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Resits: Are universities aware of them? How significant are they?

If I resit some of my GCSEs to get them to the desired 70% A* rate that Oxbridge is looking for then, will they be aware that these resits took place and will it affect the competitiveness of my application?

Reply 1

Clearing and Applications Advisor

Original post by JoshuaRussell16

If you resit your GCSEs then you have to declare on UCAS both your original and new grades. Not disclosing all of your results means you’re declaration statement is false and your application is fraudulent.

Reply 2

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

I would note Cambridge generally emphasises GCSEs less, and the college ATs on the "Ask an AT" threads continually reiterate that while there is a strong correlation in students with good GCSEs applying successfully, this is not a causal relationship. Students who do well at GCSE typically do well in A-level, and are more likely to self select in applying to Cambridge in the first place - this doesn't imply in any way that students who didn't do as well at GCSE can't do well at A-level and apply successfully to Cambridge (which they do, every year). There is no requirement or even preference for having "70% A*s at GCSE" for Cambridge certainly, and the college ATs on here have all stated they have never rejected a student solely on the basis of GCSEs. Oxford does use GCSEs more extensively in pre-interview shortlisting (as they interview fewer students typically), but admissions assessments etc can ameliorate poorer GCSEs.

It would probably be better to just focus on consolidating your GCSE knowledge rather than retaking, in preparation for your A-level studies and ensuring you are as well prepared for those as possible. Then excel in year 12 to get high predicted grades, a good academic reference, and focus on any admissions assessments in year 13. An upward trajectory in grades is usually viewed favourably.

Reply 3

New Wonder

Hi there. I was in the same dilemma as you when I got my GCSE results this year and although I did pretty good I would have liked to have gotten an 8 in English Lit and Lang.

The extend at which GCSEs matter depends on: a)the subject your are applying for and b) the university you are applying for. For example I am applying for medicine so I would need to apply strategically - in essence if your GCSE grades aren’t so good then apply to unis that generally place less weight on GCSEs such as Cambridge, Imperial and UCL. If your GCSE grades were very good then apply for unis which place a lot of weight in GCSE results such as Oxford or Newcastle. However a great set of GCSE results alone will NOT guarantee you a place just as a poor set of GCSEs will not mean that you cannot get in because unis tend to look at GCSE results in context (so they compare your school’s result against yours and they see if your results were better or worse) and they also look at P.S., predicted grades, references, any extra reading or extra knowledge you have and your passion for the subject.

My advice is to think of GCSEs as a small piece of a big cake - sure it is still significant but there are other factors more significant then it such as predicted A-Level grades.

By the way what subject are you applying for?

(edited 5 years ago)

Reply 4

Doones

Original post by JoshuaRussell16

Yes they must be declared.

And which course are you considering? The importance of GCSEs varies by course.

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Reply 5

Dysf(x)al

Yes you do have to declare them - both your original grade and your resit grade (or if you're yet to resit, you have to say you intend to resit).

However, I have never seen this 70% figure before. Of course most successful applicants have a lot of A*s, but for most courses it is not necessary. If you "only" have mostly As then that's usually fine as long as you have A*s in the subjects most relevant to your course.

Reply 6

Blackjoker1506

Original post by PQ

Even if you get the same grade?

Reply 7

Doones

Original post by Blackjoker1506

Even if you get the same grade?

Yes

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Reply 8

Versgucci

Original post by New Wonder

Hi , im in a tricky situation , where my GCSES are good but i dont meet the general entry requirement of a grade 6 in English Language for most Unis. When you say that people with "a bad set of GCSE results " should apply to unis that arent strict on GCSES , which unis would that be ( apart from UCL,Imperial and cambridge ) ?