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Apply to Cambridge/LSE with these GCSE's?

Hi guys,
I just wanted everyone's honest opinion on whether I have a good chance of getting an offer from Cambridge.
In GCSE I have a lack of A* and I was in an inexperienced and underachieving school in which my grades were top 9%. I got;
Maths A
English Lit A
English Lang A
Double science AA
Business A
PE A
History A
In A2 I believe/highly confident I will be predicted A*A*A. Say I achieve that and my PS etc are all good, will I honestly stand a good chance of getting an offer from Cambridge to do law?
Thanks guys.
cambridge don't look at your gcses as much as oxford- i know someone who got into cambridge with b's and c's at gcses so your grades are great. if you do well at a level, you definitely stand a chance!
Reply 2
Avatar for H.a.hx
H.a.hx
15
Your GCSEs are really good. Focus on doing really well on your A-Levels too! Good luck :smile: I'm sure you stand a good chance.
(edited 6 years ago)
Now that there are no AS-levels, GCSEs are unfortunately the only set of public exam results any university has to judge you by, and even if you get excellent predicted grades, your GCSEs are the only marker they have to go on of how likely you are to achieve those grades.

For that reason, you may find it more difficult to get offers from top unis like Cambridge/LSE applying in year 13 with your predicted grades.

However, if you do achieve those grades, and take a gap year in which you get a job to save up or doing something else productive, then you would have an excellent chance.

Definitely apply in year 13 with your predicted grades - the fact that you go to a struggling school could definitely improve your chances of an offer - just don't give up if you don't get into any top unis first time round. Be prepared to give it a second go.
Original post by LeapingLucy
Now that there are no AS-levels, GCSEs are unfortunately the only set of public exam results any university has to judge you by, and even if you get excellent predicted grades, your GCSEs are the only marker they have to go on of how likely you are to achieve those grades.

For that reason, you may find it more difficult to get offers from top unis like Cambridge/LSE applying in year 13 with your predicted grades.

However, if you do achieve those grades, and take a gap year in which you get a job to save up or doing something else productive, then you would have an excellent chance.

Definitely apply in year 13 with your predicted grades - the fact that you go to a struggling school could definitely improve your chances of an offer - just don't give up if you don't get into any top unis first time round. Be prepared to give it a second go.


There are and always will be AS Levels, they are just not taken as much as they used to, and no longer count for 50% of the A Level. They're still taken by plenty of people however, although Cambridge have said that nobody will be at disadvantage for not taking AS Levels. They also have not placed any more emphasis on GCSEs since the reform.

For Cambridge, the admissions assessment and interview are very important - much more important than GCSEs; as are A Level predictions. There's also the reference which can be helpful, as well as of course GCSEs. They're very used to assessing applicants without AS, and will simply use all the information they have holistically.

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