Quitting a-levels to do an Access course?

I think it could be disheartening for you, but in the scheme of things 2 years is not that long. With the government going the way it is, we'll be working till we're in our 70s so you may as well do something that you really enjoy!

If there's a SCBU unit at your hospital, that'd be a really good bit if experience, alongside going to scans - the more variety the better! Don't be put off if they won't let you do it, different hospitals have different policies but the fact your mum is a nurse and you have some connections definitely works to your advantage!

B in maths is great and i would have thought it will help you get through the selection process to interview but there will still be the maths tests so if you manage to persuade your college to let you do them in a year, then start recapping your gcse maths skills now so you're prepared! Just a thought on doing them in a year, although it may be possible, it could be tricky as a lot of the exam boards make as+a2 synoptic and you'd be learning everything alongside each other - it depends how you see this, it could be an advantage or disadvantage but definitely something to consider. I wouldn't worry about the C in chemistry, biology seems to be more important.

I know how you feel, it's all so daunting and you just have to make a decision which will affect the rest of your life and you get set on a plan and it's scary to realise it's not actually what you want to do! Have you looked into speech+language therapy? With your grades and English literature this could be another option to going into healthcare without having to do more a levels.

Hahaha exactly! I've thought that I should go through with this degree cos it's a good uni etc but at the end of it I'm just going to be stuck.. definitely don't want to be a teacher so I may as well hold off a bit and try and do something different.

Yeah definitely! I'll have to speak to my mum, first would have to actually tell her this plan. Not sure how she'll feel about it tbh! She knew I wanted to work in healthcare etc so it probably won't be a huge surprise.

That's good I'll definitely have to brush up on maths skills then! Argh, I'm still undecided as to where to go regarding this extra a-level v. access course thing too.

I have thought about SLT actually! But again, it'd require a year out to reapply (or a postgrad, which I really want to avoid doing at all costs... would rather just get my UG degree and get on with a career) and if I'm going to do that then I may as well go the whole way and change career direction entirely.

Thanks so much for all your help, it's been amazing! I've got a lot to think about now, definitely going to have to make a decision before these 2 weeks are over. I think I know in my head that I do definitely want to go for this, it's just how will I do it, etc.

Clearing might still be an option - Surrey, Greenwich and Bedfordshire still have places for midwifery through Extra so although not guaranteed to be in clearing there is still a possibility they will be and they don't seem to have any subject specific requirements. Unless distance from home etc is a major factor in choosing a uni, these are potential options. Same for Speech+language therapy...

Maybe if you can make your decision about what you're going to do next year a levels/access course wise and then try clearing and if it doesn't work out then you've got a plan in place anyway so it doesn't matter.

There's nothing wrong with taking a year out, but definitely contact the unis you're interested in to work out what they'd prefer and what would help your application