Core Maths modules, then you have a choice for the 2 Applied Modules - Mechanics, Statistics, Decision Maths or a mixture of 2 of them.

For French you would need to find a centre willing to run an oral exam for you. This can be hard for a private candidate but the Brasshouse Centre in Birmingham will do it. You wouldn't have to do the written exam there.

For Biology there is a practical/coursework unity for each of AS and A2 and these are a real problem for private candidates as only a few places in the country will accept you for them and it doesn't come cheap.

That's probably enough for starters.

[geditor]

What are you studying at Uni? :P

[Data]

(Original post by FDR)
I think the best option would be to take A levels with the board known as 'Cambridge International Examinations' (CIE), because then you won't have any coursework (at least I don't think they include coursework), plus there aren't many papers - if I remember what I've been told correctly, you'll take one paper for the AS level, and one for the A2 level, and you can choose either to take them all together or separately. To take them, I think you register on the site, and they tell you which centres you can do them at, and you sit it as a private candidate.

As for learning them yourself, you sound pretty dedicated, so I don't think it will be much of an issue, but you'll probably need to buy the textbooks (which you can buy off of Amazon) and self teach.

Here is the site, You'll get more information from it than I can give you --

http://www.cie.org.uk/qualifications...level/overview

CIE is the international arm of Cambridge Assessment. Very few UK centres are registered with them as their exams are intended for overseas students but there are a few - you may have to be prepared to travel a long way to take the actual exam but it might be the best option for Biology.

[Mr. Confused]

(Original post by Cirsium)
It is possible to enter for A-levels as a private candidate, but also not cheap. (I wish I could go back and take Music A-level, so had a nosey into it ) For Maths and Biology, I think it's a viable option if you have natural aptitude. I taught myself A-level Maths the first time around, and the textbooks are generally very good at explaining and provide shed loads of examples, which is all you really need. I think French is far less likely to be realistic: I did German A-level and it was the hardest thing I did (my other A-levels were science subjects). It's a hell of a lot of work compared to virtually anything else: looking up vocabulary, drilling grammar, but also you won't have somebody to read your essays and correct your oral presentations and practice speaking with. I might be over emphasising my own talent here, but I'm pretty darn smart () and I worked bloody hard, and there's no way I could have passed let alone got a good grade had I not had a fluent speaker to help me. If you want to do French then I think you'll need to think about doing a class at a local college or something.

Thanks for the detailed reply, you've made things clearer! In regards to French, it was actually my strongest subject at GCSE, I got an A (the only A I received) and that was with minimal effort like with everything else academic at the time. You make some good points though. Thanks again for the contribution.

[FDR]

(Original post by Data)
CIE is the international arm of Cambridge Assessment. Very few UK centres are registered with them as their exams are intended for overseas students but there are a few - you may have to be prepared to travel a long way to take the actual exam but it might be the best option for Biology.

Yeah, not many centers in the UK are registered with them, but as you say, there are some (a few private schools do them). I suggested it because I assume two papers for Maths and two for Biology would be cheaper than the six for Maths and the four exams and two bits of coursework for Biology.

[TheGrinningSkull]

Just to point out (And I'm not sure how it applies to graduates), but I believe you need chemistry (if you haven't already got it) to go into medicine.

[Mr. Confused]

(Original post by TheGrinningSkull)
Just to point out (And I'm not sure how it applies to graduates), but I believe you need chemistry (if you haven't already got it) to go into medicine.

Oh, yeah. Sorry about that. I got a little carried away when suggesting possible career paths! I was just trying to illustrate the freedom of education when you have solid A-Levels. I don't think I'd end up going into Medicine.

[Cirsium]

(Original post by Mr. Confused)
Thanks for the detailed reply, you've made things clearer! In regards to French, it was actually my strongest subject at GCSE, I got an A (the only A I received) and that was with minimal effort like with everything else academic at the time. You make some good points though. Thanks again for the contribution.

I'd still advise caution. I also got a top grade with minimal effort - and A-level hit me like a brick to the head. At GCSE there are lists of vocab and you learn the lists of vocab and you learn some set phrases and it's all very nice and structured. At A-level you read an entire novel; you write essays about history; you give a lengthy presentation about an aspect of the culture of that country (e.g. I did mine about the music of Robert Schumann), which you then have to be able to answer questions on in the target language. And if you've been teaching yourself then you won't even know the examiner, so it's not like you can prime them with questions that you have rehearsed the answers to.

Sorry if it sounds like I'm trying to piss on your fire here I really respect you for deciding to go ahead and do this, and it sounds like you've thought it through well. I just know how much of a gigantic leap it was for me from GCSE to A-level (and they say that's true of every subject, but I wasn't spending literally hours a night learning stuff for the sciences ) and I would be amazed at anyone who could do it without a fluent speaker to help. I mean not necessarily a teacher - if you know someone who speaks fluent French then that could well be enough help.

[Data]

(Original post by FDR)
Yeah, not many centers in the UK are registered with them, but as you say, there are some (a few private schools do them). I suggested it because I assume two papers for Maths and two for Biology would be cheaper than the six for Maths and the four exams and two bits of coursework for Biology.

I've just had a quick look and CIE A level Maths has 4 papers (longer than the domestic ones) and there are 5 for Biology so I don't think taking these would make it simpler or cheaper. Also, from my limited understanding of CIE, I believe you have to take all the AS units in a single season and all the A2 units in one. This can be a tall order for a private candidate studying in their own time; with domestic A levels you can spread the units out over the January and summer seasons for as long as you want.

[River85]

(Original post by TheGrinningSkull)
Just to point out (And I'm not sure how it applies to graduates), but I believe you need chemistry (if you haven't already got it) to go into medicine.

Most universities require chemistry for medicine but some, a sufficient number, will accept biology only (though chemistry needs to be present at GCSE usually). But who mentioned medicine?

[scaredofexams]

What 'soft degree' did you do at which 'soft uni' ? Sorry I'm intrigued I personally wouldn't retake them because its a lot of work and it sounds you have a great career path ahead of you.

[TheGrinningSkull]

(Original post by Mr. Confused)
Oh, yeah. Sorry about that. I got a little carried away when suggesting possible career paths! I was just trying to illustrate the freedom of education when you have solid A-Levels. I don't think I'd end up going into Medicine.

No worries, thought I'd mention it if you really did want more freedom when it came to medical choices

(Original post by River85)
Most universities require chemistry for medicine but some, a sufficient number, will accept biology only (though chemistry needs to be present at GCSE usually). But who mentioned medicine?

Yes, although you'd be quite limited in choice.

It was mentioned in the op and the op has mentioned it in the post I quoted with yours so it's all cool

[FDR]

(Original post by Data)
I've just had a quick look and CIE A level Maths has 4 papers (longer than the domestic ones) and there are 5 for Biology so I don't think taking these would make it simpler or cheaper. Also, from my limited understanding of CIE, I believe you have to take all the AS units in a single season and all the A2 units in one. This can be a tall order for a private candidate studying in their own time; with domestic A levels you can spread the units out over the January and summer seasons for as long as you want.

Yes, you're right - For some reason I thought CIE exams contained a lot less modules. If there is no coursework in Biology, then as you originally said, it would probably be worth doing it with them, but if they are just the same as other boards, then there isn't much of an advantage in doing them for the other subjects.

[keralamov]

You just motivated me to do some work now...Thank you