two questions about a levels / unis
i am hoping to study computer science at uni so i’ve chosen comp sci maths further maths and physics as my a levels. firstly would doing four a levels increase my chances of acceptance or will nothing matter if i drop one of them? secondly, if the offer for computer science at uni is A* A* A or A* A A A then lets say i did four a levels and i get A* A* A B, do unis take my highest three and let me in w the three a level offer or am i rejected because i got a B?
(edited 2 years ago)
Original post by randomperson321
i am hoping to study computer science at uni so i’ve chosen comp sci maths further maths and physics as my a levels. firstly would doing four a levels increase my chances of acceptance or will nothing matter if i drop one of them? secondly, if the offer for computer science at uni is A* A* A or A* A A A then lets say i did four a levels and i get A* A* A B, do unis take my highest three and let me in w the three a level offer or am i rejected because i got a B?
What year are you in and what uni do you want to go to? A* A* A sounds like Oxbridge or close to it to me.
Original post by Abzdot
What year are you in and what uni do you want to go to? A* A* A sounds like Oxbridge or close to it to me.
year 11 and imperial college
Some universities “tweak” their offer for those doing 4 a-levels rather than 4 but some don’t. It comes down to where you want to go.
For computer science though bear in mind that a lot of universities, including Imperial, consider Further Maths to be a “useful” subject which is probably why they have that wiggle room as usually if you’re doing FM it needs to be as a 4th a level.
For computer science though bear in mind that a lot of universities, including Imperial, consider Further Maths to be a “useful” subject which is probably why they have that wiggle room as usually if you’re doing FM it needs to be as a 4th a level.
Original post by SpannersVC
Some universities “tweak” their offer for those doing 4 a-levels rather than 4 but some don’t. It comes down to where you want to go.
For computer science though bear in mind that a lot of universities, including Imperial, consider Further Maths to be a “useful” subject which is probably why they have that wiggle room as usually if you’re doing FM it needs to be as a 4th a level.
For computer science though bear in mind that a lot of universities, including Imperial, consider Further Maths to be a “useful” subject which is probably why they have that wiggle room as usually if you’re doing FM it needs to be as a 4th a level.
so are you saying that if i drop a subject and just do three of the a levels including further maths it will decrease my chances of being accepted?
(edited 2 years ago)
Original post by randomperson321
i am hoping to study computer science at uni so i’ve chosen comp sci maths further maths and physics as my a levels. firstly would doing four a levels increase my chances of acceptance or will nothing matter if i drop one of them? secondly, if the offer for computer science at uni is A* A* A or A* A A A then lets say i did four a levels and i get A* A* A B, do unis take my highest three and let me in w the three a level offer or am i rejected because i got a B?
i think it is best to stick to 3 alevels as thats what universities expect from you. A-levels are hard and doing 4 can be very difficult
Original post by randomperson321
so are you saying that if i drop a subject and just do three of the a levels including further maths it will decrease my chances of being accepted?
Yes I’d say so. A lot of places will only consider FM as a 4th a-level and many schools only let you do it as a 4th a-level.
While doing 4 is usually unnecessary, in the case of further maths its incredibly useful and you would probably stand out if you didn't do 4 if you're applying to a giant like imperial 
. They will most likely give you a 3 A-Level offer (or at least that's what I got and I did 4) which means that the grade of your 4th A-level, whether it be further maths, physics or computer science doesn't really matter (as long as you get an A* in normal maths and another subject of course 
).
I may be wrong but I think that those that get a 4 A-level offer receive it as well as the 3 A-Level offer so that they have the choice of either A*A*A or A*AAA but I don't really know the conditions for getting that offer.
What I'd say matters the most when it comes to imperial (since the grades are really a minimum requirement in order to be considered) is a really good personal statement (which makes you getting a 3 A-level offer more likely) which displays passion and outside reading of your course (90+% about the subject - which can include stuff like reading books, your own research, work experience etc, 10% about other stuff you do) and then doing sufficiently well in the short entrance exam (which doesn't require much revision as its mainly just general logic and problem solving) and the interview afterwards (a tip would be to say your thought processes aloud and admit to the tutor if you're genuinely stuck, while also displaying passion for the subject and in interest in learning - obviously this is in over a years time so you can ignore me for now if you want lol).
If you have a good PS, I'd say you're almost guaranteed a place (given you have the grades of course!)
. Good luck, work hard!
. They will most likely give you a 3 A-Level offer (or at least that's what I got and I did 4) which means that the grade of your 4th A-level, whether it be further maths, physics or computer science doesn't really matter (as long as you get an A* in normal maths and another subject of course ). I may be wrong but I think that those that get a 4 A-level offer receive it as well as the 3 A-Level offer so that they have the choice of either A*A*A or A*AAA but I don't really know the conditions for getting that offer.
What I'd say matters the most when it comes to imperial (since the grades are really a minimum requirement in order to be considered) is a really good personal statement (which makes you getting a 3 A-level offer more likely) which displays passion and outside reading of your course (90+% about the subject - which can include stuff like reading books, your own research, work experience etc, 10% about other stuff you do) and then doing sufficiently well in the short entrance exam (which doesn't require much revision as its mainly just general logic and problem solving) and the interview afterwards (a tip would be to say your thought processes aloud and admit to the tutor if you're genuinely stuck, while also displaying passion for the subject and in interest in learning - obviously this is in over a years time so you can ignore me for now if you want lol).
If you have a good PS, I'd say you're almost guaranteed a place (given you have the grades of course!)
. Good luck, work hard!
Original post by randomperson321
would doing four a levels increase my chances of acceptance or will nothing matter if i drop one of them?
I’m not aware of any Uni that has a four grade AL offer for COMPSCI. There potentially could be a couple that give you an either/or 3/4 grade offer. The vast majority will just consider your 3 highest grades including any essential subjects, (ie. Maths).
You can apply with 4, wait for their decisions, then check if dropping your fourth subject would affect their offers, (they’ll usually be fine with this).
Original post by randomperson321
if the offer for computer science at uni is A* A* A or A* A A A then lets say i did four a levels and i get A* A* A B, do unis take my highest three and let me in w the three a level offer or am i rejected because i got a B?
Depending on the wording of your offer, they’ll just look at your three highest grades, the fourth result will be irrelevant, (so long as it’s not Maths).
thank you everyone!
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