Are there any accepted Cambridge applicants who had a GCSE resit?

Hey sexy TSRers. Im from Singapore and unfortunately, I have very poor GCE 'O' Levels(GCSE equivalent) results: 5 B3s, 1 A2, 1 C6, 1 D7. If i retake, Im most likely going to go over to UK after my National Service to take GCSE UK which is supposedly easier(anyway that's not the main point).

So the $1 million question is.. Should I retake my GCSE or just move on to A Levels? And how do top unis including Cambridge view such applicants?

Time is not a worrying issue, ceteris paribus.

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Reply 1

Academix

Valour

What's with the Latin? To be perfectly honest, maybe you are not the person for Cambridge with those grades? If you wish to retake them then go for it, but perhaps it's better just to move on. Good luck whatever your decision!

Reply 2

Valour

Academix

Well, actually if you were to convert my O Levels results to GCSE results, I think it would be at least 1 to 2 grades up for each subject considering the grade inflation in UK compared to Singapore/Hong Kong but I don't think Cambridge will have any of those excuses :yep:

Not only is Singapore's O Levels harder than GCSE but its only based on one exam and is not modular-based and while in GCSE, you can even retake your modules! :yep:

Reply 3

hobnob

Valour

GCSEs are exams meant to be taken when you're about 15. Judging by what you've said in your other posts, you're probably closer to 18, so if you take them now, you may well ace them, but what exactly would that prove? That you're significantly cleverer than the average 15-year-old? :confused:

Reply 4

Valour

hobnob

Hmm true

Is there no other solution? I wouldn't want to go to UK all the way to do my A-Levels and realize that I cant get into a top university cause of my GCSE :frown:

Reply 5

Zhen Lin

Why not take Singaporean A levels?

Reply 6

The West Wing

Valour

Not only is Singapore's O Levels harder than GCSE but its only based on one exam and is not modular-based and while in GCSE, you can even retake your modules! :yep:

None of my GCSEs were modular, I took them all at the end of the year :confused:

Reply 7

Valour

Zhen Lin

Why not take Singaporean A levels?

I took the wrong A Levels subjects. There's no way out for me to change my subjects.

Reply 8

hobnob

Valour

Hmm true

Is there no other solution? I wouldn't want to go to UK all the way to do my A-Levels and realize that I cant get into a top university cause of my GCSE :frown:

Have you tried asking universities whether they'd actually treat your international O-levels as GCSE equivalents or whether they would just look at your A-level results?

I'd say the best solution would be to apply, try to do as well as possible on all other parts of your application and then simply hope for the best.

Reply 9

The_Goose

tbh international applicants are looked at much more favorably anyway. Leeds send out typical UK offer for law AAA typical International offer BBB. They want you, you pay higher fees, cynical but true

Reply 10

Valour

Alright, well I started this thread because of the controversial GCSE issue when applying to top UK unis. If I go to the UK, I would most likely aim for the top unis (Cambridge, LSE, UCL , ICL, KCL) as it's my parents money after all(hope you guys understand what i mean.. not trying to look down on other universities). I intend to go over to the UK to take the UK A Levels there with the right subject combination (im currently taking A Levels now but with the wrong subjects but I will still finish it anyway). So I was considering taking GCSE as well before UK A Levels. My UCAS form will most probably look like this:

GCE O Levels (Singapore)
GCE A Levels (Singapore)
GCSE (UK)
GCE A Levels (UK)

And yeah I have thought about quitting the current GCE A Levels in Singapore to make my UCAS form less complicated since I'm going over to take the UK version anyway. However, my parents wont allow because they feel I should complete my current A Levels in case some financial stuff crop up, I will still be able to go to the local universities.

I apologize if I have offended fellow TSRers. I may seem like insulting the other oustanding Cambridge applicants but I really feel that the system here vs the uk one is much much harder. Therefore, I believe that if I were to take the GCSE over there, I would be able to do well (with effort of course). But again, I'm worried it may make me look like a fool with 4 GCE exams in total LOL.

I wouldnt want to be rejected by all 5 universities after finishing my GCSE and GCE A Levels just because i took too many exams.

Reply 11

Loo

hobnob

He's not 18 if he has O-levels!

He must be a mature student
No person under the age of like 50 has O-Levels anymore

Reply 12

hobnob

Loo

He's not 18 if he has O-levels!

He must be a mature student
No person under the age of like 50 has O-Levels anymore

He's an international. They're still called "O-levels" in some countries as far as I know.

Reply 13

Loo

hobnob

He's an international. They're still called "O-levels" in some countries as far as I know.

I still think he's 50 :3

Reply 14

Good bloke

Loo

He's not 18 if he has O-levels!

He must be a mature student
No person under the age of like 50 has O-Levels anymore

Not true. 1987 was the last year you could get an O level, so a 36-year old could have O levels in the UK.

Reply 15

Loo

Good bloke

Not true. 1987 was the last year you could get an O level, so a 36-year old could have O levels in the UK.

Oh I'm so sorry, 36 and 50 are just so drastically far apart in terms of age, what was I thinking?!

Reply 16

econ-hec

yes, only 14 YEARS! :lolwut:

Reply 17

faber niger

Academix

Don't be so patronising (and, frankly, ignorant). That's a much worse misdemeanour than him using Latin.

Reply 18

Good bloke

Loo

Oh I'm so sorry, 36 and 50 are just so drastically far apart in terms of age, what was I thinking?!

When you get to fifty you may think differently. :rolleyes:

Reply 19

Valour

Let's not get into a fight here :smile:

Thanks for the replies guys and keep it coming in :o:

I understand where you guys are coming from. My results suggest that Im not a Cambridge type of applicant but I would like to give myself a chance :yep: