Chances of getting into King’s College London? - GCSE RESULTS DAY

I got my GCSE results and they were awful. I got:

English Language - 8
English Literature - 7
Mathematics - 4
Biology - 5
Physics - 4
Chemistry - 4
History - 8
RE - 8
ICT - C

I’m absolutely gutted. I wanted to study English at King’s College London but I don’t think I have any chance whatsoever. Please can you be brutally honest about my chances of getting in. Is it likely if I get 3 A*s at A level in essay based subjects?

Reply 1

teilchen

15

Original post by anonymous11123xo

I got my GCSE results and they were awful. I got:

English Language - 8
English Literature - 7
Mathematics - 4
Biology - 5
Physics - 4
Chemistry - 4
History - 8
RE - 8
ICT - C

I’m absolutely gutted. I wanted to study English at King’s College London but I don’t think I have any chance whatsoever. Please can you be brutally honest about my chances of getting in. Is it likely if I get 3 A*s at A level in essay based subjects?

First off your results arn't awful - especially your essay ones are really good even if your science maths ect. arnt that great - also your a-level predicted grades are much more important in applying to uni so if you work hard in year 12 to achieve the required grades which i doubt would be higher than A*AA for any humanities subject then you should be fine - as long as you put the work into a-levels I dont see why you wouldn't have a chance of getting in. :smile:

Reply 2

lol.yolo

19

I'm not super familiar with English/KCL entry requirements but really don't know what you are worrying/complaining about. as far as I can tell their requirements for English are AAA in A level subjects. Given your GSCEs, if you keep working hard and enjoy the subjects you take, you will get those entry requirements.

You have done very well in English which is a good indication you will manage just fine studying it for A-level, you have also done fantastically in other essay based subjects so I wouldn't be worried about your A-level performance. You passed all your GCSEs so I don't see what is so "awful" about them, although perhaps your expectations for yourself were higher. Unlike what teachers say, GCSEs aren't the be all and end all, welcome to the real world now. (Employers don't give a toss what grades you got and neither do unis)

(edited 4 years ago)

Reply 3

Sinnoh

22

92% of applicants to KCL for English get an offer. As long as your predicted grades meet their typical offer and you don't call the admissions tutor a **** in your personal statement you'll get an offer.
Your GCSEs do not matter in this case. At all. Did you think KCL was some coveted uber-selective institute of the gods or what?

For more info
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6033950

(edited 4 years ago)

Reply 4

username4873676

OP

14

Original post by Sinnoh

92% of applicants to KCL for English get an offer. As long as your predicted grades meet their typical offer and you don't call the admissions tutor a **** in your personal statement you'll get an offer.
Your GCSEs do not matter in this case. At all. Did you think KCL was some coveted uber-selective institute of the gods or what?

For more info
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6033950

My mum and siblings have told me that KCL is an extremely good university and you have to have straight A*s at GCSE and A Level :frown:

Thank you though!

Reply 5

Sinnoh

22

Original post by anonymous11123xo

My mum and siblings have told me that KCL is an extremely good university and you have to have straight A*s at GCSE and A Level :frown:

Thank you though!

Lmao they were completely wrong about grade reqs. It's a good uni no doubt, but "extremely" is a strong word.

Reply 6

username4873676

OP

14

Original post by Sinnoh

Lmao they were completely wrong about grade reqs. It's a good uni no doubt, but "extremely" is a strong word.

Yeah I guess, I think it’s because it’s AAA to get in that they think that. My whole family got A*s in everything so they’re a bit disappointed

Reply 7

HD-

6

Unis don't give a **** about GCSEs unless your doing medicine. They only care about Maths and English Language. Your Maths is bad but since your aiming for English im sure it won't matter nearly as much as you think

Reply 8

DEdEdD

8

As the parent of someone about to start at Kings for English I can congirm you don't need perfect grades. Good grades yes. She had 5A* (incl Wnglish Language and Enish Literature) 3A 2B (incl textiles and one of her A level subjects). She has been given a place with AAB (B in an irrelevant subject she got A* for at GCSE). Her personal statement focused on her passion for English (plays she's seen, books she's read, editing magazine etc) and only briefly mentioned non english extra curriculars.

Reply 9

Anonymous #1

Lmfao work ur ass off at a level... got 5 A*s and 3 As at gcse level but still missed my offer to kings last week bc I got ABC. You have a good chance, a girl in my class got majority Bs and 1 A at gcse and met her AAB conditions even with an ABB prediction, albeit she got A*BC.... Kings is slipping anyways, but you’ll be fine

Reply 10

Anonymous #2

Original post by Anonymous

Lmfao work ur ass off at a level... got 5 A*s and 3 As at gcse level but still missed my offer to kings last week bc I got ABC. You have a good chance, a girl in my class got majority Bs and 1 A at gcse and met her AAB conditions even with an ABB prediction, albeit she got A*BC.... Kings is slipping anyways, but you’ll be fine

What do you mean it's slipping? Its entry tariff has gone up in the past few years. Where does this "It's slipping" stuff come from?

Reply 11

Anonymous #1

Original post by Anonymous

What do you mean it's slipping? Its entry tariff has gone up in the past few years. Where does this "It's slipping" stuff come from?

Higher entry tariff does not necessarily mean the university’s improving

Reply 12

username4873676

OP

14

Original post by Anonymous

Lmfao work ur ass off at a level... got 5 A*s and 3 As at gcse level but still missed my offer to kings last week bc I got ABC. You have a good chance, a girl in my class got majority Bs and 1 A at gcse and met her AAB conditions even with an ABB prediction, albeit she got A*BC.... Kings is slipping anyways, but you’ll be fine

So you reckon if I work my ass off and get three A*s I’ll have a very good chance, even though my grades are terrible?

Reply 13

Anonymous #2

Original post by Anonymous

Higher entry tariff does not necessarily mean the university’s improving

I fail to see what other criteria could be used to assess a university's standing. A higher entry tariff means a higher calibre of student.
What are you referring to when you claim it's slipping?

Reply 14

username4911280

15

Starting English at KCL next month! I got AAA for A Level and mainly Bs and Cs at GCSE.

On the one hand, the fact the 92% of applicants get an offer should make it clear to you that you're absolutely fine and it's easy to get an offer. The bit people tend to forget is that it's all well and good that 92% of people get an offer, but you still need to actually get AAA in your A Levels (and you'll see the number drop a lot lower than 92).

Original post by Anonymous

I fail to see what other criteria could be used to assess a university's standing. A higher entry tariff means a higher calibre of student.
What are you referring to when you claim it's slipping?

Not necessarily. A higher entry tariff means there's more demand, not that they want a higher calibre of student. Oxford's Law undergrad wants AAA. SOAS wants A*AA for Law. Are SOAS students of a higher calibre on average than those from Oxford?

Reply 15

username4911280

15

Original post by anonymous11123xo

So you reckon if I work my ass off and get three A*s I’ll have a very good chance, even though my grades are terrible?

I got into English at KCL with AAA. Calm down. :smile:

Reply 16

Anonymous #1

Original post by anonymous11123xo

So you reckon if I work my ass off and get three A*s I’ll have a very good chance, even though my grades are terrible?

Oh love, if you get 3 A*s at A Level take a gap year and apply to Cambridge... either that or go to Durham, or Warwick, or York, or Exeter.... but definitely not Kings. KCL is amazing for Law and courses allied to medicine, but definitely not literature and linguistics

Reply 17

Anonymous #1

Original post by Anonymous

I fail to see what other criteria could be used to assess a university's standing. A higher entry tariff means a higher calibre of student.
What are you referring to when you claim it's slipping?

London’s attractive, therefore many people apply. KCL is also manageable, people know they stand a chance at an offer.
KCL’s PPE requirements are A*AA, Oxford’s are AAA. But kings’ is obviously not what Oxford’s is.

Reply 18

Anonymous #2

Original post by Anonymous

Oh love, if you get 3 A*s at A Level take a gap year and apply to Cambridge... either that or go to Durham, or Warwick, or York, or Exeter.... but definitely not Kings. KCL is amazing for Law and courses allied to medicine, but definitely not literature and linguistics

Warwick and Exeter are on par with King's for English. Stop giving bad advice, you're just confusing the OP. King's has a number of world-class departments, not just "Law and courses allied to medicine". Its war studies department, for instance, is completely one of a kind and world-leading (one of the best places to do IR). Though this is hardly relevant to the OP I suppose.

In what possible way are any of those universities (apart from Durham, which is better for that subject in particular, hands down) better than King's for English? I will never understand this site's absolute hatred for King's. It's just such a bizarre TSR fad and can have serious potential consequences (particularly when you consider the people asking these questions are impressionable sixth formers). I suspect your posts have dissuaded OP from what is a spectacular uni choice. Additionally, King's is significantly more competitive than Warwick, I'm sorry. I also don't understand TSR's obsession with Warwick as if it's some godly institution, as a previous poster said in relation to King's. Warwick has an offer rate of 82% overall (as a university, not for English). 82% of people who apply to Warwick get offers. King's is at 69%. It is more competitive in aggregate (7th lowest offer rate out of the Russell Group). King's average entry tariff is the exact same as Warwick's overall (171) and higher for English.

3 A*s is hardly a guarantee for Cambridge and taking a gap year hardly seems worth it for something with such a minor chance of occurring.

My advice is always to look at entry tariffs. It tells you where the the hard-working, successful kids are going. What other possible quantifiable measurements would you propose using? York and Warwick are both below King's in terms of what grades enrolled students achieve. Warwick is spectacular at maths, econ and business. The rest of the university is good, but not on the same level. I don't understand how you could possibly consider York superior to King's for English. Durham's better, but at the end of the day the difference is marginal and will have no impact whatsoever.

TSR's marvelous in its aversion to stats and its proclivity for making statements of quality based on random preconceptions pulled out of their bums.

Moreover, this is detracting from the main point of the thread and OP's question. You still haven't exactly explained why you believe it's "slipping". But let's honestly just leave that be.

Original post by _polaroid

Not necessarily. A higher entry tariff means there's more demand, not that they want a higher calibre of student. Oxford's Law undergrad wants AAA. SOAS wants A*AA for Law. Are SOAS students of a higher calibre on average than those from Oxford?

I wasn't referring to entry requirements. I was referring more specifically to the actual achieved UCAS points of offer-holders who met their conditions and enrolled. SOAS may demand A*AA for Law, but the actual achieved grades are significantly lower. There's HESA data available on that. The Complete University Guide uses it in its league table (the only part of the league table worth looking at in my view). SOAS's average entry tariff for law is 156, Oxford's is 216.

Reply 19

username4911280

15

Original post by Anonymous

I was referring more specifically to the actual achieved UCAS points of offer-holders who met their conditions and enrolled. SOAS may demand A*AA for Law, but the actual achieved grades are significantly lower. There's HESA data available on that. The Complete University Guide uses it in its league table (the only part of the league table worth looking at in my view). SOAS's average entry tariff for law is 156, Oxford's is 216.

Ah fair enough, I take my point back then. I didn't know about the HESA data so thank you for pointing that out to me. And is KCL really increasing in tariff points for their intake? Good news for me then. :tongue:

Chances of getting into King’s College London? - GCSE RESULTS DAY

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