The Student Room Logo
Applying to Uni for 2024? Find your Uni here and chat with others! >>
Applying to Uni for 2024? Find your Uni here and chat with others! >>
Applying to Uni for 2024? Find your Uni here and chat with others! >>
This thread is closed

Cambridge Workloads

Scroll to see replies

Reply 80
Avatar for Kyle_S-C
Kyle_S-C
12
*Liana*
I hear module marks are a good indication, though the A-level grades themselves may not be. There is no perfect correlation, instead I feel that if you found A-levels difficult chances are you may find Oxbridge difficult too. Equally if you breezed through but lack the work ethic, you may struggle. But you might just cram it all in at the end and do OK.

I don't really feel like I work hard enough. I always get distracted, because even though I find the concepts in my subject interesting, there are times when I really don't want to answer another weird question about Biochemistry practicals.


At the same time I feel that being at Oxbridge can make you much better equipped to deal with your subject. You generally acclimatise to the difficulty of the work set and tend not to drastically exceed or fall short of the level required, which is why there's generally a normal distribution to most of these things. I feel much better at science at Oxbridge as compared to A level, despite going to a good private school with good teachers.
I had difficulty with A levels, but this was very much a consequence of the teaching, class sizes, and difficulty of a lot of students in my A level classes. Yes there are schools in which everyone gets top grades, and I would expect in those conditions it is easier for one to achieve top grades oneself. If you happen to be in an inner-London comp then you're gonna find it more difficult however bright you are. Cambridge is very different. I managed to do ok, and I could probably do any GCSE now in 2 days and any A level in 2 weeks (apart from languages of course). That's because I now have those skills. It doesn't mean that A levels are easy.

MB
bethy_uk
I took all 4 of my A levels in one year without a teacher and had time for other stuff. You can pass English Lit with an A without reading the books (I got full marks on 2 exams without having read the books) As long as you know how to structure one history essay you can do the lot - it's just learning facts and putting them into a formula. I wasn't challenged at all in my A levels. I wasn't even that proud of achieving them because they're so easy to get. Might have been different if I'd been doing maths and science though.

I had the exact same thing with E.Lit (including 100% twice), except I read the texts once (and that's the only thing I did) because the lecturing wasn't good enough to know anything about it elsewise :p:

I had the extremes of working my arse off for Chem and having very little reward. I especially struggled with the exam technique, I didn't actually find Chem as a subject that difficult (except some of the more mathsy/physicsy bits) Biology I found very easy, but only just managed As because of exam technique.

Before A level I finished school at 17yrs in SA doing an international qualification called HIGCSE (about the same level as an IB or Scottish Higher) I did that, and the GCSEs before it almost entirely unaided, doing long distance studies and emailing tutors if I had problems.

I know for a fact that A level was not conceptually or content-wise any harder or higher in standard than my HIGCSEs, just a hang of alot more poorly marked, and with rubbishly written exams.

I think you really can't make predictions about how someone will find Oxbridge from how they found A level, and fortunately for us even the interviewers don't make that sort of prediction: they take the full picture into account.
musicbloke
I had difficulty with A levels, but this was very much a consequence of the teaching, class sizes, and difficulty of a lot of students in my A level classes. Yes there are schools in which everyone gets top grades, and I would expect in those conditions it is easier for one to achieve top grades oneself. If you happen to be in an inner-London comp then you're gonna find it more difficult however bright you are. Cambridge is very different. I managed to do ok, and I could probably do any GCSE now in 2 days and any A level in 2 weeks (apart from languages of course). That's because I now have those skills. It doesn't mean that A levels are easy.

MB

Fully agreed. The discrepency between the learning experiences of people at different colleges and institutions is mad! I joined TSR to start with because I found threads in the Academic section where people were discussing the very coursework assignments I was working on, but their lecturers and colleges had given them so much more information and advice! We were pretty much left to figure it out ourselves.
Reply 84
Avatar for johnrambo
johnrambo
2
I think A levels viewed from the outside seem very different to how they can appear to students within the system. When I moved from GCSEs to A levels my teachers stressed the difference in level of understanding required. I dutifully laboured in awe of the towering challenge before me. Inevitably, this ideal subsided slightly and I found myself looking for an easy way out. I then found the syllabus and mark schemes etc. for a couple of my subjects and decided I'd revise more or less exclusively by cross-referencing these sources. Not only did this prove an easy way of achieving the same results, but I did far better in the subjects I took this cynical approach to than those I treated with a lot more respect.
The fact is, many of my teachers worked to some Ideal of A levels as some 'educational gold standard' and in doing so made the whole experience a lot more daunting than it needed to be. I almost got the sense that some teachers disapproved of my high marks because of the way I did it. Perhaps rightly so. But I can't help but feel that were it not for some others of my teachers being rather too inspirational and inculcating rather too much appreciation for the integrity of their subject, I would have adopted an equally cynical approach to all my subjects and done correspondingly well.
People often remark that their 'best' subject is the one they did worst in. I'd be inclined to put that down to a little too much respect and a consequent denial of a tick-box exam system.
I'm sure I learned a lot of genuinely useful study skills during A levels, and my possession of these would no doubt make them easier a second time round. But another important factor would be a greater understanding of what A levels actually are; something which the best teachers should (ideally) stamp out from day one.
Reply 85
Avatar for jjpp
jjpp
11
i'm lookign forward to the challenge of cambridge workload. Should be a nice challenge after A levels and all
^ Crazy person ^
johnrambo

People often remark that their 'best' subject is the one they did worst in. I'd be inclined to put that down to a little too much respect and a consequent denial of a tick-box exam system.

After reading your post, I was the idealist who in my first year aimed to fully 'understand' my chemistry. This was a bit of a mistake.. second year I gave up on actually learning the subject (which didn't seem to be doing me any favours) and did my best to crack the system with past papers. (in doing so salvaging the A level)
I disagree, though, that my 'best' subject was the one I did worst in. E Lit I did no work in and got stupidly high marks in. It just depends on the subject I guess. Like with Chem what you said was true. With 'respecting' Bio, and studying it after an idealistic fashion, I did fine. Varies I guess, but overall you're right :biggrin:
I suppose in arts subjects, where marks are given much more subjectively than the science/maths "right or wrong" objectivity, there's much less to be said for a tick-box approach to passing the exams.

A distinct difference when reaching university is that, regardless of subject, suddenly the tick-box system won't help so much any more - at least not as the sole approach. Even in NatSci, the bulk of workload compared to A level is so tremendous that you do need to give each subject the respect it deserves if you're going to succeed. "Honour your work and it will honour you" and all that...
Reply 89
Avatar for bethy_uk
bethy_uk
johnrambo


People often remark that their 'best' subject is the one they did worst in. I'd be inclined to put that down to a little too much respect and a consequent denial of a tick-box exam system.



exactly.
randomlaughter
I suppose in arts subjects, where marks are given much more subjectively than the science/maths "right or wrong" objectivity, there's much less to be said for a tick-box approach to passing the exams.


This is a good point. I often, when talking to Natscis, nedics and similar, when they're writing "essays", remark that at least their science subjects have right and wrong answers! There is no right or wrong in History, just how well and convincingly you can argue...
But then the other side of the coin is that, eg in history, you're far more likely to be able to bluff a question when you haven't learned the right answer - which is obviously impossible in sciences!
Reply 92
Avatar for epitome
epitome
11
FadeToBlackout
Natscis, nedics and similar

So, what is a "nedic", FTB? :p:
randomlaughter
But then the other side of the coin is that, eg in history, you're far more likely to be able to bluff a question when you haven't learned the right answer - which is obviously impossible in sciences!


Sorry, what's one of those again? There really is nothing so concrete as "right" or "wrong". A page of utter made-up tosh is, in one sense, just as "right" as a long, well-evidenced supported essay. It's just that the latter carries more academic weight and is better argued- but it's not "right". :smile:


So, what is a "nedic", FTB? :tongue:


A scottish chav-a-like medical student. What IS "" in bbcode, epi? Philosophical ideas combined with computer code? :p:
Reply 94
Avatar for epitome
epitome
11
What IS "
" in bbcode, epi? Philosophical ideas combined with computer code?
Yeah, I just noticed that and felt like an eejit!
Clearly I'm negating the concept of "is" - there go existence and the present tense in one fell typo! :wink:
epitome
Yeah, I just noticed that and felt like an eejit!
Clearly I'm negating the concept of "is" - there go existence and the present tense in one fell typo! :wink:


Melodramatic Engling :p:
Reply 96
Avatar for epitome
epitome
11
Melodramatic Engling

Dull Historian, so wound up with the past that you don't care I just caused the Present to be negated with a single punctuation mark. Tush. :wink: :p:
epitome
Dull Historian,


Well, dullness is in the eye of the beholder. :p: How can a knowledge of rowing, plague and a deep sense of cynicism be dull? :wink:

Edit: Aparently I'm not the sharpest tool in the box, so the criticism of "dull" is quite apt!
Reply 98
Avatar for *Liana*
*Liana*
1
Craghyrax
Fully agreed. The discrepency between the learning experiences of people at different colleges and institutions is mad! I joined TSR to start with because I found threads in the Academic section where people were discussing the very coursework assignments I was working on, but their lecturers and colleges had given them so much more information and advice! We were pretty much left to figure it out ourselves.


I had that kind of discrepancy even within my school - we got loads of help for Biology coursework, with teachers checking + returning work so we could edit things, but for Chemistry, we just handed it in and hoped for the best. The coursework system is very open to abuse.
Reply 99
Avatar for epitome
epitome
11
How can a knowledge of rowing, plague and a deep sense of cynicism be dull?

Given that I'm interested (amongst other things) in pre-1700's literature, Anglo-Saxon and British folk musics, I don't think I'm qualified to answer that! :wink:

Related discussions

Trending

Latest

Latest