A-Levels, Access or BTEC to gain entry to London School of Economics
Hello,
I’m a 22 year old mature student who would really appreciate advice applying to University. I’m getting really depressed about the whole situation as September is nearly here and I still haven’t made a decision of what courses I should to do before going to Uni, i’m torn between A-levels or the Access course route and not sure if I can survive another 2 to 3 years living here.
Due to social reasons, I left school at 16 with few qualifications. When I left school I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life, until working with Accountants in Corporate; I decided that Accountancy was really the career for me. 6 years on I’ve gained 4 years relevant accounting experience, which is currently being approved by the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (ACCA). In addition, I recently qualified as an ACCA Certified Accounting Technician Graduate (Level 4).
Recently, I decided that I would like to regain my education to provide a career working in the Big4 in the following areas: Forensic Accounting, Investment Banking, Stock/Commodity Trading, Management and Consultancy. I’d really like to go to a highly respected University - I’ve looked at a number of University programmes and, the LSE BSc Accounting and Finance, appears to be the appropriate degree course given my career aspirations. The LSE confirm they do accept the Access/BTEC but has anybody actually gained entry with these qualifications? If so what was the name of the access course and the modules taken? Which degree did you apply for at the LSE? Do employers recognise access courses as an acceptable qualification for graduate positions particularly in the London Accounting professions?
The problems that I currently face are that I do not hold sufficient GCSE or A-levels in order to be able to enrol in such an academic degree course that requires AAB at A-level. I have considered enrolling on 1yr GCSE courses, the Access to Higher Education Diploma in Business, BTEC ND in Business and A-Levels.
I found out the local college can provide an A-Level pathway of Maths, English and Law. Will this these subjects be sufficient preparation for accounting degree? Will Maths, Economics and Accounting be a better mix? Has anybody taken fast track distance learning courses, if so what where your experiences? Will it be better doing a string of GCSEs prior to A-level studies? Will taking GCSE and AS Mathematics at the same time be doable? What will the work load be like? Soon to get my GCSE English result, predicted A/B, but I need to sit Mathematics and feel confident I’d be able to achieve a grade A*/A.
Thank you.
I’m a 22 year old mature student who would really appreciate advice applying to University. I’m getting really depressed about the whole situation as September is nearly here and I still haven’t made a decision of what courses I should to do before going to Uni, i’m torn between A-levels or the Access course route and not sure if I can survive another 2 to 3 years living here.
Due to social reasons, I left school at 16 with few qualifications. When I left school I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life, until working with Accountants in Corporate; I decided that Accountancy was really the career for me. 6 years on I’ve gained 4 years relevant accounting experience, which is currently being approved by the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (ACCA). In addition, I recently qualified as an ACCA Certified Accounting Technician Graduate (Level 4).
Recently, I decided that I would like to regain my education to provide a career working in the Big4 in the following areas: Forensic Accounting, Investment Banking, Stock/Commodity Trading, Management and Consultancy. I’d really like to go to a highly respected University - I’ve looked at a number of University programmes and, the LSE BSc Accounting and Finance, appears to be the appropriate degree course given my career aspirations. The LSE confirm they do accept the Access/BTEC but has anybody actually gained entry with these qualifications? If so what was the name of the access course and the modules taken? Which degree did you apply for at the LSE? Do employers recognise access courses as an acceptable qualification for graduate positions particularly in the London Accounting professions?
The problems that I currently face are that I do not hold sufficient GCSE or A-levels in order to be able to enrol in such an academic degree course that requires AAB at A-level. I have considered enrolling on 1yr GCSE courses, the Access to Higher Education Diploma in Business, BTEC ND in Business and A-Levels.
I found out the local college can provide an A-Level pathway of Maths, English and Law. Will this these subjects be sufficient preparation for accounting degree? Will Maths, Economics and Accounting be a better mix? Has anybody taken fast track distance learning courses, if so what where your experiences? Will it be better doing a string of GCSEs prior to A-level studies? Will taking GCSE and AS Mathematics at the same time be doable? What will the work load be like? Soon to get my GCSE English result, predicted A/B, but I need to sit Mathematics and feel confident I’d be able to achieve a grade A*/A.
Thank you.
Best thing to do would be to contact LSE, you may be able to get in with your experience alone. Talk to them before you commit to anything, they won't hide the answers from you 
I would say A Levels. Simply because they give you the most options
I am a mature student who has just completed an Access course, and has a confirmed place at the LSE for next year in the Government department.
Apart from the core modules (done by all students), I did optional modules in English Literature, History and Government & Politics.
If I share my experiences with you rather than offer advice, it may be of help to you.
I have found that an access course is taken seriously by universities, and they do indeed welcome mature students.
I chose the Access course because it was one year and offered to instruct me in areas I thought I might be weak on, namely essay writing. All of the teachers I dealt with were passionate about getting access students into universities, and were without exception helpful. Many of them also taught the A level students, and they commented that the Access students were often better prepared for life at university.
I applied to my 5 choices through UCAS unsure what would happen and waited. I got 2 offers from my 4th and 5th choices fairly quickly. Then I got two invitations for interview and an invitation to sit an exam at the LSE. Both of the interviews followed a similar pattern, with questions on what I had done since leaving school and on what I had learnt from those experiences. They were in fact asking questions which resulted from my personal statement. They then probed to enable me to show my enthusiasm for the subject, before finishing with a few mildly awkward ones to see how I reacted. The exam past paper is available on the LSE web site.
The route into university for a mature student is different from those who apply at 18. You have different things to offer and these are often as important as your subjects and grades. You have work and life experiences that can often give you an advantage, and the extra few years you have often means you are more mature and this perhaps shows in your attitude to your studies.
What I would suggest to you is that entry to university is highly competitive, and the degree you choose as well as the university has a major influence on the likely chance you have of getting in. I would suggest further that it is a lottery, in which there are very few first prizes and most people walk away without them. I was lucky. I saw plenty of evidence of friends on my course that were not. Too many of them (particularly in Law) applied to only the most popular universities, and as a result got 4 rejections.
I do not believe there is a “best route”. I believe there is what works best for you, and prepares you best for the process. I would pick 5 universities and talk to the admissions departments of each of them. I would talk to the departments which offer both the A level and Access course and ask them about their track records in getting students into university. I would get a feel for all the institutions you are talking too. I would visit as many as you can get to see how you feel about the place. I loved my college, and was comfortable there for the entire year. One of the universities I visited which was high on my list I just didn’t like, and would probably been miserable there for 3 years.
The LSE is reputed to have more candidates for each vacancy than any other university in the world. I would urge you to apply, but I would also urge you to consider a plan B. I wish you every success in your journey, although only a short way on it myself, I have enjoyed what I have experienced, and am eagerly looking forward to the challenges of the future.
Apart from the core modules (done by all students), I did optional modules in English Literature, History and Government & Politics.
If I share my experiences with you rather than offer advice, it may be of help to you.
I have found that an access course is taken seriously by universities, and they do indeed welcome mature students.
I chose the Access course because it was one year and offered to instruct me in areas I thought I might be weak on, namely essay writing. All of the teachers I dealt with were passionate about getting access students into universities, and were without exception helpful. Many of them also taught the A level students, and they commented that the Access students were often better prepared for life at university.
I applied to my 5 choices through UCAS unsure what would happen and waited. I got 2 offers from my 4th and 5th choices fairly quickly. Then I got two invitations for interview and an invitation to sit an exam at the LSE. Both of the interviews followed a similar pattern, with questions on what I had done since leaving school and on what I had learnt from those experiences. They were in fact asking questions which resulted from my personal statement. They then probed to enable me to show my enthusiasm for the subject, before finishing with a few mildly awkward ones to see how I reacted. The exam past paper is available on the LSE web site.
The route into university for a mature student is different from those who apply at 18. You have different things to offer and these are often as important as your subjects and grades. You have work and life experiences that can often give you an advantage, and the extra few years you have often means you are more mature and this perhaps shows in your attitude to your studies.
What I would suggest to you is that entry to university is highly competitive, and the degree you choose as well as the university has a major influence on the likely chance you have of getting in. I would suggest further that it is a lottery, in which there are very few first prizes and most people walk away without them. I was lucky. I saw plenty of evidence of friends on my course that were not. Too many of them (particularly in Law) applied to only the most popular universities, and as a result got 4 rejections.
I do not believe there is a “best route”. I believe there is what works best for you, and prepares you best for the process. I would pick 5 universities and talk to the admissions departments of each of them. I would talk to the departments which offer both the A level and Access course and ask them about their track records in getting students into university. I would get a feel for all the institutions you are talking too. I would visit as many as you can get to see how you feel about the place. I loved my college, and was comfortable there for the entire year. One of the universities I visited which was high on my list I just didn’t like, and would probably been miserable there for 3 years.
The LSE is reputed to have more candidates for each vacancy than any other university in the world. I would urge you to apply, but I would also urge you to consider a plan B. I wish you every success in your journey, although only a short way on it myself, I have enjoyed what I have experienced, and am eagerly looking forward to the challenges of the future.
Original post by Wibble99
I would get a feel for all the institutions you are talking too. I would visit as many as you can get to see how you feel about the place. I loved my college, and was comfortable there for the entire year. One of the universities I visited which was high on my list I just didn’t like, and would probably been miserable there for 3 years.
This is a piece of general advice I think mature students should bear in mind; be wary of falling into the trap that a lot of teenage A-Level students do, which is to assume that the more prestigious a university is, the better it will be for them. I don't think one can ever know exactly what being at a certain uni is going to be like until/unless you actually study there, but you can get a pretty good idea from your own research. Much as you've intimated, I feel that 3 fulfilling years at a 'lesser' uni is better than 3 grim years at a top-flight uni. It's a matter of gauging what's going to work best for you.
Original post by Jesssweet
This is a very helpful response and is linked to a current situation I myself am preparing for. Can I ask where you studied your access course? Many thanks in advance, Jess
Just for info, the post you're talking about is over five years old, and the person who made it hasn't been active on this website for over a year now.
Oops, I noticed the earlier posts on this thread were in August, but I didn't spot they were August 2010 
(Not sure why people dredge up and post on threads from yonks ago instead of starting a new one.)
(Not sure why people dredge up and post on threads from yonks ago instead of starting a new one.)
Original post by Klix88
Just for info, the post you're talking about is over five years old, and the person who made it hasn't been active on this website for over a year now.
Thank you! New to the website so it was an oversight on my part. Subsequently found a newer thread to comment on but generally looking for advice on any past studies and current! Thanks for the heads up.
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