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Is the transition between GCSE and A Level big ?

I am starting A Levels in September and I'm getting a bit nervous as there isn't really a description of the jump between A Level and GCSE. I know that the work is harder for some subjects. However, I don't know how the environment changes from GCSE to A Level.

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Yes it is

But its not a big deal. Everything in life has a big transition it just means that you are growing. Keep up with your bridge work if you have any, and do your homework on time, pay attention in class and you will adapt pretty quickly. And also make the most of your "free periods" (I like to do homework in these so I could study at home)

Embrace it :smile:
What subjects are you doing?

I personally found the initial jump between GCSE and Alevel not too bad. What hit me more was the jump between AS and A2 work
I’m also going into sixth form in Sep, but from what I’ve heard there’s a greater onus on the student to grasp content quickly and comprehensively, to be organised with notes and to be revising basically from the start of the course. Also apparently it’s not a memory test like GCSEs lol
Reply 4
Original post by SuperHuman98
Yes it is

But its not a big deal. Everything in life has a big transition it just means that you are growing. Keep up with your bridge work if you have any, and do your homework on time, pay attention in class and you will adapt pretty quickly. And also make the most of your "free periods" (I like to do homework in these so I could study at home)

Embrace it :smile:

How many free periods do you usually get ?
dont be nervous - you should be excited! :smile:

you get treated more like an adult, provided you behave like one, which you'll develop into without knowing it. it is harder work load, but it's not like GCSE's - having a goal at the end (e.g. uni, apprenticeships) is what will drive and motivate you. you'll likely get into the flow and step up to the plate :yep

year 13 for me personally, though cut short by miss corona, was my best school year I've had.
im currently in year 12 and I didnt find the transition too bad. it's more work but you get free periods like for my school I have 15 hours of lesson time and 10 hours of free periods to catch up on work and make revision material. as long as you stay on top of the work I would say the transition wouldn't be so bad
Reply 7
Original post by abbie2309
im currently in year 12 and I didnt find the transition too bad. it's more work but you get free periods like for my school I have 15 hours of lesson time and 10 hours of free periods to catch up on work and make revision material. as long as you stay on top of the work I would say the transition wouldn't be so bad

Ok. Is there a transition between Year 12 and Year 13. Since students ae thinking about applying to uni, exams etc
Original post by IDK.345
Ok. Is there a transition between Year 12 and Year 13. Since students ae thinking about applying to uni, exams etc

I did my A levels last year. The jump from GCSEs to A levels for me wasn't big. You just have to make sure you keep on top of your work right from the start and use free periods wisely for homework and revision. The jumps from year 12 to year 13 was bigger for me. I applied for medicine so I had an earlier UCAS deadline and I had spent a lot of the summer revising for the admissions test and spent less time revising year 12 content. There's also the realisation that you are in your last year and exams are getting closer and you're trying to figure out how to learn new year 13 content as well as revise year 12 content so it got quite hectic for me.
There's a big jump in workload and the amount of learning you have to do independently. In fact, you will spend most of your time making revision resources and doing outside reading. I honestly didn't notice it, though, and it didn't feel overwhelming, just new. It's quite fun and makes your subjects more personal.
Original post by IDK.345
I am starting A Levels in September and I'm getting a bit nervous as there isn't really a description of the jump between A Level and GCSE. I know that the work is harder for some subjects. However, I don't know how the environment changes from GCSE to A Level.

Hello,
I study A-Levels in Biology, Chemistry, Maths, (in Wales) and the Welsh Baccalaureate.

I personally found the task to revise and organise my time harder during GCSEs than at A-Level. This is simply because you do not have any "free lessons" at GCSE which you can dedicate to revising. It all had to be done at home or during the once every so often revision session in class. The "free lessons" in Sixth Form were very useful as you can plan your future revision, do revision, do homework, and/or look at the work ahead. My Biology teacher recommends looking at the work ahead so you can keep on top of things and so you're an expert on it in class and will only be recapping your knowledge. Do NOT take these free lessons for granted. They are a godsend. At the start of the year, I fell into the trap of spending all of my free lessons talking to friends with the occasional homework etc. I feel your time is best spent working in a quiet space where you are focused and motivated to do work. Only when you need breaks or someone to speak to (or if it is break or lunchtime) should you go and hang out with friends. You may want to revise with friends which is great. It doesn't work for me though as my friends always wanted to speak :biggrin:

I would recommend revising small bits of the work and new concepts as you go along so it is fresh in your mind, and therefore, you will have longer to memorise the work rather than spending last minute revision towards exam season. Take your mocks seriously by building on active recall and spaced repetition methods based on the work you have completed already. Look at Year 12 this year - our mock results are an indicator as to which results we receive for AS, so take them seriously as you will never know what happens next. They are also a great learning opportunity to know where to improve. Complete topic questions and past paper questions as you go along following your exam board's specification. Little and often is great the way to go about things. If you do it this way, your work won't seem so big, and your A-Levels will be very easy for you. Please DO put effort into understanding the work first though. Don't just revise it if you don't understand it. Your teachers are more understanding if you need help, so please approach them with any advice you may need.

I am WJEC exam board btw. The jump is noticeable as there is much more content covered in lessons and across the year, but if you are efficient in managing your time early and planning your revision, it will be easier than GCSEs for you (at least it was for me anyway).

Best of luck!

Remember: Sixth Form is an important time regardless of going to uni, apprenticeship etc. Don't avoid social activities though. Keep yourself busy as you don't want to be revising all of the time.

Regards,
Ryan :smile:
Reply 11
I'm going to buck the trend and say it's not really as large as everyone says it is. The jump from AS to A2 is larger than GCSE to AS in my opinion - particularly for Further Maths if you're thinking of taking that.

Just make sure to stay on top of work and you'll be fine, don't worry too much.
Reply 12
Original post by IDK.345
I am starting A Levels in September and I'm getting a bit nervous as there isn't really a description of the jump between A Level and GCSE. I know that the work is harder for some subjects. However, I don't know how the environment changes from GCSE to A Level.


It's a lot harder with some subjects, but that largely depends on how you decide to go about your work and your teachers. In my experience teachers try to make the transition as easy as possible, they genuinely want you to do well and they know stress doesn't bode well with that. See how you go, I was pleasantly surprised by how much more i began to enjoy sixth form and how quick - they treat you like an adult and it's a lot easy to stay focused with subjects you chose to do. If you do struggle, just tell your teachers and the better half of them will make every effort to help.

The hardest part is a few months in when you get behind on work cause you get too lax in your free periods. I'll give you the advice the same as everyone else: stay ahead. But everyone gets a bit cocky with free time eventually, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. Just try and figure out a good balance asap, so you can get a mix of work at school to be ahead, as well as time to piss about with your mates (I recommend bringing a set of Uno just in case you get bored.
Before I started my A levels everyone told me how dreadful the jump between GCSE and A level was so I was preparing for the worst. However I don’t agree. I didn’t find A levels particularly awful. As long as you stay on top of your workload and take subjects you’re both good at and enjoy it’s very much a natural step up and most my friends agree:smile: it only becomes a problem if you leave revision too late and get behind on work or you take subjects you’re not particularly strong at. I’d say the subjects you should take for A level you should be getting a grade 7+ at GCSE in order to not feel overwhelmed
Original post by IDK.345
I am starting A Levels in September and I'm getting a bit nervous as there isn't really a description of the jump between A Level and GCSE. I know that the work is harder for some subjects. However, I don't know how the environment changes from GCSE to A Level.

I say it depends on the subject you take tbh. If you start a subject which is new to everybody like psychology in most schools, it's not as bad as the sciences in my personal opinion but I feel like I underestimated the amount of work involved and wish I did work during my summer
For the subjects I took there was no jump. The subjects begin with a revision of GCSE, especially math, so here you go.

(and I did math, FM, physics)
Reply 16
I dont recall it being overly strenuous. Jumping up to undergraduate and postgraduate was an impressive shock though :lol:
I'm gonna be honest, I didn't even feel it. I found that I settled right into A Level work.
How often do most ppl go out for lunch in sixth form? good food is all i care about lmao
I would agree with TheTroll and vicvic. For [further] maths and physics - it really felt like a natural and gentle continuation from GCSE. Maths spends an inordinate amount of time recapping GCSE. Most difficulties early on - I'd say are due to shaky GCSE foundations or just having forgot stuff from A-level.

I'd imagine it depends on the subject largely though.

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