Advice on obtaining an A-level in Biology to persue Physiopherapy as a second degree

Hi Student Room,

I graduated from York St. John back in 2017 with a Class 1 (Honours) Degree of Bachelor of Arts in Film Studies and Media. Since graduating I have been working as a freelance video editor, however in the past years the idea of pursuing a second degree in Physiotherapy has really taken me.

Whilst I do not possess the entry level requirements, as I obtained CCD in IT, Geography and Philosophy, I contacted York St. John and received a response stating that if I could obtain an A-level in biology (or P.E) I would be able to put forward an application due to my first class degree.

My question concerns how I would best go about obtaining this A-level in Biology. I have looked into booking as a private candidate, however I am still unsure as to the whether or not I need to have taken my AS exams before being able to persue Biology as an A-level. I have a lot of free time and dedication to fully apply myself to the course and believe I can obtain the A-level within 8 months of self study. What do you believe would be the fastest, as well as most efficient, way to obtain this A-level?

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Biology AS and A-Level are two separate qualifications now, although the first year of A-Level and AS have the same content. As such, you will not need to sit the AS exams as you would do all of Biology A-Level in one season (ie. all in June 2021 etc.). You will still need to learn the content of the first year, however all of the content from first year (the AS year) is examined alongside the content from the second year if you sit the full A-Level.

Therefore I would recommend buying some revision guides for the relevant course and starting to work your way through them. Generally speaking the second year content follows on from the first year so it would be a good idea to work on first year / AS work and then move on to the second year / A2* work, then practice exam questions. Different exam boards have different requirements so it may be a good idea to get a tutor who is a Biology teacher (who teaches that exam board) as sometimes the exams require quite specific wording, especially if there is an essay, such as there is with AQA. I didn't take Biology so I can't advise you specifically but I wish you good luck and feel free to message me if you have any more questions.

*A2 is the second year of A-Level. Since A-Level exams now cover both years of the course, A2 refers to the content that is only in the second year, and not in the A2 or first year.

hi!
Im doing film studies and media as well!
but funnily enough i also want an a-level in biology to pursue a second degree in either marine biology or something similar!
Just a question - how would you be affording the second degree? it wouldn't be covered by student finance so have you managed to save up? i'm just wondering for me! Thank you!

Also you don't need to take AS exams to do an a-level you just go straight into A2 exams. but be warned they are really hard but as long as you apply yourself and learn all the content you should be fine!!! Also maybe look into having a tutor for a while once you've learned the majority of the syllabus as they can iron out any kinks you have!! x

Hi Student Room,

I graduated from York St. John back in 2017 with a Class 1 (Honours) Degree of Bachelor of Arts in Film Studies and Media. Since graduating I have been working as a freelance video editor, however in the past years the idea of pursuing a second degree in Physiotherapy has really taken me.

Whilst I do not possess the entry level requirements, as I obtained CCD in IT, Geography and Philosophy, I contacted York St. John and received a response stating that if I could obtain an A-level in biology (or P.E) I would be able to put forward an application due to my first class degree.

My question concerns how I would best go about obtaining this A-level in Biology. I have looked into booking as a private candidate, however I am still unsure as to the whether or not I need to have taken my AS exams before being able to persue Biology as an A-level. I have a lot of free time and dedication to fully apply myself to the course and believe I can obtain the A-level within 8 months of self study. What do you believe would be the fastest, as well as most efficient, way to obtain this A-level?

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Thank you! This was very helpful. I'll look into whether or not I will be needing to practical side of the assessment and then look into comparing prices and centres I can sit the exam at!