Will a masters help employability and make up for my a levels

I study politics and international relations, on track for a high 2-1, im in my final year. I have A Levels in English Lit, History, Politics and core maths, scoring B C C C. I am thinking of doing a masters in business management to enhance my skills and to make me more employable, and to potentially balance out my poor a levels to get into a big 4 in the hope of doing a consultant role.

I have also unlike most students worked consistently throughout my degree, with experience working as a ‘middle man’ for my dads business in his sales to the Middle East and helping with other aspects of the business (and other jobs in retail alongside this).

Unfortunately when I was 17/18 it was during covid on top of a load of other personal issues which happens in life. Hence the a levels but hey ho

Will I be able too do this and will a masters help?

For those that say just get experience, it’s an awful lot harder than it sounds, hence why a masters in a different school may make me stand out.

Reply 1

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

21

Many if not most grad schemes don't filter using A-levels. The ones that do probably will still filter using those even if you have a strong masters result. Therefore, you should just aim for the ones that don't account for them and do well in your degree.

Reply 2

Joseph_40

OP

2

Original post by artful_lounger

Many if not most grad schemes don't filter using A-levels. The ones that do probably will still filter using those even if you have a strong masters result. Therefore, you should just aim for the ones that don't account for them and do well in your degree.

A masters as well at a better uni and in a different school may give me an edge in the process still?

Reply 3

Devildisaster

13

Not sure if doing a masters will help, but it definitely won’t harm your chances, if the company do have set A level requirements, then it may be best not to apply if you don’t meet the requirements

Original post by Joseph_40

A masters as well at a better uni and in a different school may give me an edge in the process still?

I doubt it will help more than a carefully presented description of the work you did in the family business and your other experience. Much better value to get into employment and consider an MBA in 5 years time.

Reply 5

Joseph_40

OP

2

Original post by threeportdrift

I doubt it will help more than a carefully presented description of the work you did in the family business and your other experience. Much better value to get into employment and consider an MBA in 5 years time.

In the grand scheme of things, will my a levels still restrict me in let’s say 5 or so years time ? Say I did get experience by then and a masters, would they still hold me back in applications ? They aren’t amazing I know, but are still in 3 well regarded subjects

Original post by Joseph_40

In the grand scheme of things, will my a levels still restrict me in let’s say 5 or so years time ? Say I did get experience by then and a masters, would they still hold me back in applications ? They aren’t amazing I know, but are still in 3 well regarded subjects

No, everyone got rubbish/over-inflated A levels over the last few years. Employers are just about giving up on using them at all. Those few that do use A levels, do so to evidence a trajectory and there's nothing you can do post Sixth form to recover that for those companies. You have to deal with grades, experience, institutions, etc as they are, and draw out the positives.

Reply 7

Joseph_40

OP

2

Original post by threeportdrift

No, everyone got rubbish/over-inflated A levels over the last few years. Employers are just about giving up on using them at all. Those few that do use A levels, do so to evidence a trajectory and there's nothing you can do post Sixth form to recover that for those companies. You have to deal with grades, experience, institutions, etc as they are, and draw out the positives.

Thank you. I suppose as well after years of experience and other qualifications that in some years time, I can take that route into a big 4 rather than immediately getting into one.

I hear horror stories as well from graduates going straight into them that have never worked before and haven’t been able to progress as they would have liked.

Original post by Joseph_40

I hear horror stories as well from graduates going straight into them that have never worked before and haven’t been able to progress as they would have liked.

Hmm, I'm afraid that's because they haven't successfully adapted to the workplace environment and simply aren't cutting it. It's a competition, and if you aren't advancing, you aren't doing it right. It's nothing to do with your A levels taken when you were 18, now you are 23, 24, 25 etc.

Reply 9

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by Joseph_40

A masters as well at a better uni and in a different school may give me an edge in the process still?

As explained above, I doubt it. The firms that filter based on A-levels don't stop filtering because you have a masters degree.

Original post by Joseph_40

In the grand scheme of things, will my a levels still restrict me in let’s say 5 or so years time ? Say I did get experience by then and a masters, would they still hold me back in applications ? They aren’t amazing I know, but are still in 3 well regarded subjects

They aren't going to restrict you even immediately if you, to be perfectly blunt, pull your head out of your ass and get over this chip on your shoulder about your A-levels.

Original post by Joseph_40

Thank you. I suppose as well after years of experience and other qualifications that in some years time, I can take that route into a big 4 rather than immediately getting into one.

I hear horror stories as well from graduates going straight into them that have never worked before and haven’t been able to progress as they would have liked.

You can go directly in with them, which you would know if you had actually done your research about what they look for in their graduate scheme rather than just developing a complex about your A-level results. EY and PwC don't filter by A-levels as I understand, and Deloitte and KPMG just have UCAS Tariff point requirements rather than grade requirements to allow more flexibility (although you may not reach those anyway, you can just not apply to those two...). Although KPMG says they don't outright filter based on UCAS Tariff and Deloitte say they will consider those who are slightly below the UCAS Tariff level if they otherwise meet requirements.

Just go and get your degree. Frankly by the time you finish your degree there's a very good chance, as noted above, they will have scrapped their A-level or UCAS Tariff requirements entirely even at the latter two.

Reply 10

SoonToBeExpat

16

If you can afford to climb the educational ladder, it's best doing. Holding a Master's is becoming the norm for many students across Europe which might consequently become the new standard for future graduate jobs. Also best to do one at a time when you're still familiar with full time study.

Reply 11

ajj2000

20

Check which firms filter using a levels for the consulting schemes you are looking at. Things are changing a lot -there is a much lower focus on A level grades than 5 years ago. However - if A level requirements are strict for grad scheme entry doing a masters is very unlikely to help if you don't have the grades.

Will a masters help employability and make up for my a levels

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