What are A-Levels like? (An insight for the finished GCSE students)

Mushu

What are they like? Alot to cover? Is all necessarily hard? Any tips? What were your experiences? :smile:

Reply 1

Wagamuffin

Nah they are fine. Depends on what you take; it could be very "different" (maths for example, although some actually find it easier!). I guess you are much less likely to pass if you haven't revised (IMO in GCSE you didn't have to revise as much), but as long as you do your "cramming" you'll be ok.

Reply 2

musicman

To be honest, I found the step up from AS to A2 much more difficult than the step from GCSE to AS. I found that the 1st year wasn't much harder than GCSE, especially maths and french, though I'm sure it probably varies between subjects. The step from AS to A2 was much more difficult I found, as you cannot drift through the course anymore and continue to get 'A's! This was especially true in English Lit I found. But then it all comes down to the courses you are taking really. :smile:

Reply 3

Leekey

I did absolutely nothing for GCSE's and was lucky to get reasonable grades. I went into my AS year with much the same attitude and again I was lucky to get reasonable grades. Thankfully I turned it around in my A2 year and I think I stand a chance of getting decent grades at A2. The only advice I can really offer is that you should pick subjects that you enjoy (don't pick History because your parents like it :rolleyes:

) and make CERTAIN that you put the work in during the first year!!! :smile:

Reply 4

Rose in Bloom

I did one of my a levels all in one year...It was the worst thing any1 can do to themselves..but I had no choice...
So..AS IMO was VERY staright forward and was just a build up on the gcses...while for the A2..harder work is needed :smile:

Another thing I felt was that since we give exams at the end of As and then again at the end of A2...it kind of breaks down the load and pressure....
Hope that helped :smile:

Reply 5

*dave*

AS exams are invariably easier than A2 exams, but they still have the same weighting. It is so much easier to gain good UMS in AS's, so dont set your sights on a particular grade, just try and get as many UMS as you can get. Don't slack off during AS as youll be left with a lot to do in the final year.

If you can get 270+ at AS level in all your subjects, youll only need to scrape B's in the final year to end with an A. And scraping B's as A2 is, in my opinion, about as hard as scraping A's at AS.

This isprobably quite confusing, but there Ive said it lol. Work hard during the first year and the second year will be MUCH easier.

Reply 6

Juwel

The biggest tip one can offer is don't doss about in your first year. You don't want to be lumbered with revision for resits while you're doing your A2 exams. A-Levels aren't as hard as they are time-consuming, but you will realise that GCSEs were a relative laze in comparison. But work hard and success will follow.

Reply 7

*dave*

I know people are gonna disagree, but I think I did more work for GCSEs in year 11 than my whole A-Level time. Certainly more coursework. For me at least, there was a month long rush period in about April for GCSEs which i didnt have for A-Levels.

Maybe its just cos my exams were all very exam based, and I had only one bit of coursework all year.

Reply 8

musicbloke

I think thaqt you should also bear in mind that A levels are much more enjoyable than GCSEs and there is lots that can be said for reading around your subjects.

MB

Reply 9

~ o ~

AS Levels I felt were not much different to GCSEs! (espicially Geography - it's just a recap really). You generally just cover the basics of the subject without going into much depth. I found the change from AS to A2 much harder! For instance in Geography, despite being a solid A Grade student at AS Level I was getting Ds in my first few weeks into the A2 course :eek:

My advise would be - try and get as many UMS marks you can at AS , because they are so much easier to gain in comparison to A Level.

Reply 10

Wise One

Honestly, I found AS-levels easier than GCSE...probably because GCSE hoop-jumping bored me brainless, whereas now at least I am hoop-jumping in subjects that I actually give a damn about (as opposed to German, Resistant Materials, Drama etc.). Also, I've probably put more work in this year than last.

Supposedly, the leap between AS and A2 is bigger than between GCSE and AS.

The modular retake structure also takes some of the pressure off, giving you a second chance that perhaps you didn't have at GCSE

:smile: