Realistic university choices?

username1197069

Hey

so I achieved ABBBB at AS and am now predicted AAB and A in EPQ and A in general studies as well. I want to study Ancient History and Archaeology at uni and at the moment my choices are:
•Nottingham ABB
•Newcastle ABB/BBB (I'm a partner college)
•Durham AAA
•Warwick AAB
•Leicester ABB/BBB

So what do you think of my choices ? Should I bother applying to Durham or not ? Thanks :smile:

Reply 1

Spellstheend

Original post by NaomiMG

Hey

If I were you I would probably apply for Durham, seeing as the other choices all match or are below your predictions, so you should safely get at least one of those offers.
Obviously though if you were to apply, get an offer then firm Durham you'd have to realistically on track for AAA to actually meet the offer and take up the place.

What are your GCSEs?

Reply 2

roflcakes1

The general rule at my school is that you should apply for at least 1 with grade requirements above your predicted grades, 1 below your predicted grades, and 2 on your predicted grades. I think you could apply for universities with higher grade requirements if you really wanted (i.e. swap a ABB/BBB course for an AAB - even one AAA if you wanted). Especially with your A in EPQ, which sometimes can make universities give you an offer even if your grades are below your requirements. Obviously don't apply to universities you don't like just because they have higher requirements, but also don't sell yourself short if there is a course you want to apply for but aren't sure about whether you can meet the grades.

Reply 3

la95

Original post by NaomiMG

Hey

Your choices seem quite sensible. Your predictions meet the requirements for all but one of the universities on your list (Durham), which is a good sign. With regards to Durham, it's completely up to you, and at the end of the day it's only one risky choice. Having said that, neither your AS grades nor your predictions meet their entry requirements - if you're particularly keen to go there and think you could (realistically!) achieve AAA, perhaps you could ask your tutor to predict AAA? They may give an offer if you apply with AAB predictions, but I'd say it's quite unlikely and the offer is likely to be AAA irrespective of your predictions. Perhaps you could create a thread in the Durham University or history forums to see if anybody on here applied for ancient history and archaeology or similar course last year? If they did, you could ask about their academic profile to see if anyone managed to get an offer with less than AAA.

Please bear in mind that I'm not a history/archaeology applicant and have no experience with such applications, so this is just general advice. Hopefully you'll receive some more specialised responses. When all is said and done, where you apply is entirely your choice - if you're very keen to go to Durham and don't mind potentially sacrificing one of your five choices, it might be worth applying.

What were your GCSE grades?

Reply 4

username1197069

Original post by Spellstheend

8as and 2bs

Reply 5

la95

Original post by NaomiMG

8as and 2bs

Your GCSEs are very good, showing that you're an able student. As I said above, if you're comfortable with using up one of your choices for a risky application, I see no reason as to why you shouldn't apply, especially seeing as your other choices are very sensible. You never know - you may well get an offer! :biggrin:

Try to make sure all other areas of your application - personal statement, extracurriculars, etc. - are the best they can be in order to maximise your chances of an offer.

Reply 6

username1197069

Original post by la95

Try to make sure all other areas of your application - personal statement, extracurriculars, etc. - are the best they can be in order to maximise your chances of an offer.

Cheers

I think I'm going too - I'm really happy with my personal statement

Reply 7

returnmigrant

Be aware that usually 'grade ranges' like AAB-BBB usually means the lower grade set is for 'contextual offers' (people from disadvantaged backgrounds/mature students etc) and all standard offers are at the higher range.

I suggest you check with Newcastle and Leicester what the criteria actually is for the lower offers.