A* at A level question thread

Discussion for A-Level students and for those choosing their A-Level subjects.

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  1. JayDay92's Avatar
    • Exalted Member
    • Location: London
    • Posts: 322
    Re: To a* A levels, or not to a* A levels?
    Cambridge are using the A*. Their entry req. stands at A*AA at the moment which i don't think is monumentally difficult to achieve
  2. vahik92's Avatar
    • Exalted and Worshipped Member
    • Location: London
    • Posts: 1,056
    A* requirements for Further Maths
    Hi, I am doing A level maths and further maths.here are the modules i am taking.

    C1, C2, C3 and C4 for A level maths
    FP1, FP2, FP3 for further maths

    and 5 more application modules to get 12 modules overall.

    For a level maths i know I need 90%+ in C3 and C4 , but I dont know about further maths. Can anyone help please?

    and also, I am doing 5 application modules which can count towards both maths A levels that I am doing, how do they decide which A level module to count each module as?

    I am saying this because I might have 90% average in maths and 80% average in further maths - so for example 70% in application modules for maths would give me an A whilst for further maths a B... is it up to us to decide which module to use for each A level?

    thank you.
  3. blueJ-'s Avatar
    • Adored and Respected Member
    • Posts: 424
    Re: A* requirements for Further Maths
    get over 90% over your further maths modules;

    i.e M2 S2 FP2, these may not include D1 S1 M1 FP1, other than that i think it's okay
  4. AndersonsBentFoot's Avatar
    • Vengeful, Imperial Overlord of The Student Room
    • Location: london
    • Posts: 3,630
    Re: A* requirements for Further Maths
    For 1st year of core you oonly need 80% average and for second year you need 90% average for C3 and C4. Do you need 90% average in all FP modules?
  5. thetopnotch's Avatar
    • TSR Demigod
    • Posts: 7,341
    Re: A* requirements for Further Maths
    (Original post by vahik92)
    Hi, I am doing A level maths and further maths.here are the modules i am taking.

    C1, C2, C3 and C4 for A level maths
    FP1, FP2, FP3 for further maths

    and 5 more application modules to get 12 modules overall.

    For a level maths i know I need 90%+ in C3 and C4 , but I dont know about further maths. Can anyone help please?

    and also, I am doing 5 application modules which can count towards both maths A levels that I am doing, how do they decide which A level module to count each module as?

    I am saying this because I might have 90% average in maths and 80% average in further maths - so for example 70% in application modules for maths would give me an A whilst for further maths a B... is it up to us to decide which module to use for each A level?

    thank you.
    For Further Maths you need to get over 90% average in the 3 A2 modules which are:

    FP2 and FP3 and all the applied units not inluding the first in each series i.e. M2, M3, M4, M5, S2, S3, S4, D2

    It should be the same system as before where the exam board will decide to give you the best mark for the Maths A Level first before putting the rest of the units in FM.

    edit: taken from here: http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/wiki...ths_A-level.3F
    Last edited by thetopnotch; 17-10-2009 at 13:56.
  6. Neofytos's Avatar
    • Adored and Respected Member
    • Location: Cyprus,Limassol
    • Posts: 537
    Re: A* at A level FAQ and question thread.
    So
    Fp1,Fp2,Fp3,M3,M4,M5
    A2 is Fp2,Fp3,M5 ??
  7. michaelyus's Avatar
    • Overlord in Training
    • Location: London/Cambridge
    • Posts: 2,302
    Re: A* at A level FAQ and question thread.
    (Original post by Noefytos)
    So
    Fp1,Fp2,Fp3,M3,M4,M5
    A2 is Fp2,Fp3,M5 ??
    Well, FP2, FP3, M3, M4, M5 are all A2. The best out of FP2/3, and then the two best out of the FP left over and M3-5, will count towards the 90% condition.

    (Original post by AndersonsBentFoot)
    For 1st year of core you oonly need 80% average
    You actually don't even need that. You need 80% overall instead, which means you can average 75% across the C1, C2, and two applied, and get the 90% in C3 and C4, to scrape the A*.
  8. goldsilvy's Avatar
    • Overlord in Training
    • Location: London
    Re: A* at A level FAQ and question thread.
    (Original post by Neofytos)
    So
    Fp1,Fp2,Fp3,M3,M4,M5
    A2 is Fp2,Fp3,M5 ??
    All bar FP1. For Further Maths you need at least 3 A2 units. You can have even six of them if you wish though.
  9. 353's Avatar
    • Junior Member
    • Posts: 62
    Re: A* at A level FAQ and question thread.
    Is it worth trying to get <80 at AS for UCAS purposes, or do they only look at the overall A-level grade?
  10. thetopnotch's Avatar
    • TSR Demigod
    • Posts: 7,341
    Re: A* at A level FAQ and question thread.
    (Original post by 353)
    Is it worth trying to get <80 at AS for UCAS purposes, or do they only look at the overall A-level grade?
    On your UCAS forum they will see the overall grade. However teacher's predictions may be dependant on how well you've done with your module scores so getting high 80s or even into the 90s in terms of percentage may help you get that A* predicted grade.

    If you have really good UCAS scores then teachers may put those down in your reference which definitely helps
  11. member234278's Avatar
    • Banned
    • Location: Sri Lanka
    • Posts: 712
    Re: Information on the A* grade for the CIE exam board
    (Original post by amro105)
    no, tht has not been updated since last year and my teacher said CIE decided not to do the A star grade this year. I just want confirmation from ANYONE doing biology or another CIE subject whether or not there teachers sed they can achieve the A* grade in A-level this year (june 2010 examinations). please if anyone is doing CIE A2 levels THIS year please reply
    It is being awarded from 2010 session.
  12. TerrificTottenham_07's Avatar
    • New Member
    • Location: London
    • Posts: 18
    A* Grade
    It's only just come to my attention that I need to get a 90% at A2 rather than on my whole AS level to get the A*.

    Its rather annoyed me, as I feel the ******* hard work I put in during my AS Year has not contributed at all to the possibility of getting an A*.

    So do you think this unfairly discriminates against those that work hard throughout the course? For example, its possible to score a higher UMS score but get an A than someone who gets an A* with a lower UMS grade (from how i understand it).
  13. EierVonSatan's Avatar
    • PS Helper
    • TSR Royalty
    • Location: UK
    • Posts: 20,987
    Re: A* Grade
    So the grade at the end of the A-level better reflects the ability of the student on finishing the qualification? The hard work at the start should pay off in the end.
  14. rachxl's Avatar
    • Peer Of The TSR Realm
    • Posts: 1,918
    Re: A* Grade
    I think that AS marks should count towards the A* in some way, but perhaps the marks could be weighted so that the A2 marks have a bit more value?
  15. EierVonSatan's Avatar
    • PS Helper
    • TSR Royalty
    • Location: UK
    • Posts: 20,987
    Re: A* Grade
    (Original post by rachxl)
    I think that AS marks should count towards the A* in some way, but perhaps the marks could be weighted so that the A2 marks have a bit more value?
    I think part of the reasoning is that it helps prevent people from just resitting the AS modules to obtain a high average. Instead they have to do very well on the A2 component alone (which will include AEA style questions supposedly).
  16. rachxl's Avatar
    • Peer Of The TSR Realm
    • Posts: 1,918
    Re: A* Grade
    (Original post by EierVonSatan)
    I think part of the reasoning is that it helps prevent people from just resitting the AS modules to obtain a high average. Instead they have to do very well on the A2 component alone (which will include AEA style questions supposedly).
    That makes sense, it's just a shame AS units don't count towards it. Given the point you just made, the current system probably selects A* grade students the most effectively.
  17. ily_em's Avatar
    • TSR Idol
    • Location: Montreal
    Re: A* Grade
    I think it is a good idea as it has got rid of the situation of people doing really well in AS the not trying during A2. For example, if you got more than 90% in the AS you would only need a C in A2 in order to get an A, which seems a bit ridiculous to me.
  18. DJkG.1's Avatar
    • TSR Idol
    • Location: LDN, England
    • Posts: 7,785
    Re: A* Grade
    It is quite fair and a good move IMO.

    The resit culture is just a disgrace especially for subjects like maths where resits of AS units in year 13 can mean that some people only need low As to get the A* if the requirement was 90% overall as you might expect.

    The 90% average of A2 units makes it a real challenge and now A-level grades will once again be able to discriminate the best from a very big pool of the very good.
  19. philip.gowland's Avatar
    • Full Member
    • Location: Washington, Sunderland
    Re: Further Maths A* in 2010?
    for edexcel its average 90% in C3 & C4, i got 90 on the dot , and for further maths its A overall and 90 average over 3 modules classed as A2 modules, S2 M2 D2 FP2 are a2 modules whereas M1 FP1 rnt, so u could really mess up fp2 and still get a*
  20. goldsilvy's Avatar
    • Overlord in Training
    • Location: London
    Re: Further Maths A* in 2010?
    (Original post by philip.gowland)
    for edexcel its average 90% in C3 & C4, i got 90 on the dot , and for further maths its A overall and 90 average over 3 modules classed as A2 modules, S2 M2 D2 FP2 are a2 modules whereas M1 FP1 rnt, so u could really mess up fp2 and still get a*
    S3, S4, M3, M4, M5 and FP3 are also classified as A2 modules.
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