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One crucial piece of advice you'd give to someone starting their A-levels

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Reply 740

LemonRice

Ensure before you start A-levels you get folders, note paper and a hole punch!

Reply 741

mrandmr.crane

Try to get as high grades/UMS as you can in the first year because it seems to take the pressure off massively for the second year! ...but also try not to panic - you know, relax and stuff.

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 742

ralts

If you are stupid enough to take 2 coursework-only subjects and 1 80% coursework subject (like me...), make sure you do some work every day, else it's going to creep up on you and possibly punch you in the face.

Reply 743

imjustrach

The number one Golden Rule of A Levels.....Do the damn work!

Also do not expect to gain respect from 2nd years who overhear you in the Library saying 'Oh I got an A* at GCSE, I'll be fine' - you don't look smart you look idiotic.

Reply 744

cuckoo99

May the odds be ever in your favor is all i can say...

Reply 745

Marshmallow2

Organisation is the key to success!

This will ensure you keep to deadlines and revise throughout the year; not just last minute Easter/Whitsun holiday revision!

Reply 746

Ndella

Do work from DAY 1. Please try I understand what you're studying as you go along so you're not learning completely alien concepts come exam time. So no leaving things to the last minute - it is very stressful.

Reply 747

JoeFo

Try and get the best grades possible in year 12 so when you're in year 13 and your motivation goes, you can do the bare minimum to get the A you need for university in the subject you grew to hate.

Reply 748

Niamhmca

Do all your work, if you're given pastpaper booklets do them all and be prepared to work throughout the year! I'm in the middle of my AS exams and regretting only starting to study at Easter!

'May the grade boundaries be ever in your favour'

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 749

Order 66

Don't overestimate yourself.

Just because you were good at something at GCSE, does not always automatically mean you'll be good at it at A-Level. Sometimes it does, but sometimes it doesn't. I learnt this the hard way. :frown:

Reply 750

ArsenalWenger

Original post by JoeFo

Try and get the best grades possible in year 12 so when you're in year 13 and your motivation goes, you can do the bare minimum to get the A you need for university in the subject you grew to hate.

This is spot on. I lost motivation for Law in A2 and skived to play snooker more often than not but my high A in AS meant I achieved an A overall.

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Reply 751

toonervoustotalk

Start working from DAY 1 and review your notes every weekend and answer queations on topics every so often and the free periods in your timetable use them to study.
I regret not doing this and just cramming at the last minute.

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Reply 752

jwf13

Don't do subjects just because you did well in them at GCSE! A-Levels are different and I know many (including myself) who got very high A*s in some subjects and are now struggling for C grades. Do things you enjoy and check the syllabus, too, as some of the content is really different from GCSE.

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Reply 753

Dellis96

Revise lots, work lots, and say goodbye to your social life if you're doing any genuinely difficult and highly sought-after A Level like physics.

Reply 754

TheTechN1304

organisation and continuous hard work! i did quite well in my GCSES and so when AS' started I slacked off quite a bit, as I was gonig from 12 subjects to 4 and had so many free periods i didn't know what to do with them. although i still think this year has gone well for me, had I actually bothered revisng throughout the year, I wouldn't have found myself cramming during study leave for over 12hrs a day, and I would've saved myself so much stress.

Reply 755

Hannie Rose

I'm just finishing year 12 and as obvious as it sounds, my biggest piece of advice would be to make sure your attendance is as high as possible. If you are off for a substantial amount of time, arrange for work to be sent home and get it done. The amount of work you miss when having a day off is much more than at GCSE level and it can be very hard to find time to catch up. It can also really knock your confidence when you come back after a fair amount of time off and realise that you haven't got a clue what's going on in your lessons. It cab be a pain as well when you come to revise and realise that you never did catch up on a certain topic after being absent.

Also don't try and get by on the bare minimum. I will admit that I've used my private study time this year for getting homework done but not much else. But now I'm beginning to realise that I could have left the HOMEwork for HOME and done more independent study at school. I could have for example practiced past questions for maths, and learnt vocab and practiced writing essays and things for French and German, which would probably have helped me much more with exams.

Reply 756

Old_Simon

The post above is a good one. Time is our most important asset. Keep working in private study periods (avoid the obvious distractions).

Reply 757

mabinogion

If you don't understand something get a friend or a teacher to explain it to you immediately! Or you might find yourself trying to teach it to yourself months later without a clue :smile:

Reply 758

The Empire Odyssey

I think one of the major ones that I would have told myself is to make sure you have fun, but not too much fun. If you know you're going into town with some friends for some coffee and to pick your lunch (at 2nd period instead of at lunch time because you think it's going to rain?) but you do know you've got an essay you haven't done in for 5th period... Here is what you do: you give your money to your friend(s) that are going, you stay behind, look after their bags and get writing on that essay and tell them to meet you in the library!

You do need to know the work/life balance at sixth form which is hard at first, because you've been told you must keep up the work at all times and it will get overbearing and etc (which is true) but don't feel guilty if you are planning to go to the cinema on Saturday. If you know this is happening, then make sure you do most/all of your homework during the week prior to that Saturday. (Because let us all be honest: no one likes or does any school work on Sunday and if it is, it's just copying h/w you asked your friend to send a photo of). Doing your own homework helps you understand what you are learning and it also helps you retain the information if you look into it deeper. Trust me when you're given the homework and you're like "omg, this is so pointless such a waste of my life"... 8 months later you'll be wishing you had done it when it's crucial to revision!

So basically, have fun, but not too much fun!

Reply 759

limitlesslove

I am in A2 now and one precaution i would take is to make sure you do your research on Universities and courses in your free time in AS as much as possible and especially over summer. A2 gets harder especially if you do 4 or more. On top of that you have Ucas applicatoon and prefect duties and repeats if you need them. Try to make A2 as easy as posible by workung very hard at As as it is only going to get harder...sirry for the negativity but just telling younfrom experienve. I relaxed at As too much thinkingbhow hlorious these frees were. Dont fall in that trap.