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I feel like I failed educationally and need a clear sense of direction and advice

This is going to be quite long, I apologise but it will all make sense. (sorry if there are any spelling mistakes)

So I didn't do as well on my GCSEs as I wanted to and am a little disappointed, my grades were the following;
8,7,7,7,7,7,6,6,6,6/5

I am particularly disappointed because usually I always got 9's in some of my mocks but I underperformed drastically in my GCSEs due to a couple circumstances (eg. My maths teacher used to skip grade 7-9 questions and just tell us to focus on just getting a 5 even though I was in second set. I ended up revising all the content she skipped too late and sadly got a 6 with only a couple marks away from a 7)

I know this is my fault and I should have just focused on revision earlier and outside school but there is no point of me dwelling on my GCSEs because I can't change them anyway. I just need solid advice because I really don't know what to do anymore and I feel a little frustrated.

My current a levels are Economics, Maths and English literature (my college still allowed me to do A-level maths after giving me a little test, I just need to attend a mandatory maths workshop)

My goal is to get mostly A* and A in my A levels and epq, I am also doing extracurricular like public speaking which carry UCAS points. I have been staying on top of my revision.

I always wanted to study Economics/Accounting/Finance at a top uni somewhere in the Uk, US or Canada (not Oxford or Cambridge, but still prestigious) but I'm not sure how sustainable of a goal that is considering my GCSE grades. Is there anything I can do to leverage my GCSEs? I thought of revising GCSE maths during the summer and retaking it next November, taking on AS further maths in year 13, and doing banking work experience during the summer but I'm not sure if I will even still stand a chance.

The reason I wanted to go to pretogiouse university is because I feel like it will give me better connections when entering the industry I want to work in and employers might take me more seriously I guess.

Does anyone have any solid advice to give me? Is there anyone that has been in a similar position and got into a good uni that can give a personal account and also give me some hope?

Thank you guys :smile:

(edited 7 months ago)

Reply 1

JeremyN

I feel that you should focus on excelling in your A-levels, extracurriculars, and EPQ. Seek banking internships, and consider retaking GCSE Maths if it's crucial for your chosen field. Many universities weigh A-levels more heavily than GCSEs, so strong A-level performance can still open doors. Your determination and efforts can help you reach your university and career goals.

Reply 2

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

Most unis aren't especially fussed about GCSEs, and also most unis consider 8 and 9 grades equally as equivalent to the old A* grade. You still have very good GCSE grades and they won't really be a barrier for anywhere in the UK except for some courses at Oxford or LSE (also some medical schools but as you don't meet the A-level subject requirements for those and aren't intending to pursue that, it's just for reference for others). Probably more of a barrier for highly ranked US colleges (possibly also Canada but less familiar with those) as they consider your overall grade profile through both GCSE and A-levels.

Note that most "top" universities in the UK do not use the UCAS Tariff. They will just set offers based on A-level grades. Also note that even those which do use the UCAS Tariff may not always accept all qualifications offering tariff points. So you shouldn't do something just for the UCAS Tariff points - if it's something you wanted to do otherwise and happens to also have UCAS Tariff points attached then that's fine but don't do it purely for the tariff points. Don't think it's something US colleges are aware of at all.

Equally note that many UK universities are not especially focused on "extracurriculars" in general, and only a few are really particularly interested in so-called "supercurriculars" which are (academic) extracurriculars related to the subject you are applying to. For the vast majority including "top" universities like UCL, you are usually absolutely fine just applying with good grades and having done relevant wider reading around your proposed subject area. Note however US universities do like "generalist" extracurricular activities, although they generally want to see you have done them consistently over a longer period of time (e.g. not just a year) and that you have taken on leadership roles within those and also distinguished yourself both in the activity and as a leader within it.

Note that if your aim is to go into investment banking or management consulting (really the main areas where going to a "prestigious" universities counts, and I'd note even then it's not just what is generally considered prestigious but whether it's one of their target universities or not), your degree subject is not important and you can just as well go into those areas with a degree in e.g. classics, chemistry, anthropology, etc, as with a business/finance related course or economics course.