Mature students: Access Course or A-Level?

Hello,

I am 43 years old and new in UK; I live in Brighton. I want to study in a physics course in university. I do not have qualifications. I have studied mathematics and physics at High-School long time ago in another country.
The university's Entry requirements are A-Levels in Mathematics and Physics. They also accept Access Course.

My questions are:
1. Access Course or A-Level? Which one is more suitable for my situation?
2. Which colleges or schools have "A-Level course" in physics and maths for adults (Part-time or Evening classes or full-time) in South-East or South-West regions of England (or other regions)? I could not find any in Brighton.

Thanks in advance.

Reply 1

Ben_York

Hi there,

I cannot answer you questions fully; but in piecemeal - I recommend Access Courses.

They are cheaper and will allow a more appropriate 'back-to-education' form for a mature student.

Good luck!

Reply 2

evening sunrise

11

Original post by Barzin

Hello,

I am 43 years old and new in UK; I live in Brighton. I want to study in a physics course in university. I do not have qualifications. I have studied mathematics and physics at High-School long time ago in another country.
The university's Entry requirements are A-Levels in Mathematics and Physics. They also accept Access Course.

My questions are:
1. Access Course or A-Level? Which one is more suitable for my situation?
2. Which colleges or schools have "A-Level course" in physics and maths for adults (Part-time or Evening classes or full-time) in South-East or South-West regions of England (or other regions)? I could not find any in Brighton.

Thanks in advance.

A levels like the access courses tend to be full time.

You will need to check the uni accepts the specific access course you go for.

As a general rule, for hard science A levels seem to be the preferred route, according to the posts by those doing hard science after doing Access.......

There is a student this year who is going to study physics at uni after doing Access to science.

Do not forget you will also need to fullfill the universities GCSE requirements are well. Usually a minimum of English Language grade C or higher, Mathematics grade C or higher (unless you offer A level maths) some Uni's want grade B or higher and maybe more subjects at GCSE too.

Do you know which universities you will apply to ? You can choose up to 5.

Reply 3

edjunkie

15

Try http://www.centralsussex.ac.uk/courses/2777/physics%20as-a%20level

You may find other further education colleges on www.hotcourses.com unfortunately many of the places offering physics A level in your area are private. But Croydon College also offers the course, again during the day. You may find more options in London.

You will find most science a levels are delivered during the day. Very few colleges offer the full range of a levels in the evening any more. An alternative that may be suitable for university entry is certificate of higher education. Birkbeck offer one in Physics and Mathematics. If you go the Access route and secure a university place, I would recommend that you self study the A level syllabus alongside to cover the gaps and put you in a position to keep up your fellow students when you reach university. There is also the Open University.

Good Luck.

(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 4

Barzin

OP

Thanks everyone for your responses.

Reply 5

Ranibizumab

9

You can also study A levels via distance learning online (enabling you to stay employed whilst studying).

I have heard that A levels sometimes prepare you better than Access courses. It will depend on which university you want to apply to. Perhaps e-mail the admissions tutor at your chosen uni directly to get their view on it.

Reply 6

Baked bean

Hi, I have just completed and Access course which helped me gain a place at University, which I start in September. I would recommend that it is the better option as it is designed for the mature student. Also the benefit of it being a years course where A levels are 2 years. You do also however have the option of doing a foundation degree which I believe is also the equivilant, you can get more information about foundation degrees from the universities. Hope this is helpful :smile:

Reply 7

edjunkie

15

A degree with a foundation year can be an alternative to an Access course. Completing a foundation year may offer direct entry to the degree course and be eligible for student finance. A foundation year can be used by someone with the wrong subject level 3 qualification, very low level 3 passes or a mature student with relevant work/life experience. The entry criteria will vary from course to course.

A foundation degree is a 2 year course, it may have lower level 3 requirements than a full degree. It is actually more like a HND. You can study for a further year to complete the fully honours degree.

Unfortunately the naming structure can lead to confusion and misunderstanding.

Reply 8

Chocolate teapot

2

I just finished an Access to Science course and am going to be doing Physics at KCL in September. They wanted Distinctions in all Maths and Physics modules. On top of the modules needed for King's, I took extra modules of Physics and Maths and even with those the course didn't seem as challenging as I thought it would be. When I think of the amount of work I could have skipped without falling short of KCL's entry requirements, I do wonder if I could have gone to a better uni had I done A-levels instead.

Reply 9

edjunkie

15

Original post by Chocolate teapot

I just finished an Access to Science course and am going to be doing Physics at KCL in September. They wanted Distinctions in all Maths and Physics modules. On top of the modules needed for King's, I took extra modules of Physics and Maths and even with those the course didn't seem as challenging as I thought it would be. When I think of the amount of work I could have skipped without falling short of KCL's entry requirements, I do wonder if I could have gone to a better uni had I done A-levels instead.

KCL is a good university! Maybe for Physics you could have considered Imperial, but you would have needed A levels as they are not keen on Access. You must have had reasons for choosing to do an Access course, so wondering about if A levels might have given you more choice is pointless.

Be happy that you have secured your place and be prepared for a significant amount of work to keep up.

Reply 10

Mister Dead

15

Original post by Barzin

Hello,

I am 43 years old and new in UK; I live in Brighton. I want to study in a physics course in university. I do not have qualifications. I have studied mathematics and physics at High-School long time ago in another country.
The university's Entry requirements are A-Levels in Mathematics and Physics. They also accept Access Course.

My questions are:
1. Access Course or A-Level? Which one is more suitable for my situation?
2. Which colleges or schools have "A-Level course" in physics and maths for adults (Part-time or Evening classes or full-time) in South-East or South-West regions of England (or other regions)? I could not find any in Brighton.

Thanks in advance.

Hi there,

I did an access to science course in Portsmouth the year before last (2010/11) and have just finished my first year at Leeds.

My experience is that my access course (physics/biology/chemistry/further chemistry - I sat an extra module, this is why there are four ) was a successful way for me to get into a decent University quickly - and I rejected offers from Lancaster/Southampton/UEA, so I got in fairly comfortably.

My girlfriend did the same course (but without further chemistry) and was accepted onto University of Nottingham's foundation year for physics. The reason she did foundation year also was because she did not do maths A/Access. This was because originally she planned to do radiography.

However, I have found the first year Uni to be very hard work because the access course was not long enough and consequently fairly shallow in its curriculum. Thankfully my hard work got me through the all the yr1 exams (just, in a couple of cases) and now I have the summer free to bring myself up to speed in skills lacking.

So my advice re. an access course is this:

1) Do maths. Do as much maths as you possibly can and even then, consider applying for a foundation year. It will increase your chance of getting into a uni with a good repuation for physics and it will give you a much better chance of success once you start.

Seriously, consider the foundation year after the access course. I've seen my girlfriends work from her foundation year and that would be really, really tough to go straight into from GCSE.

2) Don't be scared to apply to decent unis. My tutor was very concerned becuause all the institutions I chose were either traditionally decent institutions or ranked quite high for the specific subject. While the very best uni's are likely out of your reach with access, there's absolutely no reason to think you wont get offers from anywhere else.

3) Cover your bases. You don't know how prepared you're going to be to go straight in Yr1 physics. I applied for 3 BSc courses and 2 foundation years. Again, I don't think my tutor advised this (applying foundation after access - this is why I was turned down by 1, she thinks), but it worked out well in my case.

In summary. The access did its job but may not prepare you properly for Yr1 physics.

Good luck

(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 11

jami74

12

Original post by Mister Dead

In summary. The access did its job but may not prepare you properly for Yr1 physics.

I think this sums up access courses pretty accurately. If you expect to use an access course to get into university quickly then you won't be disappointed. If you expect it to prepare you fully to study your degree choice then you might be disappointed.

Mature students: Access Course or A-Level?

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