What should I do?

How am I not ready? I feel more than ready.

Sorry about the vague thread title, it's simply because I can't really shorten what I have to ask sufficiently enough to be more descriptive. #Clipped# Got A's in science and Art, mostly B's in other subjects, a couple of C's, and an E in German. However I did crap at A level. So at the end of year 13 the A levels I have are;

B in A2 Art
E in A2 Psychology
D in AS Philosophy
E in AS Physics

and like I said I'm finishing off the A2 in philosophy as we speak. #Clipped#

So here are the possible situations...

1. I get the B and go to DMU
2. I get the B and do the foundation Art in the hope of going to a better university to do Architecture the following year
3. I don't get the B and do the foundation Art in the hope of going to a better university to do Architecture the following year

So... what do you think I should do? #Clipped#

Thanks, and sorry for the long, and probably boring and waffly post

You're not ready because you've not got the grades. TBH you're probably better resitting the year(s) or doing something else. You're wrong in the head if you are considering 6k for DMU etc.

OK. Time for me to say something here.

Grades in my day (mid 80's) were A is a good pass, B was an ok Pass, C was borderline! To goto University, and I am speaking as a guy that could have NEVER have done that after leaving school, you really need to be a straight A student to have a chance in hell, preference is shown to the 90%+ folks.

Now seeing as the furthest I got was "O" grades with a passable result (A for Maths, Craft & Design and Technical Drawing, B for Arithmatic and a merit in Drama... Please do not ask me about Chemistry and English ) I will say Kudos to you for doing the A levels, but to even CONSIDER using them grades to get into university!!!! Muhahaaaaaaaaa. Are you off your head or something!!!

If you really want it, either resit the A's or go do the foundation stuff and then get some work around your belt, cause those current results are terribad! Hell they wouldn't even get you a minimal wage job in McD's!!!

Sorry to the original poster, but in reality, there are not many uni's out there that would even consider giving you a chance.

Sorry about the vague thread title, it's simply because I can't really shorten what I have to ask sufficiently enough to be more descriptive.

Basically I want to do architecture, don't need to ask me why or question my motives, I'm very passionate about it yada yada.

I'm currently doing a third year at sixth form, just finishing off an A level I started in year 13, namely, Philosophy, and working the rest of the time at a restaurant.

Now for personal reasons and that frankly don't matter anymore and my school messing me about I didn't do that great (considering I was supposed to do them a year early) in my GCSEs, Got A's in science and Art, mostly B's in other subjects, a couple of C's, and an E in German. However I did crap at A level. So at the end of year 13 the A levels I have are;

B in A2 Art
E in A2 Psychology
D in AS Philosophy
E in AS Physics

and like I said I'm finishing off the A2 in philosophy as we speak.

Now I didn't apply for university in year 13 because of the aforementioned issues, but when I applied this year I just wanted to make sure I got in to university, and knowing my grades are rubbish, I basically applied for the worst universities that do architecture, because I didn't want to be another year behind most of my classmates.

So I applied for East London, London South Bank, Portsmouth, Leeds Met and De Montfort. I got an "interview" from UEL, except when I got there they decided they didn't need to interview me, even though I'd spend nearly £100 getting there and back, and then rejected me. I also got an interview from South Bank, who rejected me saying my portfolio was not big enough (not helped by the fact that my school lost over half of my A level art work, and damaged two of my big sculptures I had done). Portsmouth and Leeds Met point blank rejected me, and I got an offer without an interview from DMU, having sent them my digital portfolio. All I need for the offer is a B in A2 philosophy.

Having not got the offer from DMU until fairly late (it was the last uni I heard from too) I assumed they were going to reject me since at least in the league tables it's actually the best one I applied for, I managed to get my self an unconditional place on an Art foundation course at a nearby collage.

So here are the possible situations...

1. I get the B and go to DMU
2. I get the B and do the foundation Art in the hope of going to a better university to do Architecture the following year
3. I don't get the B and do the foundation Art in the hope of going to a better university to do Architecture the following year

So... what do you think I should do? Obviously if I did go to DMU, I could go somewhere better for the Part 2 as well. I have been to DMU and liked the place, and the course seemed really interesting also, I'm just worried about some of the things people say about it on here, and the potential job prospects/albeit lack of (although I know that's a problem for all architecture graduates at the moment).

Thanks, and sorry for the long, and probably boring and waffly post

Well I don't think most courses care whether you take a foundation or not, at least from my experience the universities didn't bother asking me anything about foundation. It's more about producing the portfolio I think. If you think doing foundation will allow you to produce a better portfolio then go for it. But personally I would chose DMU simply because unless you have an amazing portfolio I think most unis won't consider BDE - and you have to remember another year means a hike in fees.

Not trying to be harsh here, but If your being rejected by in your words "the worst universities that offer architecture" do you think you'll do well on the course?

If your happy with DMU, go, I reckon they might even be a bit flexible with they're grades.

If not, you could do a foundation, and apply route B to art schools (because you seem to have done best at art) and become an art teacher, you'll probably be happier than all the architects ever combined.

Sorry about the vague thread title, it's simply because I can't really shorten what I have to ask sufficiently enough to be more descriptive.

Basically I want to do architecture, don't need to ask me why or question my motives, I'm very passionate about it yada yada.

I'm currently doing a third year at sixth form, just finishing off an A level I started in year 13, namely, Philosophy, and working the rest of the time at a restaurant.

Now for personal reasons and that frankly don't matter anymore and my school messing me about I didn't do that great (considering I was supposed to do them a year early) in my GCSEs, Got A's in science and Art, mostly B's in other subjects, a couple of C's, and an E in German. However I did crap at A level. So at the end of year 13 the A levels I have are;

B in A2 Art
E in A2 Psychology
D in AS Philosophy
E in AS Physics

and like I said I'm finishing off the A2 in philosophy as we speak.

Now I didn't apply for university in year 13 because of the aforementioned issues, but when I applied this year I just wanted to make sure I got in to university, and knowing my grades are rubbish, I basically applied for the worst universities that do architecture, because I didn't want to be another year behind most of my classmates.

So I applied for East London, London South Bank, Portsmouth, Leeds Met and De Montfort. I got an "interview" from UEL, except when I got there they decided they didn't need to interview me, even though I'd spend nearly £100 getting there and back, and then rejected me. I also got an interview from South Bank, who rejected me saying my portfolio was not big enough (not helped by the fact that my school lost over half of my A level art work, and damaged two of my big sculptures I had done). Portsmouth and Leeds Met point blank rejected me, and I got an offer without an interview from DMU, having sent them my digital portfolio. All I need for the offer is a B in A2 philosophy.

Having not got the offer from DMU until fairly late (it was the last uni I heard from too) I assumed they were going to reject me since at least in the league tables it's actually the best one I applied for, I managed to get my self an unconditional place on an Art foundation course at a nearby collage.

So here are the possible situations...

1. I get the B and go to DMU
2. I get the B and do the foundation Art in the hope of going to a better university to do Architecture the following year
3. I don't get the B and do the foundation Art in the hope of going to a better university to do Architecture the following year

So... what do you think I should do? Obviously if I did go to DMU, I could go somewhere better for the Part 2 as well. I have been to DMU and liked the place, and the course seemed really interesting also, I'm just worried about some of the things people say about it on here, and the potential job prospects/albeit lack of (although I know that's a problem for all architecture graduates at the moment).

Thanks, and sorry for the long, and probably boring and waffly post

You don't deserve to go to university. Not with those grades.
They should make a law allowing only students with 3 Cs + to go to university.

You say you had problems, blame your school for losing your work, but at the end of the day you've always had a choice to pull your socks up. Everyone has problems now and then. Live with it, that is how life is.

I certainly wouldn't contract you to design my house.

I suggest resitting those A levels.

I think so yes, I don't think I've put much/any effort into my A levels until this year, and frankly I don't really think any of the subjects you do at A level are anything like the Architecture degree. Also I was rejected from some universities because I didn't have the grades when their grade requirements were lower than that of DMU which I got an offer from.... ?

I mean your portfolio (and personal statement), to be rejected by these 4, it must have been poor. Thats a truer representation of your suitability to architecture. So you have to ask yourself, was it you didnt have the skill, or because you didnt try hard enough. And not putting effort in to your a-levels is not a good attitude to have, architecture is so competitive good grades are just assumed.

Well no.. I was given an interview or an offer for three of the five. And my head of sixth form said my personal statement was of the standard he'd expect from someone applying to oxbridge. Nobody rejected me on my portfolio except the one, but tbh I think she just didn't like me in the interview it was my first interview and I was nervous and gave stupid answers. Also my portfolio is pretty good if I do say so myself, I've had my work displayed in a couple of art galleries as well as having a permanent installation at my school I did. I was rejected by most of them due to my bad grades I believe, bar the one which was because of a bad interview, and I probably didn't explain my portfolio very well.

Aaaanyway, this is all besides the point, I don't want your opinion of whether or not I'm suited to the course there is no way you can gauge that over a few of my posts on an internet forum. So if it's all about grades, a foundation course is in ucas points equivalent to that and many universities say they accept it, so clearly no it's not all about A level grades. I'm just wondering realistically how many universities really accept people with foundation (of the ones that include it in there requirements), but then I guess nobody on here is really going to know anyway.

example:

http://www.ljmu.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/course.asp?CourseId=K100

on the requirements it says they accept a foundation course on its own.

I didn't say you weren't, I said it would be good to ask yourself this. All I see are excuses. You asked for our honest opinions, here they are.

but you did say "your portfolio (and personal statement), to be rejected by these 4, it must have been poor. Thats a truer representation of your suitability to architecture" but whatever

I asked for honest opinions, based on the assumption that this is the right course for me (albeit not in so many words), but okay, and I've already asked myself this, this isn't something I'm doing on a whim.

End of the day you think I'm a failure trying to make excuses to justify to myself why I deserve to go to university when I don't. That isn't the truth of the matter but if you think that then fine, it doesn't really change the question I'm asking though or the information I'm trying to get.

Why is DMU so bad?
What universities will actually accept a foundation art course?
Then thus, which route should I go down, straight to DMU, or a foundation course then to a "better" university?

I didn't say any of this, directly or indirectly. So don't ****ing tell me what I think. MathematicsKiller said you don't deserve to go to uni. But yes it has to be said, a lot of excuses,

Nobody said DMU was bad. Apart from archiboi who just implied it wasn't worth 6 grand a year (I think they're going on next years prices).

And for spurswilts benefit, all of this was said with love and warmth from the bottom of my helpful informed heart. I'm not a horrible person :'(

1. A foundation course isn't going to help much. With more applications to K100 since records began year upon year, it gets harder and harder to get in. Knowledge is also more readily available, portfolio's have to EVEN better than last years. Why did they introduce A* - alevel!? Sorry but you've just not got the grades. I think you should be an art teacher or do something else. I'm not being harsh, it's just honest truth.

2. DMU is a horrible poly, in an awful town that LOST it's RIBA accreditation because it was so bad. It is so desperate for students it ADVERTISES on TV and it sends graduates Cd's, Pen's, Watches, Lollypops, Chocolate Bars, Sketchbooks and other memorabilia just to fill up it's intake. It really isn't worth it.

I just would consider doing something else, you'll end up richer and happier than most architects.

Well it wouldn't be BDE, it'd be BBE, although your point probably stands. But you say they don't care about a foundation, I realise the top courses don't UCL, Bath etc. but a lot of the course I looked at when I was applying would say something like they accept for example BBB, or equivelent from Btec or a merit on a foundation course etc. Kind of implies it would be a sufficient alternative? Also you get UCAS points from a foundation course so why wouldn't be an alternative? A lot of architecture schools accept people based on them having a Btec in art....