Starting A2 AQA Psycholgy A

I'd like to start off by saying that I completed my AS year and got my results last week, to say the least I was extremely disappointed. Psychology specifically disappointed me.

I got a BCC, with one of the C's being in Psychology. I treated revision for this like almost like a full time job. Working about 4 hours in school 5 days a week purely on Psychology and around 4 hours at home everyday purely spent on Psychology. I started revision for PSYA1 about a month before the exam (As I was still completing coursework which was very time consuming).

I have no doubt that I neglected my two other subjects to revise for Psychology, as it's honestly the only A-Level I care about or like, that I do. However, both of the other subjects, in which I put little effort into compared to psychology, were graded better.. For PSYA1 I got 66UMS and for PSYA2 I got 68UMS (3 Raw Marks from a B, I've requested the photocopies of the scripts and will then decide if it's worth remarking, which I will likely do)

Regardless, this was likely due to different examiners and such. My concern is, to study Psychology at the university I want to, I require an ABB. I was honestly expecting an A in Psychology this year due to the sheer amount of effort I put into it, but alas, I was let down tremendously.

Now the pressure is on. I need to bring all my A-Level grades up by at least 1 to meet the minimum requirements for this university. I've been reading a plethora of stories where people have spoken about bringing their grades up and it's been an absolute relief to read, however I have no idea if I'm capable..

I know for a fact that I will work tremendously harder this year on all my A-Levels, and not just focus on Psychology. However, I am looking to bring my Psychology grade up to an A, which will require 93UMS in each paper respectively (If I do not get them remarked).

I'm just frightened really. I know anything is possible when you put your mind to it but I worked as hard as I possibly could for Psychology (PSYA1 specifically as research methods never sat right with me) and was let down.

I'm unsure if my revision method works currently. I use colored pens to re-write all my notes in a more direct and concise fashion, then I use the look-say-cover-wright-check technique. Which I thought was working great, however my results proved otherwise.

If anyone has any suggestions on how I should tackle revision, when I should start and how, it would all be appreciated. How difficult is the jump from AS to A2, how many hours a day should be dedicated to revision alone, are there any extra materials I may need other than classroom notes? I know these questions have been brought up countless times in this sub-forum before, and I've taken them all into account. I'd just like a more personalized answer really.

In the end, I'm really looking to bring my C (134UMS) up to either an A or a B, however an A would just be far more rewarding to me. It will take an extreme amount of work, which I'm prepared to do, however if anyone has any suggestions whatsoever as I'm coming back to school soon, they would be tremendously appreciated.

Thanks for taking the time to read this

write an essay for every single double page spread/possible question that could come up on the exam and ask your teacher to mark it. Once you've done those to a high standard you can pretty much learn those by heart for the exam. It is a mammoth task, but it can be done. If you need any help, feel free to pm me, i just came away with an A* in psychology

How long before the exam is it recommended that you start learning the essays off my heart? Trying to balance coursework and rote rehearsal may prove difficult, any tips to balance that?

Hey, I went from a C to an A* in AQA A psychology I retook unit 2 and got 100UMS (I did badly before as I didn't get the exam technique), got 97 in unit 3 and 93 in unit 4. You might find, as I did, that the essay-writing of the A2 course plays more to your strengths and is easier for you. If you have any more questions feel free to ask x

I learnt all mine in about 2 weeks but it was ridiculously stressful. I'd DEFINITELY recommend learning them before that if thats the strategy you're using!

2 Weeks? Wow.. How many hours a day did you spend on revision for PSYA3/4?

I had a 40 hours per week revision schedule, on top of school and anything else, so probably too much in all honesty. It was an utter nightmare

I was seriously considering repeating PSYA1 (As there seems to be less to learn). How is it that your brought your Unit 2 up so well? Was it difficult to do PSYA2 plus 3 and 4 in the same year? Is it worth while repeating one of the AS modules or will it be too stressful while the A2 exams are going on? Also, what would you say the 'exam technique' is? Thanks for the reply

I must admit I did have a tutor! I found it difficult to get on with my teacher at school so got someone else to help me as well The first time I sat the AS, my answers were too short and answered the question I wanted then to ask rather than the one written on the page. The second time round, my answers were longer and actually answered the question!

For me, the A2 exam technique was much easier as it's all essay writing, so I wrote out essays for pretty much every question that could come up, and learned names, dates of research etc which I could slip in to several different essays.

I managed to take 3 psych modules at the same time, alongside 2 other A2s and an EPQ and came out with A*AAB overall, so is say it's OK to retake a few units, not too stressful at all as long as you're willing to put the work in so you don't sacrifice your A2 performance for the sake of your AS resit. Obviously you don't want to be retaking loads of stuff for all your subjects - at my school you could sit a maximum of 4 retakes. Good luck!

My teacher is hard to contact.. I travel to a different college to study psychology everyday (My school doesn't provide it, but they're in partnership with another that does, so they travel a few of us on a bus everyday to study there.) That means, I can only see him for class hours, then I can't see him at all until the next lesson, it makes contacting him rather difficult.. And therefore if I have any concerns, or if I want to get things marked, I have to wait..

Is it required to learn names and dates? I know for a fact that's something I get mixed up in very easily.. (I'm not the overly-academic type if you couldn't tell xD)

If I was to resit, I would plan to resit the psychology only, as the other two subjects I have are primarily coursework based, which leaves for more revision time. Is there any particular reason you chose PSYA2 over 1? If I was to resit one, which would you recommend? Thank you!

I had planned to start 2 months before hand with frequent revision, however it's always a fear that I'll just forget everything.. I have a habit of getting mixed up and flustered in questions, then I just panic. 40 hours on top of school would be painful to even consider xD You got the grade though so it shows that it worked..

Well, I got a B in unit 1 and a D in unit 2 so it made more sense to do unit 2! If you got around the same mark in both though, go for the one you realistically think you could do best in.

You don't technically *have* to know names and dates (it's not on the mark scheme) but apparently it makes you look good so I was encouraged to include them. But as long as you know details about the research, its findings and can assess it critically, you don't really need to know names and dates. I learned them by making lists and making up songs

That's a difficult situation with your teacher - is there any way you could get a private tutor? It can be a bit pricey but for me it was worth it.

I ended up with A*A*AA so it was worth it, but i made myself physically ill, and furthered my mental health problems, so i don't recommend it at all! Feel free to pm me if you need any help with it

That's amazing! I imagine I will space things out more! Thank you! I'm sure I'll be using TSR all throughout my A2 year :P

Don't get me wrong, i wrote the essays throughout the year and worked my hardest all year, but i actually learnt the essays word for word in about two weeks! I never ever thought id get A*A*AA! It's perfectly doable if you work hard

I feel like I went wrong slightly because I spent about a week compiling all my notes in one place about a month before the exam.. This left less time for actual revision, but for A2 I assume it'll be expected that you prepare your essay's throughout the year?

your teachers will ask you to do essays and things, but probably not all of them, so you'll have to keep up with them