The Student Room Group

Unsure what to do tomorrow.

So my story is a long and complexed one, last year I got a B (Maths), D (Geography) and E (Physics) at AS Level (which accounts for 40% of the total A-Level mark here in Northern Ireland). So I had two main options which involved staying in school, either repeat year 13 with different A-Levels or resit the majority of my AS exams while also doing my A2’s. I was unable to finish any of my AS exams in time so my teachers suggested that I may be in fact enabled to some extra time. After a long assessment I got 25% extra time due to a combination of slow handwriting and processing speed.

I picked the second option and although it involved doing 17 exams this year I believe it was the right choice especially with the 25% extra time included for the AS I resat this year. While all this was happening I also had the task of applying to UCAS, originally I wanted to do a Maths degree but with a BDE that idea was out the window.

Whilst applying I was really unsure about what course I wanted to choose, in fact the only thing I was sure of was that I wanted to stay here in Northern Ireland. This left me with 2 Uni choices either Queen’s (grade requirements probably too high) and Ulster, so without a clue of what courses to I browsed the courses at Ulster and eventually chose a combination of Criminology/Sociology courses at both Queen’s and Ulster. However by the time May came I rejected all 5 offers as I knew the courses weren’t for me.

So here I am with less than a day before results come out wondering whether I should go through clearing and do a youth work course at Ulster, something I have a genuine interest + experience in (grade requirements are CDD which I’ll most likely get) but don’t know if a want to pursue it as a career.

There’s also a 5 year part-time Football Coaching and Business Management course at Ulster which would essentially be my dream job as it combines both football coaching and youth work both of which I enjoy and have lots of experience with. However the grade requirements for this are BBC (which I’m unsure I’ll get) plus very few people get admitted to the course.

Overall, I just want to do something I’ll enjoy as a career but avoid jumping into a course that I won’t like. Any advice would be appreciated, thanks for hearing me out.
Original post by mcm-3
So my story is a long and complexed one, last year I got a B (Maths), D (Geography) and E (Physics) at AS Level (which accounts for 40% of the total A-Level mark here in Northern Ireland). So I had two main options which involved staying in school, either repeat year 13 with different A-Levels or resit the majority of my AS exams while also doing my A2’s. I was unable to finish any of my AS exams in time so my teachers suggested that I may be in fact enabled to some extra time. After a long assessment I got 25% extra time due to a combination of slow handwriting and processing speed.

I picked the second option and although it involved doing 17 exams this year I believe it was the right choice especially with the 25% extra time included for the AS I resat this year. While all this was happening I also had the task of applying to UCAS, originally I wanted to do a Maths degree but with a BDE that idea was out the window.

Whilst applying I was really unsure about what course I wanted to choose, in fact the only thing I was sure of was that I wanted to stay here in Northern Ireland. This left me with 2 Uni choices either Queen’s (grade requirements probably too high) and Ulster, so without a clue of what courses to I browsed the courses at Ulster and eventually chose a combination of Criminology/Sociology courses at both Queen’s and Ulster. However by the time May came I rejected all 5 offers as I knew the courses weren’t for me.

So here I am with less than a day before results come out wondering whether I should go through clearing and do a youth work course at Ulster, something I have a genuine interest + experience in (grade requirements are CDD which I’ll most likely get) but don’t know if a want to pursue it as a career.

There’s also a 5 year part-time Football Coaching and Business Management course at Ulster which would essentially be my dream job as it combines both football coaching and youth work both of which I enjoy and have lots of experience with. However the grade requirements for this are BBC (which I’m unsure I’ll get) plus very few people get admitted to the course.

Overall, I just want to do something I’ll enjoy as a career but avoid jumping into a course that I won’t like. Any advice would be appreciated, thanks for hearing me out.


I would say: see what your results look like and then either way take a gap year and do some work around coaching/youth work for a year to give you time to think about things and see what suits you for work before you commit to a specific course.
Reply 2
Original post by mcm-3

So here I am with less than a day before results come out wondering whether I should go through clearing and do a youth work course at Ulster, something I have a genuine interest + experience in (grade requirements are CDD which I’ll most likely get) but don’t know if a want to pursue it as a career.

There’s also a 5 year part-time Football Coaching and Business Management course at Ulster which would essentially be my dream job as it combines both football coaching and youth work both of which I enjoy and have lots of experience with. However the grade requirements for this are BBC (which I’m unsure I’ll get) plus very few people get admitted to the course.

Overall, I just want to do something I’ll enjoy as a career but avoid jumping into a course that I won’t like. Any advice would be appreciated, thanks for hearing me out.
As you are already in Clearing, you need to build up a shortlist of courses that interest you and start ringing round as soon as you have your results to hand.

Making choices is always risky; no-one can guarantee that it will all work out as you expect/hope. The best advice I can give you is to go with your instincts, building on the things that interest you and you're good at. Very few people spend their entire working lives doing exactly the same thing. Either of the courses you mention would help to develop transferable skills, which is what people are looking for in the workplace.
Original post by mcm-3
So my story is a long and complexed one, last year I got a B (Maths), D (Geography) and E (Physics) at AS Level (which accounts for 40% of the total A-Level mark here in Northern Ireland). So I had two main options which involved staying in school, either repeat year 13 with different A-Levels or resit the majority of my AS exams while also doing my A2’s. I was unable to finish any of my AS exams in time so my teachers suggested that I may be in fact enabled to some extra time. After a long assessment I got 25% extra time due to a combination of slow handwriting and processing speed.

I picked the second option and although it involved doing 17 exams this year I believe it was the right choice especially with the 25% extra time included for the AS I resat this year. While all this was happening I also had the task of applying to UCAS, originally I wanted to do a Maths degree but with a BDE that idea was out the window.

Whilst applying I was really unsure about what course I wanted to choose, in fact the only thing I was sure of was that I wanted to stay here in Northern Ireland. This left me with 2 Uni choices either Queen’s (grade requirements probably too high) and Ulster, so without a clue of what courses to I browsed the courses at Ulster and eventually chose a combination of Criminology/Sociology courses at both Queen’s and Ulster. However by the time May came I rejected all 5 offers as I knew the courses weren’t for me.

So here I am with less than a day before results come out wondering whether I should go through clearing and do a youth work course at Ulster, something I have a genuine interest + experience in (grade requirements are CDD which I’ll most likely get) but don’t know if a want to pursue it as a career.

There’s also a 5 year part-time Football Coaching and Business Management course at Ulster which would essentially be my dream job as it combines both football coaching and youth work both of which I enjoy and have lots of experience with. However the grade requirements for this are BBC (which I’m unsure I’ll get) plus very few people get admitted to the course.

Overall, I just want to do something I’ll enjoy as a career but avoid jumping into a course that I won’t like. Any advice would be appreciated, thanks for hearing me out.


I would recommend waiting to see how tomorrow goes. It's important to follow your passions and the course you really want to study! You could always look into these courses through Clearing?

Also, I'd recommend building up some volunteering experience in youth work, as it would not only look great to potential universities/employers in the future, but it would also give you an idea of whether this is the right career for you (though from your post it sounds like it is!)

Good luck :biggrin:

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