Shoud i repeat year 12? want to do psychology for uni but....

im currently in year 13 with the predicted grade of A for geo, B for biology and A for psychology. i want to do psychology for university however my 5 for gcse maths ristrict me from getting into a good uni. i have emailed some uni's and they said that because i have a 5 in maths gcse i may be at a disadvantage compared to other students. alsoi dont have relavent work expirence which puts me in a bigger disadvantage i think.

i am confused if i should resit year 12 so i can resit gcse maths to get a higher grade and it will also allow me to futher improve my predicted grades but is it worth it???

is the uni you go to imporant or the course. psychoology is also a competitve and maths based subject and i would like to persue a career in clinical psy (but im still not sure about it )

(edited 4 years ago)

Reply 1

User135792468

Original post by confusedwitlife

You could always go to mid-range university for BSc then go to a top university for MSc and PhD

Reply 2

Anon0601

Not sure why you would resit Y12 in this scenario. If the issue is with your GCSE Maths grade surely you would be better off resitting that?

Reply 3

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

To begin with, unless the undergraduate course is specifically clinical, work experience isn't going to be expected or required. I believe most clinical courses/training occurs after you graduate with your first degree, which is normally required to be a BPS accredited course if you want to go into clinical psychology. I don't think the particular university or course you do matters a great deal as long as it is BPS accredited, but I may be wrong. @Noodlzzz might be able to advise more on this? I would note that generally the "high ranking" universities offer psychology courses that are not very clinically oriented and are primarily academic/research/experimentally oriented.

As above, you don't need to resit year 12 to resit your GCSE Maths; you can resit that whenever you want separate to your A-level exams (provided there are no exam clashes). If you want to resit GCSE Maths I would recommend you discuss this with your school, but it shouldn't require you to resit your A-levels or take them over three years (which I would not recommend generally).

Reply 4

Noodlzzz

1) experience not required or needed at undergrad
2) Yup @artful_lounger is right, if its BPS accredited there is not 'better' than the other uni for pursing clinical pathway
3) If it where me I would resit the GCSE maths, but only if you really think the extra effort will get you a better grade, if you didn't the first around without any extenuating circumstances then I might question if I were capable - the effort and time involved could be put towards getting A/A*s at A-level

Reply 5

confusedwitlife

ik its not necessary to repeat the year to resit GCSE maths but I feel like If I resit gcse maths when I'm doing my a levels i wouldn't be able to get good a level grades and it would be really difficult

Reply 6

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by confusedwitlife

Well bear in mind many universities consider applications from those who sat their A-levels over three years rather than two to be less competitive, if there are no extenuating circumstances behind it. I think this would be a much greater disadvantage to an application than a 5 in GCSE Maths, to be perfectly honest.

You could always take a gap year and resit the GCSE Maths then if you're unduly concerned about the effect resitting GCSE Maths would have on your A-levels. Bear in mind though you aren't having to learn content equivalent to the full syllabus of GCSE Maths afresh, as you've already studied it once so some of it at least will be familiar.

I honestly doubt a 5 in GCSE Maths will make that much of a difference except for e.g. Oxbridge, UCL, LSE, etc, which are mostly very non-clinically focused courses (so not that aligned with your interests), and also will almost certainly consider an application from someone taking A-levels over 3 years rather than 2 without extenuating circumstances to be a very weak due to that (more than any concerns about the GCSE grade).

Reply 7

confusedwitlife

thank you for your replies guys it really helps alot.
by any chance can u drop any recommendations of uni that I could apply to for now?

Reply 8

confusedwitlife

btw @artful_lounger are you saying I should resit year 12 or that I shouldn't?😅 sorry

Reply 9

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by confusedwitlife

btw @artful_lounger are you saying I should resit year 12 or that I shouldn't?😅 sorry

I'm saying don't resit year 12. Resit GCSE Maths, if you wish to; either during your current courses or in a gap year. I would suggest you just continue as you are and apply with the GCSE at grade 5, and then if you don't get any offers take a gap year and resit the GCSE Maths.

Reply 10

harrysbar

Original post by confusedwitlife

thank you for your replies guys it really helps alot.
by any chance can u drop any recommendations of uni that I could apply to for now?

I would just research unis carefully and only apply to ones that allow a 5 in GCSE maths so you can concentrate on getting the highest possible grades in your A levels. With predictions of AAB, you still have a lot of choice of unis to consider including Nottingham, Southampton and Sussex

Other unis like Manchester and Liverpool are happy to accept applicants for Psychology who have a 6 in either Maths or English, as stated on Manchester's website:

"We require at least five GCSEs at minimum grade B/6, including English Language and Mathematics. If an applicant has a grade 5 in either English Language or Mathematics, but has a grade 6 in the other subject, we would strongly advise they still apply."

Exeter and Birmingham are happy to accept a 5 in GCSE maths and are likely to make you offers although their published entry requirements are AAA since your predicted grades are so close. However, they would be aspirational choices since may reject you if you don't achieve AAA in the exams