Equivalent grades / What are my options with A*AC?

I've already got my grades but I didn’t apply this year, and I've been hearing that a lot of universities don't consider A*AC equivalent to AAB. This is especially annoying because, having done a remark on my C paper, I am now 1 mark away from a B.

Most of the courses I'm looking at have a typical offer of AAB but have a minimum entry requirement of ABB. If the absolute minimum entry requirement is an A, a B, and another B, not just the same number of UCAS points, does that mean that I'm restricted to BBC courses? And if so, is it the same for people who get A*A*C? Because that seems a little unfair.

I emailed the admissions office for Edinburgh University and they told me that they wouldn’t consider my application at all because it didn’t meet the minimum entry requirements of AAB. I thought this was a bit strange because their website says the minimum entry requirements for the course in question is ABB not AAB. Also, I know someone who got into Edinburgh with a C on a course that had ABB as a minimum, but he had the advantage of having had his personal statement read because he applied on predicted grades, got an offer, and then rang the university after failing to meet it. So I know that they do accept people with equivalent grades in some circumstances even if they’ve told me they don’t.

Is it worth trying to apply anyway? Is it worth emailing the other universities on my list, or is this not something that they’ll be able to answer honestly?

I was hoping that having my actual grades would give me more certainty about which universities I’d be able to apply for, but it doesn’t look like I’m going to get that.

Reply 1

cheesecakelove

20

I think it would depend on the course. Some courses are more competitive than others and may be more stricter in terms of grade boundaries. What course are you looking to do?

I also assume that you are taking a gap year? What are you plans? You could use this to boost your applications.

Reply 2

Impala

3

Personally I'd call some unis asking if they accept resits and then resit the C. Alternatively you could apply through clearing as a lot of unis lower their grade requirements then but it depends on what uni you want to go to, some won't be in clearing at all and some still wouldn't accept a c.

Reply 3

aaronbrown

OP

2

Original post by cheesecakelove

I think it would depend on the course. Some courses are more competitive than others and may be more stricter in terms of grade boundaries. What course are you looking to do?

I also assume that you are taking a gap year? What are you plans? You could use this to boost your applications.

Hi, thanks for responding.

I'm planning to study philosophy, so there's a fair amount of competition to deal with.

I am taking a gap year - I'm working locally for roughly 6 months and then doing some inter-railing/backpacking in Europe. I'm not too concerned about my personal statement because I've got a lot of extra-curricular stuff that's relevant to philosophy. I've attended a lot of MUN conferences and taken part in Oxford Union debating competitions, so I can talk up the whole constructing and deconstructing logical arguments thing. I'm more worried about whether I can get far enough for them to read it.

Do you know if most universities focus on grades or UCAS points when making the first cut? If they won't even take my applications into consideration because of the C then I'm a bit stuffed, but if they use UCAS points to create a shortlist then I'm at an advantage. I did a Cambridge Pre-U course in one of my subjects and got a D3, which is worth slightly more than an A in terms of points.

Reply 4

MR1999

21

Original post by aaronbrown

Hi, thanks for responding.

I'm planning to study philosophy, so there's a fair amount of competition to deal with.

I am taking a gap year - I'm working locally for roughly 6 months and then doing some inter-railing/backpacking in Europe. I'm not too concerned about my personal statement because I've got a lot of extra-curricular stuff that's relevant to philosophy. I've attended a lot of MUN conferences and taken part in Oxford Union debating competitions, so I can talk up the whole constructing and deconstructing logical arguments thing. I'm more worried about whether I can get far enough for them to read it.

Do you know if most universities focus on grades or UCAS points when making the first cut? If they won't even take my applications into consideration because of the C then I'm a bit stuffed, but if they use UCAS points to create a shortlist then I'm at an advantage. I did a Cambridge Pre-U course in one of my subjects and got a D3, which is worth slightly more than an A in terms of points.

I heard a story of someone who got ABB but was accepted onto an AAB course because they got an A in the Cambridge Pre-U

Reply 5

Indigo&Violet

8

Unfortunately a number of universities are very strict on the grades vs points thing. I would craft a short generic email stating clearly what grades you have in what subjects, that you're interested in the philosophy course, would they consider you? Send it out to a few universities (at least 10 - it doesn't take long) and see what they say back. They will tend to answer honestly, although you might get a few "we'd look at you but you might be in a worse position than someone predicted AAB"

Is the Pre-U a short course or the full Pre-U? If its the full Pre-U most universities consider this equivalent to A level so you could be seen to have A*A(A)C. Note that Global Perspectives is sometimes seen as similar to General Studies and not included. Mention it in your email to universities and see what they say.

if you don't get many warm responses then it might be worth resitting the C subject. Given that you have your UMS breakdown it sounds like an old-style course so you should be able to resit just one module. Do you think school would be willing to predict you an A? With an A prediction you could get access to all the AAA courses, and if you ended up with A*AB many of them may still accept you on results day.

As a tip, for a Philosophy personal statement, I'd recommend having sat down and read a few philosophy books and being willing to talk about the ideas in them. Whilst the logical thinking developed in MUN/debate etc is a useful skill in philosophy, the actual experience of studying philosophy is a lot more bookish and lonely so they'll want to see that you still enjoy philosophy away from the cut and thrust of debating. You might talk about some of the debates you have participated in, but make sure you focus on the underlying philosophical issues you discussed, rather than your competence in teamwork or public speaking.

Good luck.

Reply 6

cheesecakelove

20

Original post by aaronbrown

Hi, thanks for responding.

I'm planning to study philosophy, so there's a fair amount of competition to deal with.

I am taking a gap year - I'm working locally for roughly 6 months and then doing some inter-railing/backpacking in Europe. I'm not too concerned about my personal statement because I've got a lot of extra-curricular stuff that's relevant to philosophy. I've attended a lot of MUN conferences and taken part in Oxford Union debating competitions, so I can talk up the whole constructing and deconstructing logical arguments thing. I'm more worried about whether I can get far enough for them to read it.

Do you know if most universities focus on grades or UCAS points when making the first cut? If they won't even take my applications into consideration because of the C then I'm a bit stuffed, but if they use UCAS points to create a shortlist then I'm at an advantage. I did a Cambridge Pre-U course in one of my subjects and got a D3, which is worth slightly more than an A in terms of points.

It does vary from uni to uni, so I would get into contact with the universities that you are interested in and find what they will and won't accept.

Equivalent grades / What are my options with A*AC?

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