The Student Room Group

My Grow Your Grades Blog ❣️

Hello and welcome to my 2017 grow your grades!

I am in year 13 at a sixth form college studying English Literature, Spanish, Law and EPQ. I am predicted A*A*A. However my A*s are more like A/A* so I really need to work to secure these grades (especially in Spanish).

As of Friday I have applied for English Lit/ Lit and lang at Manchester, Newcastle, Leeds, Durham and Oxford. I have applied to Castle college Durham and Exeter college Oxford (where I am very doubtful that I will get an offer but it is my absolute dream uni.)

I have 7A*s and 3As at GCSE. I am Hoping that the 3As won't really effect me as they were in maths, physics and biology - completely unrelated subjects.

My main priorities are to secure an A* in English lit and to really work hard to get an A in Spanish as it's something I struggle with.

Hope you enjoy following me on my journey!

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Hi :hi:
Well done for your awesome grades! I'm sure your 3As won't set you back - still a fantastic grade!
I'll watch this for when you update :biggrin:
Thought I'd give you a quick run down of today's plans:

Spanish

I have multiple translations I need to get through. I find translations the most relaxing part of studying a MFL. I also need to do some IRP research, If you don't know what that is I'll post more info later when I've finished. Then once I've done that I'm just going to look through my planner and see if I have time to do other work that's not due for a while.

English

For English, my main priority today is coursework. I might post a separate update about that with my progress, word count, topic etc. I also have a timed essay coming up, Wednesday I think. It's on poetry, my last essay I got a B on because it was quite rushed and I didn't understand the requirements so for this one I'm hoping to get an A or an A*. I'm going to plan this today. I'll upload a picture later.

EPQ

So I'm going to upload about my EPQ topic later. But my plan for today is to read as much of The Catcher in the Rye as possible. I also need to update my EPQ diary.
Original post by laurawatt
Hi :hi:
Well done for your awesome grades! I'm sure your 3As won't set you back - still a fantastic grade!
I'll watch this for when you update :biggrin:


thank you!!
All the best from here! I hope you get your A* by the end of your A-Level Campaign.
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It's the end of Day 1 🌟

I won't be doing updates in detail every day as it'll probably get very boring, but today I've done a lot of EPQ research including watching a TED talk which was so interesting.

I'm going to talk more about EPQ tomorrow so get ready for that!

I managed to do some Spanish translations that took WAY longer than expected. The topic we are studying is about immigration and it's actually really interesting so it wasn't too bad.
Extended Project Qualification: a quick rundown 🎈

Hi, so as promised I'm going to tell you a bit about my EPQ (including tips for managing the workload). As I've applied to do English Lit next year my EPQ is about literature, but it can be about anything you find interesting. For those who don't know it's basically a research project chosen by you and supervised by a teacher. I've chosen to do a 5000 word dissertation whilst some people make an artefact such as a painting or even produce a film or performance.

So, my EPQ is about 20th century American Literature. I'm focusing on the American Dream as I find it really interesting. I'm writing about books such as The Great Gatsby and The catcher in the Rye. I've read a lot for it- this is my first tip! Reading loads will really help you, I find it easier to fit half an hour reading into my schedule than to research on the web for hours with no real clear path.

TED talks are also really useful because you can just sit back and listen or take notes- they're usually interesting and easy to understand as the speakers are always quite engaging. I also love podcasts for the same reason, especially BBC's In Our Time. Make sure you write down anything you use as you need to credit your sources.

The best tip for EPQ is sticking to a schedule. I've got a timetable, a gantt chart and a to do list for mine. All are good options. They're also good because you can use them in your EPQ diary as evidence. The diary can be a bit of a hassle for some but it's actually not too bad if you set a specific day to do it and stick to this. I usually write in bullet point form.

My EPQ target grade is an A* and I'm really hoping I can achieve this. I'll keep you updated on my progress and maybe upload photos of my timetable.
great work on those grades!
Original post by Knightoflogic
great work on those grades!


thank you!
Daily Update/Important Reminder 🌼


So today hasn't been great. I've had too much to do, way too much. I'd been working from when I got home at 4.45 until 10.30, with a small break for dinner, I was already really tired and falling asleep all day. I've ended up leaving a large chunk of my Spanish revision even though I have a massive vocab test tomorrow and I've also not completed the homework due. I did manage to do a lot of English revision for a mock/timed essay though.

I just wanted to say that it's so important, no matter what, to prioritise your mental health. If you're tired and stressed to the point you're getting headaches like I was this evening then stop and take some time to relax. Mental health is just as important as physical health- you wouldn't go on a run with a broken leg.

I struggle following my own advice sometimes. I know it's said a lot but yeah. It feels dreadful to have to leave so much work unfinished but I'll be better off if I'm not getting ill and letting my grades suffer in the long term.

The GYG challenge is about highs and lows and today was definitely a low.
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good morning!

A quick university update after week 1 of sending off my UCAS.

Newcastle University:
On Wednesday I received an offer from Newcastle. It's AAB with an A in EPQ. I'm so pleased and so relieved to have had my first offer only a few days after the deadline!

Manchester University:
So on Thursday I got an email saying I'd got through to stage two of the application process due to my grades etc. I now need to do an admissions test type thing which is one part critical essay, one part why I want to go to Manchester. I'm about half way through this, they only gave me 5 days to do it though so I need to finish it today.

Oxford University:
No new actual university updates, however, I have my timetable for the mock interviews at college which is a bit daunting considering I may not even get a real one!

Leeds University:
No new updates. Really would like an offer soon 🙃.

Durham University:
No new updates however apparently we won't hear back until March.
mini update ❣️


HAPPY HALF TERM! (for me at least)

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Although not too happy, I have a lot of work to do throughout my 11 days off and I'm hoping it'll be a productive week and a bit. I've attached my to do list for this half term which I need to be sure to stick to.

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November 2nd is my ELAT (Oxford uni admission test). The thought is hanging over me and making me so anxious but it's so difficult to prepare for so I'm trying to be calm and logical about the whole thing. I also have a few college bits to get on with, we have internal assessments to do and I'm hoping for A*A*A however will be happy with AAA. 🍎
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I know that I only posted one of these the other day, but it's been just under two weeks since I sent it off now so it's time for another one! I won't go into detail.

Leeds:

As of today I have an offer from Leeds!!!! Honestly so happy that I now have two offers, it's really taken some pressure off. As with Newcastle it's AAA or AAB with an A in EPQ.

I was on cloud nine today when I got an email as I discovered that my personal statement has been sent off with a typo and was freaking out all day so this has really settled my nerves.

Manchester:

I've submitted my admissions test for Manchester, both a 300 word critical analysis and a 200 word 'Why Manchester?' type question. It wasn't too bad- I kind of enjoyed doing it as I discovered loads about the course.



No new updates so far on Durham or Oxford.



Offers received:
Leeds (AAA/AAB)
Newcastle (AAA/AAB)
How dare you come on my thread and say my grades are amazing 😂 Yours are on a whole other level😂 You've got this on lock💯Good luck!
Original post by PeetaRJ
How dare you come on my thread and say my grades are amazing 😂 Yours are on a whole other level😂 You've got this on lock💯Good luck!



AHH thank you so much!! 😂
Loving this thread! Completely different subjects to me but your grades are insane and you look like you have your life together! (Way more so than me, but that's what GYG is there for right, to try and gain motivation aha?!)

Well done on your offers so far and the best of luck for your Oxbridge application and the ELAT (Basically just a week to go now :cry2:)
I'll definitely be following along!
If your so doutful about oxford why apply in the first place? Might as well save one slot for a insurance uni
Reply 17
Wow! You’re expected grades are also amazing! Really excited to see what happens! I imagine oxford will keep you waiting for quite a while, but I can’t wait to see where you end up. xxx
Original post by liv1649
Wow! You’re expected grades are also amazing! Really excited to see what happens! I imagine oxford will keep you waiting for quite a while, but I can’t wait to see where you end up. xxx


thank you! yes they will and so will Durham- just hoping it's worth the wait
Original post by EmilySarah00
Loving this thread! Completely different subjects to me but your grades are insane and you look like you have your life together! (Way more so than me, but that's what GYG is there for right, to try and gain motivation aha?!)

Well done on your offers so far and the best of luck for your Oxbridge application and the ELAT (Basically just a week to go now :cry2:)
I'll definitely be following along!



thank you! (honestly my life is far from together atm)

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