The Student Room Group

Should I Remark my Exams?

Hello guys! :smile:
After getting my results for Chemistry for Edexcel, I saw that I was 6 UMS of an A* in Chemistry.
In exam 1, I got 98/120 in it
in exam 2, I got 106/120 in it. There were other units, but these don't need to be involved.
If I remark exam 1 and 2 both, exam 1 needs to go up by 2 raw marks and exam 2 to go up by 1 raw mark to give me 6 UMS, or vice versa, and hence an A*.
Or unit 1 can rise by 3 raw marks to give me 6 UMS, and hence an A*.

I'm only really worried that my results would go down, or that an exam may go up and the other go down and so cancel each other out or leave me with with not enough net UMS to get an A*, and so if I did not submit the exam which went down, I may have gotten 6 UMS.
I'm not really worried about the money.

What do you guys think I should do?
What would you do if you were in my position?
Thanks! :smile:
Reply 1
Speak to your schools examiner officer and what you can do is you can order each of your papers costing 10 pound a piece and they arrive within an hour by E-mail. You can then ask your chemistry teacher to mark both and see which one he reckons you definitely got higher marks in, and submit that one in for remarking!
Good Luck!
Personally I would probably leave it because 6 UMS really isn't that close to the boundary and it is very unlikely that an exam would go up by that much, especially in a subject like chemistry.
That been said however, if you really aren't bothered about the money and you're quite far away from the lower boundary you could try it :P
Reply 3
If you're far from the lower boundary and don't care about losing money, feel free to. I wouldn't consider it unless an offer is dependent on it though.
(edited 9 years ago)
Save your money, if you got into your firm and your A-Levels are above AAB then it doesn't really matter except for bragging rights.
Reply 5
Original post by ΘTheta
Hello guys! :smile:
After getting my results for Chemistry for Edexcel, I saw that I was 6 UMS of an A* in Chemistry.
In exam 1, I got 98/120 in it
in exam 2, I got 106/120 in it. There were other units, but these don't need to be involved.
If I remark exam 1 and 2 both, exam 1 needs to go up by 2 raw marks and exam 2 to go up by 1 raw mark to give me 6 UMS, or vice versa, and hence an A*.
Or unit 1 can rise by 3 raw marks to give me 6 UMS, and hence an A*.

I'm only really worried that my results would go down, or that an exam may go up and the other go down and so cancel each other out or leave me with with not enough net UMS to get an A*, and so if I did not submit the exam which went down, I may have gotten 6 UMS.
I'm not really worried about the money.

What do you guys think I should do?
What would you do if you were in my position?
Thanks! :smile:


Okay, this is kinda funny, because I'm in the exact same situation with my Edexcel physics exam!! I also would need unit 4 to go up by two raw marks and unit 5 by 1 :tongue:

I decided to submit only unit 4 for a remark atm; if it comes back and I've gained two raw marks, then I'll submit the other for a remark too; if not, it was worth a try!! :smile:

I think, if money isn't a consideration and you're far above the A boundary, you may as well go for a remark - you have nothing to lose!!!
Reply 6
Original post by Dilzo999
Save your money, if you got into your firm and your A-Levels are above AAB then it doesn't really matter except for bragging rights.

I was planning to take a gap year and apply to a very competitive course. What is your opinion now? =)
(edited 9 years ago)
Original post by ΘTheta
I was planning to take a gap year and apply to a very competitive course. What is your opinion now? =)


As a would-be doctor and A-level Maths student, presumably you understand numbers. Look at your situation rationally...

What are the chances that a remark would squeeze out the extra raw marks?

What are the chances that a remark would result in your A going down to a B? i.e. how many raw marks would you have to lose to slip over the boundary? This is important because a remark is final.

Is the money relevant? (I would suggest the cost is trivial on the context of the massive cost of your forthcoming education, no matter what you do.)

Will having A*A*A* make your application next year much better than A*A*A? And if you did fall to A*A*B how would that compare?
Reply 8
Original post by ageshallnot
As a would-be doctor and A-level Maths student, presumably you understand numbers. Look at your situation rationally...

What are the chances that a remark would squeeze out the extra raw marks?

What are the chances that a remark would result in your A going down to a B? i.e. how many raw marks would you have to lose to slip over the boundary? This is important because a remark is final.

Is the money relevant? (I would suggest the cost is trivial on the context of the massive cost of your forthcoming education, no matter what you do.)

Will having A*A*A* make your application next year much better than A*A*A? And if you did fall to A*A*B how would that compare?



Hello there, thank you for a very detailed response. I am currently 50 ums into an A for Chemistry. I need my exam 1 test to drop by 25 raw marks, according to Edexcel UMS converter, for me to drop an overall grade in Chemistry.

The main reason I am asking is because all Universities ask for Chemistry for Medicine, and so having an A* for Chemistry, I feel will be more advantageous for my application.
And I also have a feeling that universities will be thinking about why I did not achieve and A* in chemistry (the most important A level for Medicine because all Universities need it), so it could shine a negative light upon my application.

Also, I don't want to have the regrets in the future of thinking about what could of happened if I went for a remark for my Chemistry exam if I did not attain a place for Medicine when I apply again. I also don't want to spend an entire year in applying and then failing again in getting a place in Medicine, and then the thought of not remarking making that feeling worse.

But the main thing that is kind of preventing me from not going on with it is the idea of losing marks (as the remark may go down). The idea of losing 50+UMS is also preventing me from just going on with it too.

Any further advice will be greatly appreciated too.
Original post by ΘTheta
Hello there, thank you for a very detailed response. I am currently 50 ums into an A for Chemistry. I need my exam 1 test to drop by 25 raw marks, according to Edexcel UMS converter, for me to drop an overall grade in Chemistry.

The main reason I am asking is because all Universities ask for Chemistry for Medicine, and so having an A* for Chemistry, I feel will be more advantageous for my application.
And I also have a feeling that universities will be thinking about why I did not achieve and A* in chemistry (the most important A level for Medicine because all Universities need it), so it could shine a negative light upon my application.

Also, I don't want to have the regrets in the future of thinking about what could of happened if I went for a remark for my Chemistry exam if I did not attain a place for Medicine when I apply again. I also don't want to spend an entire year in applying and then failing again in getting a place in Medicine, and then the thought of not remarking making that feeling worse.

But the main thing that is kind of preventing me from not going on with it is the idea of losing marks (as the remark may go down). The idea of losing 50+UMS is also preventing me from just going on with it too.

Any further advice will be greatly appreciated too.


So the only thing stopping you asking for a remark is the fear of dropping from an A to a B? Given the scale of the drop required and your experience of the exams, is that even remotely possible? Were you surprised to do as well as you did? About what you expected? Worse than you thought?
Original post by ΘTheta
Hello guys! :smile:
After getting my results for Chemistry for Edexcel, I saw that I was 6 UMS of an A* in Chemistry.
In exam 1, I got 98/120 in it
in exam 2, I got 106/120 in it. There were other units, but these don't need to be involved.
If I remark exam 1 and 2 both, exam 1 needs to go up by 2 raw marks and exam 2 to go up by 1 raw mark to give me 6 UMS, or vice versa, and hence an A*.
Or unit 1 can rise by 3 raw marks to give me 6 UMS, and hence an A*.

I'm only really worried that my results would go down, or that an exam may go up and the other go down and so cancel each other out or leave me with with not enough net UMS to get an A*, and so if I did not submit the exam which went down, I may have gotten 6 UMS.
I'm not really worried about the money.

What do you guys think I should do?
What would you do if you were in my position?
Thanks! :smile:


You are worth a lot more than the grades you got on a piece of paper so please dont let those grades decide your fate. Also there are other options for example Btecs so its not completely the end of the world if you dont get the grades. You did the best that you could and if you have not i guess you have learnt your lesson that its though out there so be prepared...Remember life does not go in a straight line so dont stress of over exam results...

Always Remember "Winners are to busy to be sad, to positive to be doubtful, to optimistic to be fearful, and too determined to be defeated."

Edit: It is not all about a piece of paper with your name on it.
Reply 11
Original post by ageshallnot
So the only thing stopping you asking for a remark is the fear of dropping from an A to a B? Given the scale of the drop required and your experience of the exams, is that even remotely possible? Were you surprised to do as well as you did? About what you expected? Worse than you thought?


Some of stories that I have read on TSR about previous remark experiences scares me, and its not impossible that I could drop 25 marks.
In response to your question, I was surprised.
Original post by ΘTheta
Some of stories that I have read on TSR about previous remark experiences scares me, and its not impossible that I could drop 25 marks.
In response to your question, I was surprised.


I don't suppose it's possible for your teachers to get a sight of your answers before finally committing to a remark is it? I don't know what the procedure is.
Reply 13
Original post by ΘTheta
Some of stories that I have read on TSR about previous remark experiences scares me, and its not impossible that I could drop 25 marks.
In response to your question, I was surprised.


If you were surprised and you think there is a possibility of your grade decreasing that much then of course you should request a photocopy of your paper back before committing to a re-mark.

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