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Does Cambridge care about your AS levels when you've already received your A2 levels?

Hello,

So I'm currently in U6, doing my A2 levels in the Summer. I hadn't originally planned to take a gap year, and have done all my UCAS and got offers etc. etc. but due to a variety of reasons my mind has been changed and I would like to take a gap year, and potentially reapply to Cambridge (provided I get good grades at A2 (touch wood!)).
The only reason I didn't apply this year was because Cambridge asks for AS levels which in my case were awful (due to external reasons). Having said this I am resitting one of them this year, so they could be less awful (AAB) but still not something to be proud of.
From what I have read, it seems that the main reason Cambridge ask for your AS levels is so that they can evaluate whether you can actually achieve your predicted grades at A2.
So it follows that if I already have good (touch wood!!) A2 levels I wouldn't need to submit my AS levels when applying. Or at the very least I still need to submit them but they would not hold much sway in my application. Are my assumptions correct?
I'm only asking to put my mind at rest!
Cheers for reading!

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I am in a very similar situation. I was going to apply for Cambridge but after mediocre AS exams, I decided against it. At the moment my current plan is that if I achieve A*A*A in summer I will take a gap year and apply to Cambridge. I asked the Peterhouse Admissions team on the student room if my poor AS results would hold me back and they said what you already iterated. That AS results serve as an indicator to see if you are on track for your predictions and if you have already achieved your results then they will hardly be a factor in the admissions decision. In addition to this, they specified that the contrast between my poor AS results and potential A*A*A would be so great that it may even be a beneficial factor, showing the huge progress made in my final year at Sixth form.
Original post by mah1000000
I am in a very similar situation. I was going to apply for Cambridge but after mediocre AS exams, I decided against it. At the moment my current plan is that if I achieve A*A*A in summer I will take a gap year and apply to Cambridge. I asked the Peterhouse Admissions team on the student room if my poor AS results would hold me back and they said what you already iterated. That AS results serve as an indicator to see if you are on track for your predictions and if you have already achieved your results then they will hardly be a factor in the admissions decision. In addition to this, they specified that the contrast between my poor AS results and potential A*A*A would be so great that it may even be a beneficial factor, showing the huge progress made in my final year at Sixth form.


that's great! Thanks for the reply!

What course are you applying for (is it competitive?). And also (if you don't mind me asking) how bad were your AS levels?
Original post by frantika
that's great! Thanks for the reply!

What course are you applying for (is it competitive?). And also (if you don't mind me asking) how bad were your AS levels?


No problem.

I applied for Law this cycle and would again next year if I took a year out, which like most Cambridge courses is competitive at about 15-20% admission rates. My AS results were BBBC which did not come as a surprise. I've never found any of my A-levels challenging or hard and sometimes they're incredibly tedious, my issue is I struggle to put any work in needed at all. Now however, this is a lesson I have learnt from my AS exams and will not make the same mistake again.

If you are curious, I got my predictions up to AAB, from many multiple internal exams, and have offers from Nottingham, York, Exeter and Royal Holloway. (Warwick still haven't gotten back to me).

What course did you apply for this year and what would you (if different) be applying for next cycle?
Reply 4
QUOTE=mah1000000;76939410]No problem.

I applied for Law this cycle and would again next year if I took a year out, which like most Cambridge courses is competitive at about 15-20% admission rates. My AS results were BBBC which did not come as a surprise. I've never found any of my A-levels challenging or hard and sometimes they're incredibly tedious, my issue is I struggle to put any work in needed at all. Now however, this is a lesson I have learnt from my AS exams and will not make the same mistake again.

If you are curious, I got my predictions up to AAB, from many multiple internal exams, and have offers from Nottingham, York, Exeter and Royal Holloway. (Warwick still haven't gotten back to me).

What course did you apply for this year and what would you (if different) be applying for next cycle?

If you don't mind can you please answer my question.

Earlier you said that if you get excellent grades(I hope you will get) you will take a gap year.
you also have got offers.Will you accept them or in other words if you accept them now and got some excellent grades how will then you decline your acceptance on result day
Original post by mah1000000
No problem.

I applied for Law this cycle and would again next year if I took a year out, which like most Cambridge courses is competitive at about 15-20% admission rates. My AS results were BBBC which did not come as a surprise. I've never found any of my A-levels challenging or hard and sometimes they're incredibly tedious, my issue is I struggle to put any work in needed at all. Now however, this is a lesson I have learnt from my AS exams and will not make the same mistake again.

If you are curious, I got my predictions up to AAB, from many multiple internal exams, and have offers from Nottingham, York, Exeter and Royal Holloway. (Warwick still haven't gotten back to me).

What course did you apply for this year and what would you (if different) be applying for next cycle?


Yes same, I just had 0 motivation to do well in the AS, especially with the mental health problems I had. I applied (and will apply again) for geography, which is certainly not the most competitive course, and this time round I have offers from Bristol, UCL, Manchester and Newcastle which is why I'm not 100% certain I will take a gap year since it would be a tad naive to turn down these offers! Especially since I applied for Oxford this time round and got rejected, so there is always the risk I will be rejected from Cambridge. However I'm not taking a gap year solely for Cambridge, I'm mainly doing it for my mental health; Oxbridge isn't the be all and end all after all (as everyone annoyingly says).

Good luck to you, and good luck with revision this easter :frown:
QUOTE=mah1000000;76939410]No problem.

I applied for Law this cycle and would again next year if I took a year out, which like most Cambridge courses is competitive at about 15-20% admission rates. My AS results were BBBC which did not come as a surprise. I've never found any of my A-levels challenging or hard and sometimes they're incredibly tedious, my issue is I struggle to put any work in needed at all. Now however, this is a lesson I have learnt from my AS exams and will not make the same mistake again.

If you are curious, I got my predictions up to AAB, from many multiple internal exams, and have offers from Nottingham, York, Exeter and Royal Holloway. (Warwick still haven't gotten back to me).

What course did you apply for this year and what would you (if different) be applying for next cycle?


If you don't mind can you please answer my question.

Earlier you said that if you get excellent grades(I hope you will get) you will take a gap year.
you also have got offers.Will you accept them or in other words if you accept them now and got some excellent grades how will then you decline your acceptance on result day

So to clarify (I don't even know if you're speaking to me!); I already have offers from unis, so what will I do when I get my results? Will I decline them to take a gap year?

If my A levels are very good (A*A*A or higher), I will decline them and reapply to Cambridge. This doesn't put you at a disadvantage at all if you reapply to the same uni since they most likely have forgotten about your previous application. If they aren't good, I will see if the universities I applied to will relax their offers for me. If they do, I will ask whether I can do a gap year (though I imagine it is unlikely they will say yes), and if I can't I will accept their offers and that will be that. If my grades are good, and I can get into my choices, but not good enough for Cambridge then I will defer their offers and take a gap year, without applying to Cambridge. Hope that helps
(edited 6 years ago)
Original post by frantika
Yes same, I just had 0 motivation to do well in the AS, especially with the mental health problems I had. I applied (and will apply again) for geography, which is certainly not the most competitive course, and this time round I have offers from Bristol, UCL, Manchester and Newcastle which is why I'm not 100% certain I will take a gap year since it would be a tad naive to turn down these offers! Especially since I applied for Oxford this time round and got rejected, so there is always the risk I will be rejected from Cambridge. However I'm not taking a gap year solely for Cambridge, I'm mainly doing it for my mental health; Oxbridge isn't the be all and end all after all (as everyone annoyingly says).

Good luck to you, and good luck with revision this easter :frown:


Yeah, it is definitely good to have an actual reason for a gap year that isn't just Oxbridge. I'd like a break from education the more time I spend in school and would love an opportunity to get a job and save money as well as doing a bit of travelling. But Oxbridge can still make up part of your decision; I want to study at the most rigorous academic environments, filled with the most passionate students and academics; as well as being able to live in the most beautiful city and University around.

It is a tough decision to reject your offers and take a leap of faith, which is why I've tied it to achieving A*A*A. Just make sure you analyse it all carefully and make the best decision for you. If it is a break you want due to mental health reasons then maybe deferring your current offers is a better course of actions as it is much more secure and allows you a break.

Good Luck.
Reply 8
Original post by frantika
If you don't mind can you please answer my question.

Earlier you said that if you get excellent grades(I hope you will get) you will take a gap year.
you also have got offers.Will you accept them or in other words if you accept them now and got some excellent grades how will then you decline your acceptance on result day


So to clarify (I don't even know if you're speaking to me!); I already have offers from unis, so what will I do when I get my results? Will I decline them to take a gap year?

If my A levels are very good (A*A*A or higher), I will decline them and reapply to Cambridge. This doesn't put you at a disadvantage at all if you reapply to the same uni since they most likely have forgotten about your previous application. If they aren't good, I will see if the universities I applied to will relax their offers for me. If they do, I will ask whether I can do a gap year (though I imagine it is unlikely they will say yes), and if I can't I will accept their offers and that will be that. If my grades are good, and I can get into my choices, but not good enough for Cambridge then I will defer their offers and take a gap year, without applying to Cambridge. Hope that helps


Are you sure that on result day we can just say our firm and insurance choices that we don't want to go university now?and reapply next year/
So to clarify (I don't even know if you're speaking to me!); I already have offers from unis, so what will I do when I get my results? Will I decline them to take a gap year?

If my A levels are very good (A*A*A or higher), I will decline them and reapply to Cambridge. This doesn't put you at a disadvantage at all if you reapply to the same uni since they most likely have forgotten about your previous application. If they aren't good, I will see if the universities I applied to will relax their offers for me. If they do, I will ask whether I can do a gap year (though I imagine it is unlikely they will say yes), and if I can't I will accept their offers and that will be that. If my grades are good, and I can get into my choices, but not good enough for Cambridge then I will defer their offers and take a gap year, without applying to Cambridge. Hope that helps



Are you sure that on result day we can just say our firm and insurance choices that we don't want to go university now?and reapply next year/

Yes.
QUOTE=mah1000000;76939410]No problem.

I applied for Law this cycle and would again next year if I took a year out, which like most Cambridge courses is competitive at about 15-20% admission rates. My AS results were BBBC which did not come as a surprise. I've never found any of my A-levels challenging or hard and sometimes they're incredibly tedious, my issue is I struggle to put any work in needed at all. Now however, this is a lesson I have learnt from my AS exams and will not make the same mistake again.

If you are curious, I got my predictions up to AAB, from many multiple internal exams, and have offers from Nottingham, York, Exeter and Royal Holloway. (Warwick still haven't gotten back to me).

What course did you apply for this year and what would you (if different) be applying for next cycle?


If you don't mind can you please answer my question.

Earlier you said that if you get excellent grades(I hope you will get) you will take a gap year.
you also have got offers.Will you accept them or in other words if you accept them now and got some excellent grades how will then you decline your acceptance on result day

Hi, you messed up the quote function a bit so I didn't get a notification that you quoted me.

So I will accept my offers now, and firm and insure my two favourites.

If in summer I have A*A*A+, I will reject these offers and take a gap year. Yes, you can do this, just call up your firm choice on results day, your insurance would've been automatically rejected when you met your firm's grade requirements.

If I don't exceed my offers I can just take them on the day and go to Uni.
Reply 11
Idk if you have heard of Ibz Mo, but he is a YouTuber at Cambridge. He got Ds in AS, and then went on to get A*A*A in A2. He took a gap year, and then got into Cambridge! Just evidence that success in A2 is the most important thing :smile:
Reply 12
Original post by mah1000000
If you don't mind can you please answer my question.

Earlier you said that if you get excellent grades(I hope you will get) you will take a gap year.
you also have got offers.Will you accept them or in other words if you accept them now and got some excellent grades how will then you decline your acceptance on result day


Hi, you messed up the quote function a bit so I didn't get a notification that you quoted me.

So I will accept my offers now, and firm and insure my two favourites.

If in summer I have A*A*A+, I will reject these offers and take a gap year. Yes, you can do this, just call up your firm choice on results day, your insurance would've been automatically rejected when you met your firm's grade requirements.

If I don't exceed my offers I can just take them on the day and go to Uni.


Thank you for clarification
I don't know before that we can reject hem on result day
Reply 13
I don't know what is happening to quote function
Original post by frantika
Hello,

So I'm currently in U6, doing my A2 levels in the Summer. I hadn't originally planned to take a gap year, and have done all my UCAS and got offers etc. etc. but due to a variety of reasons my mind has been changed and I would like to take a gap year, and potentially reapply to Cambridge (provided I get good grades at A2 (touch wood!)).
The only reason I didn't apply this year was because Cambridge asks for AS levels which in my case were awful (due to external reasons). Having said this I am resitting one of them this year, so they could be less awful (AAB) but still not something to be proud of.
From what I have read, it seems that the main reason Cambridge ask for your AS levels is so that they can evaluate whether you can actually achieve your predicted grades at A2.
So it follows that if I already have good (touch wood!!) A2 levels I wouldn't need to submit my AS levels when applying. Or at the very least I still need to submit them but they would not hold much sway in my application. Are my assumptions correct?
I'm only asking to put my mind at rest!
Cheers for reading!


When I applied and got accepted to Cambridge to read law they asked for my AS Level grades which weren't ideal. My offer was for A*AA and at AS I got ABBE, yet this didn't affect my application overall. I'm not sure the weighting that they put on it but it can't be too much so don't panic too much. Hope this helps!
Hey,I am sitting my GCSEs this year and am predicted to get: a 4, majority of 7s, a couple of 8s and finally 2 9s. Do you think I would be able to make it into Cambridge University with these results (or even higher with my current revision). As in, would they take a top 8 average or will they prejudice me due to my 4.Thanks
Original post by jameskwoolley
When I applied and got accepted to Cambridge to read law they asked for my AS Level grades which weren't ideal. My offer was for A*AA and at AS I got ABBE, yet this didn't affect my application overall. I'm not sure the weighting that they put on it but it can't be too much so don't panic too much. Hope this helps!


You must have done really well at intervuew and on the admissions test for you to receice an offer with those AS results! Congrats though :smile:
Original post by iplcr4
Idk if you have heard of Ibz Mo, but he is a YouTuber at Cambridge. He got Ds in AS, and then went on to get A*A*A in A2. He took a gap year, and then got into Cambridge! Just evidence that success in A2 is the most important thing :smile:


Bring them your seasoning
Original post by amanghumman
Hey,I am sitting my GCSEs this year and am predicted to get: a 4, majority of 7s, a couple of 8s and finally 2 9s. Do you think I would be able to make it into Cambridge University with these results (or even higher with my current revision). As in, would they take a top 8 average or will they prejudice me due to my 4.Thanks


Cambridge don't put as much weight on your GCSE results as Oxford do so far in that I don't think they are considered, so I can't help you with an answer to that I'm sorry but they sound good!
5 years later how did you guys do?
Original post by mah1000000
If you don't mind can you please answer my question.

Earlier you said that if you get excellent grades(I hope you will get) you will take a gap year.
you also have got offers.Will you accept them or in other words if you accept them now and got some excellent grades how will then you decline your acceptance on result day