Importance of GCSEs

Hi All,

I have just finished my A Levels and got A*A*A and am currently on a gap year.

My GCSEs were not as great (1-8, 4-7s, 5-6s).

I am wanting to apply to Oxford for either:

- Philosophy and Spanish
- Spanish and Linguistics
or
- Spanish and Arabic.

Do you think my GCSE grades will still let me down?

Thanks,

Aspektextra.

Reply 1

mnot

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by aspektextra

Oxford are notorious for filtering with GCSEs Cambridge is a better bet at getting an interview invite.

Reply 2

liverninthered

I mean, possibly. They would be significantly below average. However:
1. The courses you mention are not especially competitive and modern languages has a very high interview rate
2. Your GCSEs are contextualised based on where you went to school at the time - this may mean your gcse score is a bit better than the grades would suggest
3. You already have A-levels, showing you are capable of achieving high grades even if you didn't at GCSE

So it may be a problem but I dare say that a good performance on admission test would offset any doubts they'd have.