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AS Results!!! Need advice, for A2 (predicted grades):

I've put this in many other threads/forums so here goes::::

Hi so, I don't think I've performed very well in my AS, I seem to have exam stress and it's pretty bad. All the teachers know this and they all know I am also hardworking but a complete stresshead.
For Biology, I'm top of the class with consistent As/Bs
For Chemistry, I had a slight dip but my chemistry teacher thinks I am able to achieve an A at the end of A2 (she told me this herself)
For Maths, I have always put the most effort it, all the maths department have said they haven't seen a student work as hard as me, I've been getting consistent Bs throughout the whole year, even in the mock before my actual exam. Before the night of the exam, I even stayed until 7:30pm at school just to go over all the content with my teacher. My maths teacher said she will still accept me into A2 even if I get a U in the AS exam.

The exams for AS didn't go horrible but i don't think they went to plan, my brain completely froze in maths, I cried after the exam, it was acc awful. Chemistry was decent and I think Biology went well. However, I'm worried about my predicted grades. I've told everybody that I don't care about tomorrow but I am actually pretty nervous since I know AS don't properly mean anything since they are linear courses BUT I have worked hard so it'll be a bit sad to see that go to waste.

I went to speak to my head of year after my AS exams and he said that it doesn't matter what my teachers predict me because at the end of the day he will sit with us and talk with us about our predicted grades. He said to me he will predict me whatever I need for university (I want AAA predictions), I know I am hardworking and I can achieve and strive for these grades, I had unnecessary drama with friends during AS which isn't really an excuse for bad AS grades but I was sidetracked a lot since I thought i should be out partying like them, rather than studying. It is my fault really, I've cut them off now because I've realised that they hold no good impact in my life and that I'd rather study and get good grades and party afterwards, than waste my life and time now.

So after all that context, my main question is, if I get for example, UDD (hopefully not) and my teacher and everybody, including myself, know I can achieve better, Do you guys think universities will still accept my application? Let's just pretend it's based on predicted grades, would they look at my AS of UDD and then my predicted grades of AAA and reject my application since they think I am not worthy when I know I am?

I know my weakness is exam stress so I'm going to work on that a lot and put myself under exam conditions whilst revising/doing past papers so I can overcome that boundary. I'm not thick, I have to work hard to be intelligent but I know I am fully capable of achieving AAA at the end of A2. My teachers know this as well since I went from getting U's in Chemistry GCSE all the way to an A* at the end of my GCSEs in a matter of 2 months, I managed to be in the top 6 of best performing in my GCSEs so the teachers are aware of my capabilities.

Anyway yeah, any advice and help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.

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My predicted grades for A level were BBC and I achieved CDU in my AS exams and I studied biology, chemistry and psychology. I still applied to unis which needed higher grades than that and managed to get an offer from a uni whose entry requirements were AAA/AAB. Obviously you'll probably be applying to much more prestigious unis than I did but this might help put things into perspective. Unis will take a lot of different things into account, like your personal statement, GCSE grades, AS grades and predicted grades. Have you already started looking at unis and where you want to apply? Universities are more lenient than you might think. They may even look at your predicted grades and give you a lower offer or even an unconditional. You seem to have excellent GCSE's results which means you can perform well under exam conditions and did numerous times. The reason you're probably stressing so much is because you're putting so much pressure on yourself. Just keep reminding yourself you've done it before and you can and will do it again and achieve some amazing A level results. Maybe try breathing exercises if you start to panic and try to remember A Levels don't define you. Maybe you could also ask to be put in a quite room rather than the hall? My friend struggled with anxiety and the exam hall really panicked her so she was placed in a classroom instead which was a lot nicer and a lot less daunting. I hope everything works out for you :smile:
Original post by ilovefruit
My predicted grades for A level were BBC and I achieved CDU in my AS exams and I studied biology, chemistry and psychology. I still applied to unis which needed higher grades than that and managed to get an offer from a uni whose entry requirements were AAA/AAB. Obviously you'll probably be applying to much more prestigious unis than I did but this might help put things into perspective. Unis will take a lot of different things into account, like your personal statement, GCSE grades, AS grades and predicted grades. Have you already started looking at unis and where you want to apply? Universities are more lenient than you might think. They may even look at your predicted grades and give you a lower offer or even an unconditional. You seem to have excellent GCSE's results which means you can perform well under exam conditions and did numerous times. The reason you're probably stressing so much is because you're putting so much pressure on yourself. Just keep reminding yourself you've done it before and you can and will do it again and achieve some amazing A level results. Maybe try breathing exercises if you start to panic and try to remember A Levels don't define you. Maybe you could also ask to be put in a quite room rather than the hall? My friend struggled with anxiety and the exam hall really panicked her so she was placed in a classroom instead which was a lot nicer and a lot less daunting. I hope everything works out for you :smile:

That's amazing, do you study at university now? and if so, which course? and yeah i've looked at a few universities, UEA, Newcastle and St Georges are a few I might consider, definitely UEA but Newcastle is UKCAT heavy so I really need to smash UKCAT (fingers crossed I will), unfortunately for medicine you can't have unconditionals unless you've completed A2 and have already obtained your grade which is a shame ;') my GCSE results in comparison to other medicine applicants aren't amazing, I got 2 a*s 5 as and 3 bs but in comparison to my school, i was 3rd (in the top 6) and yeah, i genuinely think it is the pressure but thank you so much, that suggestion is perfect. I may actually ask for that because i feel as if it would help me a lot, thank you again, i greatly appreciate it
Original post by medicinemaniac
That's amazing, do you study at university now? and if so, which course? and yeah i've looked at a few universities, UEA, Newcastle and St Georges are a few I might consider, definitely UEA but Newcastle is UKCAT heavy so I really need to smash UKCAT (fingers crossed I will), unfortunately for medicine you can't have unconditionals unless you've completed A2 and have already obtained your grade which is a shame ;':wink: my GCSE results in comparison to other medicine applicants aren't amazing, I got 2 a*s 5 as and 3 bs but in comparison to my school, i was 3rd (in the top 6) and yeah, i genuinely think it is the pressure but thank you so much, that suggestion is perfect. I may actually ask for that because i feel as if it would help me a lot, thank you again, i greatly appreciate it


I now currently go Sussex uni and study biochemistry. Sorry I didn't realise you wanted to study medicine. Even though, you still made it through GCSE's with pretty decent grades which is proof you can succeed in exam situations which should hopefully take the pressure off a little. But I definitely think being able to take your exams in a separate room would be great for you because it feels alot less official and much more relaxed, Good luck!
I did bad, i got CDE, im nervous but my head of year told me to take it as a learning step and learn from my mistakes so im gonna use these grades to motivate myself to SMASH next year, im just angry and disappointed with myself, i do feel a little unmotivated but i really want to study medicine so thats top priority, even if it takes me a billion years to get there! i'm hoping ill somehow be predicted ABB, itll be hard but the E (in maths weirdly enough) could be predicted a B since I've been getting consistent Bs throughout the whole of year 12 so :/ i even got a solid B in the maths mock just before the test ahhh, i can definitely bring my chemistry grade up and same with biology, i can 100% focus now, i just hope all my teacher continue to believe in me because if they stop then idk what ill do
Original post by ilovefruit
I now currently go Sussex uni and study biochemistry. Sorry I didn't realise you wanted to study medicine. Even though, you still made it through GCSE's with pretty decent grades which is proof you can succeed in exam situations which should hopefully take the pressure off a little. But I definitely think being able to take your exams in a separate room would be great for you because it feels alot less official and much more relaxed, Good luck!
Reply 5
Original post by medicinemaniac
I did bad, i got CDE, im nervous but my head of year told me to take it as a learning step and learn from my mistakes so im gonna use these grades to motivate myself to SMASH next year, im just angry and disappointed with myself, i do feel a little unmotivated but i really want to study medicine so thats top priority, even if it takes me a billion years to get there! i'm hoping ill somehow be predicted ABB, itll be hard but the E (in maths weirdly enough) could be predicted a B since I've been getting consistent Bs throughout the whole of year 12 so :/ i even got a solid B in the maths mock just before the test ahhh, i can definitely bring my chemistry grade up and same with biology, i can 100% focus now, i just hope all my teacher continue to believe in me because if they stop then idk what ill do


When is your UKCAT ?
Not to be the bearer of bad news, but medicine is incredibly tough to get into. And most people applying are stellar candidates, for example everyone I met at interviews had 3/4 As at AS if they had done them and a really high ukcat and GCSE score. I have 7 A*s and 5 As and I felt rubbish compared to other candidates.

Therefore, if you really want to do medicine then GO FOR IT by all means, but if I were you I’d also make sure you do put a 5th choice down for biomed or something or even >1 choice not for medicine so that you do have a backup plan. My friend got her results and she didn’t meet her AAA offer for her firm and insurance and achieved A*A*B with a B in maths and A*s in bio and chem, despite getting nearly full marks in AS maths. She’s now going on a gap year and is applying to a few universities that accept resits and a few for biomedical science.

I don’t want this to discourage you at all but if you really want to do Medicine make sure that there’s a backup course just incase that you can get into no matter what so that you can make a transition into postgrad medicine. I have a friend who had BBC and he’s going to Swansea to do a bio related undergrad degree and then his plan is to transfer after that to Swansea’s medicine programme.

I’m really not trying to sound mean by saying this but I’m just being realistic and telling you that medicine is SO hard to get into so having a backup plan really helps if all goes South. And seeing as you are so keen on becoming a Doctor I feel as though this is important to tell you.

Best of luck and I wish you a successful application :smile: additionally most people tend to score better at A2 than AS so don’t let this year bring you down!
Original post by Chibuchi
When is your UKCAT ?

30th august

Original post by liliandrews
Not to be the bearer of bad news, but medicine is incredibly tough to get into. And most people applying are stellar candidates, for example everyone I met at interviews had 3/4 As at AS if they had done them and a really high ukcat and GCSE score. I have 7 A*s and 5 As and I felt rubbish compared to other candidates.

Therefore, if you really want to do medicine then GO FOR IT by all means, but if I were you I’d also make sure you do put a 5th choice down for biomed or something or even >1 choice not for medicine so that you do have a backup plan. My friend got her results and she didn’t meet her AAA offer for her firm and insurance and achieved A*A*B with a B in maths and A*s in bio and chem, despite getting nearly full marks in AS maths. She’s now going on a gap year and is applying to a few universities that accept resits and a few for biomedical science.

I don’t want this to discourage you at all but if you really want to do Medicine make sure that there’s a backup course just incase that you can get into no matter what so that you can make a transition into postgrad medicine. I have a friend who had BBC and he’s going to Swansea to do a bio related undergrad degree and then his plan is to transfer after that to Swansea’s medicine programme.

I’m really not trying to sound mean by saying this but I’m just being realistic and telling you that medicine is SO hard to get into so having a backup plan really helps if all goes South. And seeing as you are so keen on becoming a Doctor I feel as though this is important to tell you.

Best of luck and I wish you a successful application :smile: additionally most people tend to score better at A2 than AS so don’t let this year bring you down!

thank you soo much!! ive spoken to my parents and depending on my ukcat score ill see which degree to go into, obviously im still dedicated to doing medicine but i dont mind an alternative route, its not about the journey its about the destination :biggrin:
if my ukcat goes badly then im going to be applying for biomedicine, if it goes well then hopefully medicine :smile:
& is your friend who's going to swansea transferring into the grad medicine course?? i didnt realise swansea did undergrad medicine unless you mean he'll complete his bio undergrad and then transfer, for the transfer to the grad course, would it just be dependable on his final grades at his undergrad course?? or would he have to sit through the same graduate medicine application as other candidates for graduate medicine at swansea, even though he studied his undergrad there as well?
Reply 8
Hello ive just been reading this and have you possibly looked into gateway to medican courses its widening participation with lower entry requirements but you do an extra year it sounds like something that could work for you.
hello :smile: + yes! i really like UEA's (norwich medical schools) foundation medicine degree, but im sure UKCAT cut offs will put me down :frown: + also the PARTNERS programme with newcastle university, lower offer scheme with st georges uni of london + same thing with bristol uni also, its literally the ukcat which is scaring me :frown:
Original post by Bph99
Hello ive just been reading this and have you possibly looked into gateway to medican courses its widening participation with lower entry requirements but you do an extra year it sounds like something that could work for you.
Original post by medicinemaniac
30th august


thank you soo much!! ive spoken to my parents and depending on my ukcat score ill see which degree to go into, obviously im still dedicated to doing medicine but i dont mind an alternative route, its not about the journey its about the destination :biggrin:
if my ukcat goes badly then im going to be applying for biomedicine, if it goes well then hopefully medicine :smile:
& is your friend who's going to swansea transferring into the grad medicine course?? i didnt realise swansea did undergrad medicine unless you mean he'll complete his bio undergrad and then transfer, for the transfer to the grad course, would it just be dependable on his final grades at his undergrad course?? or would he have to sit through the same graduate medicine application as other candidates for graduate medicine at swansea, even though he studied his undergrad there as well?


Hey, that's such a good attitude to have! I just wanted to say that because it's such a shame seeing so many people who are more than capable of becoming Doctors giving up the dream because of a few missed hurdles on the way :frown: also what you said about ukcat is important because some Universities almost disregard GCSEs/predictions completely and will solely focus on ukcat so if you nail that you've got a really good shot!

No, sorry for the confusion, my friend is doing a bio-related course at Swansea which is one of their 'Medical Science' courses which I believe makes you more competitive for a place on the postgraduate medicine course by guaranteeing you an interview (and thus that's independent of your academic background, degree, entrance exam score etc. although I'm not sure if offers are then made solely on interview performance or not). I believe it's something to do with a Pathways to Medicine scheme that they run? However don't quote me on this as I've done no research into it so I'm not entirely sure haha, although this is what I've heard.

Also, obviously be strategic in where you apply but make sure you do your research even if your ukcat goes badly maybe there's a few medical schools which you could get an interview for, and if so, definitely go for that! Even if it turns out as a rejection the likelihood is that (depending on the university) you'll get all your biomed offers and ultimately you only really need 2 (for a firm and insurance choice) and you'll have more medicine application experience for the next time. Again not to sound disheartening but I've read that 60% of applicants for medicine are unsuccessful, so there's no harm in trying whatever happens! Also try and embark on as much experience with interviews as you can, particularly MMI's because these may seem easier than a traditional interview but honestly I found them around 10x harder haha. (also just to add, even though 60% of those applying are unsuccessful, 40% do get offers and that's still very promising!)

All the best and best of luck with everything! If you have any questions then feel free to ask me anything! I'm no expert but I've been through the whole process :smile:
I'm sure your teachers will be malleable in terms of what they predict you, you seem to be on good terms with them. Regardless of what happens.

However my 6th form college was tiny, average class size probs 8 people so we had very good relationships with teachers. Maybe in large colleges it could be more systematic and emotionless when they set your predictions.
Reply 12
Original post by medicinemaniac
hello :smile: + yes! i really like UEA's (norwich medical schools) foundation medicine degree, but im sure UKCAT cut offs will put me down :frown: + also the PARTNERS programme with newcastle university, lower offer scheme with st georges uni of london + same thing with bristol uni also, its literally the ukcat which is scaring me :frown:

Sorry i dont no much about the medical gateway courses as i applied to the vet gateway ones so didnt reliese about the UKCAT just try not to stress about them you can only do your best and worse case scenario there is other ways of studying medican but they will take more time and indepenent funding .
I always mess up exams because I get so nervous, I take bach's rescue remedy before the exam, which really seems to calm me down. I know its probably just a placebo but I don't mind because it still seems to work.
Original post by medicinemaniac
30th august


thank you soo much!! ive spoken to my parents and depending on my ukcat score ill see which degree to go into, obviously im still dedicated to doing medicine but i dont mind an alternative route, its not about the journey its about the destination :biggrin:
if my ukcat goes badly then im going to be applying for biomedicine, if it goes well then hopefully medicine :smile:
& is your friend who's going to swansea transferring into the grad medicine course?? i didnt realise swansea did undergrad medicine unless you mean he'll complete his bio undergrad and then transfer, for the transfer to the grad course, would it just be dependable on his final grades at his undergrad course?? or would he have to sit through the same graduate medicine application as other candidates for graduate medicine at swansea, even though he studied his undergrad there as well?


Oh my goodness, I am in the exact same situation as you!!! I got CCCD at AS (which was really unexpected) and I want to do dentistry, I really really want to study at Plymouth and on their website it says I need a minimum of ABB on first attempt, but after speaking to my teachers, I think that just praying and convincing them that I deserve higher predicted grades!!

My UKCAT is tomorrow as well! Do you think you've prepared enough??
(edited 5 years ago)
omg thats so coincidental and weird we're in the same situation :') and i think my head of year will predict me ABB hopefully ahhh, im praying sm tbh and YIKES UKCAT TOMORROW TOO OMDDDD, yes i think ive prepared to the best of my abilities, im legit just leaving it up to God at this rate, and life in general, if i do bad maybe there will be something better for me in store in the future. The end goal is always going to be Medicine no matter what, i hope we do well
Original post by jansgotru
Oh my goodness, I am in the exact same situation as you!!! I got CCCD at AS (which was really unexpected) and I want to do dentistry, I really really want to study at Plymouth and on their website it says I need a minimum of ABB on first attempt, but after speaking to my teachers, I think that just praying and convincing them that I deserve higher predicted grades!!

My UKCAT is tomorrow as well! Do you think you've prepared enough??
Original post by medicinemaniac
omg thats so coincidental and weird we're in the same situation :':wink: and i think my head of year will predict me ABB hopefully ahhh, im praying sm tbh and YIKES UKCAT TOMORROW TOO OMDDDD, yes i think ive prepared to the best of my abilities, im legit just leaving it up to God at this rate, and life in general, if i do bad maybe there will be something better for me in store in the future. The end goal is always going to be Medicine no matter what, i hope we do well


Omds, that is my exact mindset!! I was just thinking if I don't end up doing well tomorrow then clearly, it's not the right time for me to apply, but I still will in the future. I'm just so annoyed at myself for not working harder for the exams and doing way more past papers, I was way too distracted.
But yeah, good luck - let me know how you do!! I'm sure you'll ace it :smile:
tbh we're acc the same person, this is so weird:colondollar: but yeah exactly, i hope you do end up doing well tomorrow though! and tbh same, lool, i overworked for maths for sure but this year i cannot wait to smash all my exams tbh, legit everybody is gonna be so shocked at how well im doing after my AS, its embarrassing for sure but it will go well hopefully and yeah i hope i do well aghhh, i really really hope i do but if i dont then i know i tried my best so yknow and yeah lemme know how you do too! i am v sure you'll smash it :biggrin:
Original post by jansgotru
Omds, that is my exact mindset!! I was just thinking if I don't end up doing well tomorrow then clearly, it's not the right time for me to apply, but I still will in the future. I'm just so annoyed at myself for not working harder for the exams and doing way more past papers, I was way too distracted.
But yeah, good luck - let me know how you do!! I'm sure you'll ace it :smile:
Original post by medicinemaniac
tbh we're acc the same person, this is so weird:colondollar: but yeah exactly, i hope you do end up doing well tomorrow though! and tbh same, lool, i overworked for maths for sure but this year i cannot wait to smash all my exams tbh, legit everybody is gonna be so shocked at how well im doing after my AS, its embarrassing for sure but it will go well hopefully and yeah i hope i do well aghhh, i really really hope i do but if i dont then i know i tried my best so yknow and yeah lemme know how you do too! i am v sure you'll smash it :biggrin:


Ikr, such a weird coincidence :eviltongue: !! How'd you do today!?
i got 2450!!!! im so happy bc this means i can make it onto some of uni's i really wanted to apply to :biggrin: i can finally have my 5 day summer holiday in peace now :smile: how about you!!
Original post by jansgotru
Ikr, such a weird coincidence :eviltongue: !! How'd you do today!?

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