For me, achieving a 2:1 is looking pretty much impossible - how impossible?

Extremely hard. I take it you have been getting 2:2's up to now? To jump two grades overnight is not going to be easy at all.

My year abroad was a low third, and second year a low 2:2. Being honest, I have consistently put very little work in, only cramming or rushing essays at the last minute. The highest mark I've ever received for an essay is 71%, and I could have spent a fair bit more time on it. So realistically I think with luck and extreme dedication I'd possibly be capable of a high 2:1 or even a 71% for the year overall as that is the major component that was missing from my work before, but even if I were capable of maintaining that consistent level of dedication, it does not guarantee anything. It would also mean sacrificing other areas of my life.

And a 74% really is high. Especially as both my subjects can be quite dependent on things going right (for example the interpreting oral exam in French).

Honestly, my experience of people trying to turn things around in their last year hasn't been hugely positive. Often they've just built up years worth of bad habits in terms of their academic work (usually things like you've described: doing work last-minute, not devoting the time to reading, etc.), and these habits are very hard to break, especially in the face of the stresses and pressure of final year.

However, this is not to say that it's impossible, but you would have to be both extremely disciplined and extremely organised, to make sure you give your academic work the kind of time and attention it deserves. Many of my colleagues in final year announced their intention of knuckling down and acing the year, but the discipline disintegrated a few weeks in, largely due to the bad habits they'd developed! So you should know that it won't be easy, but if you're truly determined then you should go for it.

Honestly, my experience of people trying to turn things around in their last year hasn't been hugely positive. Often they've just built up years worth of bad habits in terms of their academic work (usually things like you've described: doing work last-minute, not devoting the time to reading, etc.), and these habits are very hard to break, especially in the face of the stresses and pressure of final year.

However, this is not to say that it's impossible, but you would have to be both extremely disciplined and extremely organised, to make sure you give your academic work the kind of time and attention it deserves. Many of my colleagues in final year announced their intention of knuckling down and acing the year, but the discipline disintegrated a few weeks in, largely due to the bad habits they'd developed! So you should know that it won't be easy, but if you're truly determined then you should go for it.

Thanks for your answers. The problem is not just getting a first at 70% - but that it has to be 74 which is very difficult to obtain in one piece of work, let alone across the board!

I'm absolutely positive I can be determined this year. It's week 4 and I've already gone back to a few bad habits but I've clearly recognised them and I'm certain I can break them and pull through. I've said it before and it hasn't happened, but I am determined. Even just receiving a good overall mark for the year would at least restore my confidence in my ability to commit, work hard, get interested in something, even if I only come out with a 2:2. And also, if only just to achieve a high 2:2 rather than a low one...