Is it worth applying to AAB-ABB universities with AAC?

I totally understand. I don't think that would necessarily be not giving yourself the best start in life by going somewhere like, say, Keele or Lincoln and even getting a first, but not everyone agrees with me on here.

Hopefully you will get into the university you want.
C is not a bad grade.


The other thing you could consider is, if you were unlucky and put those five AAB or ABB universities down and none were flexible and gave you an offer

Access courses are usually for folks with a gap in study, not directly following on from AL's. Uni's would just expect you to have done retakes, (and the college would likely discourage you from enrolling if they had their wits about them).

I take your point.
Oh dear! My daughter is doing one. She thought it through and decided not to resit (in her case, the best decision). Same sort of A level situation as OP.

The college said what you said but after a lot of thought, this was her best option.


I hope it doesn't cause a problem with all her offers then.

She checked with the universities she is applying to and explained why she wasn't resitting and they said it was fine and the Access could be considered at her age (except for one which had an age restriction). Too late now! Fingers crossed.

If she did her research with her choices then she should be fine. I'm surprised that the college didn't discourage her, (purely as they're meant for people with a gap in study, rather than those who didn't get the grades they needed), but it may still be the best route for her in this case.

Many students don't like retaking as they feel like they are not progressing, but they're usually the best route as they leave more options open and you are at least sticking with a syllabus you are familiar with.

Thanks.

The college did try and discourage her. It wasn't lack of progression in her case but other factors like where she would have to do it, the teacher and it was completely the wrong choice of subject in the first place so resitting may not have improved things.

🤞

I sat my a-levels last summer + resiting one subject in autumn and achieved AAC (English, Geography, Chemistry) with an A in the EPQ. I plan on studying art history and want to apply to Universities like Bristol, Warwick, Manchester, York, Royal Holloway, Exeter, Leeds, etc (haven't narrowed it down quite yet lol). I know some universities are stricter than others so I've sent of quite a few emails/enquiry forms for guidance but haven't gotten a reply from these ones. I don't doubt my ability to write a very good personal statement but I don't want to like waste a space/application if I have no chance of getting in. Any advice?

Hi there, how are you?

I’m Konnie, a postgraduate Creative Writing student at DMU. 😊

You can certainly apply for universities with slightly higher entry requirements. When I made my university applications I received an offer from a university with higher entry requirements because the university was impressed with my personal statement. 😊

But also, as someone who has been through this process, I would recommend having three main choices – an aspirational choice, a choice meeting your grades, and an insurance choice. This means that you have a wide range of options. Often, there is a lot more to consider than just the ranking of a university – including (and most importantly) making sure that you are going to be happy at the one you pick!

Let me know if you have any questions at all, and best of luck with your applications!

Konnie 😊