Year 12s: what will be the first way you research your future options? >>

Really need help.

Afternoon people, after hours of scouring through this website I didn't find what I needed so I thought it would be better if I write up a post explaining the problem I am in.

I just completed my A-Levels, recived my results last week which really surprised me. The subjects I took were:
-Biology (D)
-Chemistry (D)
-Economics (C)

Now to say the least, I was very very disappointed with those results. I worked very hard but I guess exam technique let me down!

The problem I now face, is that I want to do Economics at university. I went through clearing and I managed to secure a place at Greenwich. However, I am not sure if I would like to go to Greenwich as it is ranked very low for Economics. Additionally, I don't feel like it is a good idea for the future (when applying for a job) to have poor A-Levels and gone to a "poor" university.
Furthermore I heard that employers look at the degree, the university and your academic grades/

The question I would like to ask is would it be better if I took a gap year and re-sat some modules to push my grades up OR should I grasp this opportunity and go ahead with it?

I would be very grateful for all responses. I genuinely have no idea what to do and I am very worried.

Thank you

Reply 1

Laura2468

If you worked very hard but still got those results then maybe Grenwich is where you should go, as a more competitive uni will have a harder syllabus. There's no point resitting loads to get them up, only to struggle at uni. Exam technique is necessary at uni too. What do your teachers think? It's also worth noting that employers look a LOT at extra curriculars, such as an internship in the summer. If your a hard worker ( and so have done summer placements etc) then I think you'd get a job.

Also, what would you do on your gap year? Is this something you've always wanted to do/ go? if yes follow your dreams but if not are you just going to resit? It needs to be productive, maybe you could get an internship or even do one or two economics modules though the OU. A uni near you might let you assist an economics researcher for experience.

Do what feels right for you, also, just to be clear I don't know much about ecconomics as a subject, and these comments were more general (I'm a second year medic).

Reply 2

Fatema27

I would suggest looking into universities that offer a foundation year into economics. A foundation year has a more lenient grading requirement and doing a foundation year will let you figure out whether doing this degree and ending up in this field is really for you or not...something like testing the waters.

If not, you can choose to resit your A-levels and then apply to a university of a 'higher' rank. To be honest, SOME highly ranked universities tend to reject applicants who have re-sat their exams because they want applicants who have been able to achieve good if not excellent grades from their first trial.

And then again, the idea of companies who hire students from higher ranked universities is just one criteria that is looked at and not at all the major one. Your good degree classification, experience, placements that you have been part of, volunteering and extra skills that you can add to your C.V besides the pretty name of a highly ranked university is what also matters. You can go to one of the best universities and still be a complete knob that nobody wants to hire. These days, a good degree classification, let alone studying at a good university is a minor concern to most prospective employers. Its all the extra bits that they want. I honestly don't mean to put any pressure on you.

I quote a wise person that I know, 'If you are meant to shine, you will shine wherever you are'. If you wish to be successful in your career and life, you will work hard and do whatever is necessary to achieve that. You could be in the best university and fail horribly or you can still be in a 'low' ranked university and pass exceptionally with flying colors, of course backed up with hard work and determination which goes for any case.

I wish you all the best! :smile:

Reply 3

p.formanko

hey - I haven't read what the others have posted but I know economics at 'higher' or more prestigious universities is EXTREMELY competitive. UCL/Oxbridge on average have 9 or 10 applicants per place.

Whats more is that a lot of more prestigious universities ask for an A-level in maths, purely because economics at uni can get really mathematical AND they need a way of decreasing the amount of people who apply.

eg, my friend wants to apply for Geography and Economics at UCL but even for that, his offer is A*AA and the A* must be in maths.

Unless you're willing to re-learn all the stuff you've learnt, PLUS maths too, I'd say accept a place at Greenwich and then first chance you get, go to their Career's Department and make a massive start on searching for work experience, so that you're ahead of the game and don't get left behind.

Hope this helps and good luck :smile:

Reply 4

parentlurker

if you struggle with exam technique do you really want to go to university and rack up large debts anyway? You could get a job, start earning and if you feel later that you need a degree then go to university as a mature student.

If you decide to reist you'dned to be confident that you could do a lot better and the lack of maths would be a problem anyway.

Reply 5

RayMasterio

Wow these responses have been fantastic help. Thank you very much, genuinely, from the bottom of my heart.

The really worrying thing is that I feel like my A-Levels will still be a huge disadvantage even with my work experience & internships etc.

I wasn't planning on applying to very ambitious universities like Oxbridge because I don't have a Maths A-Level. I was planning to go for the middle-ish universities.

Another question, if I do re-sit how will I apply through UCAS? What's the process and how will I explain the situation- Will I need to?

Original post by Laura2468

(I'm a second year medic).

I originally planned to do medicine, but obviously it never worked out :frown:

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 6

parentlurker

Original post by RayMasterio

Another question, if I do re-sit how will I apply through UCAS? What's the process and how will I explain the situation- Will I need to?

I originally planned to do medicine, but obviously it never worked out :frown:

What are you hoping to do after university? You might well find it better to take a job or an apprenticeship now. I used to interview for jobs and after a few years in employment your A levels matter very little. A degree makes a difference but unless it's a job like medicine where you need a specific degree employers are still going to be more interested in your employment history.