The Student Room Group

Got "D" in English GCSE- is that a big problem?

Hi,

I'd like to apply for a Computing course in 5 uni's. The 3 Uni's that I'd like to go to the most are:

Leeds
Leicester
and Newcastle

When filling out the UCAS form today I've just realised that I got "D" in my English GCSE Exam :mad: When I looked at the requirements of the course in all 3 uni's they just require a "B" in Maths GCSE and they don't say anything about English. But I know it can be a problem :frown:

The reason why I got "D" is that I came to the UK 3 years ago (I'm not from UK) and I went straight to Year10, when they've already started their GCSE course, so I didn't know much about what's goin on... My English wasn't very good so I thought that even a "D" was a very good grade for me. I didn't know that it'll be important for me few years later when I'm gonna apply to the Uni...

I got "B" in maths and also got few other B's and C's, so overall my GCSE's are not that bad, but I'm just scared about that English grade. My English has improved MUCH during the last 3 years, and they'll see that by looking at my A Level results (predicted grades: AAB). These grades themselves mean that my English must be good, as anyone without good English wouldn't get e.g. AAB in his A Levels, but I know that I'll not be able to explain that to the Uni's :frown: I'm not gonna attach a letter to my application explaining that ... heh and they'll probably don't care how long I've been in this country before I wrote my GCSE's...

What should I do in this situation? Do I have any chances to get into the Uni? I know that for Computing the GCSE Maths will be more important than English Language but ... I'll get some excellent references and I think that my personal statement is also pretty good... but will that be enough ? I'm really worried...

Can I resit this exam this year or something? Please tell me what should I do:frown:

Thanks a lot for all your answers!
ask your teacher to write about why you got that grade in their reference. If its a problem this year think about resitting it next year
Reply 2
Honestly, yeah it will cause problems. Anything lower than a C is usually considered a fail.
If you can resit, do it. Even if the unis dont require it.

Especially because you're international.

Actually maybe because you're international there's alternatives that you might be able to do.
Reply 3
Most Universities will want a C or B in English and Maths.
most unis require at lease a C at GCSE englsh (langauge), so i would resit.
although, if your first language is not english tehre are several english language tests you can do to prove your competency in the language- IELTS, TOEFL etc...

Try contacting the unis of your choice and finding out if a D is acceptable
Reply 5
When I got a D for English GCSE places like Imperial asked me to do an IELTS exam as part of the offer, other places like Warwick didn't care.
Reply 6
~style
When I got a D for English GCSE places like Imperial asked me to do an IELTS exam as part of the offer, other places like Warwick didn't care.


what do you mean by "didn't care" ? :smile:

they didn't care about your D and they've accepted it, or they've rejected your offer straight away ?
Reply 7
onlybarca
what do you mean by "didn't care" ? :smile:

they didn't care about your D and they've accepted it, or they've rejected your offer straight away ?


They gave me an offer.
Reply 8
~style
They gave me an offer.


ohh that's the first optimistic comment for me :smile:

How can I resit this exam? Do I have to go to some lessons or just write the exam in Summer? How does it work? and what about my application ... will I put my English GCSE as pending in that situation ?
Reply 9
onlybarca
ohh that's the first optimistic comment for me :smile:

How can I resit this exam? Do I have to go to some lessons or just write the exam in Summer? How does it work? and what about my application ... will I put my English GCSE as pending in that situation ?


It's not in a great situation to be but you its not the end of hope at all. Each University can be different, they'll most likely judge you on an individual basis so you need to speak to them about it. Contact Admissions at the chosen Universities and speak to them about this.

Considering you want to do a Computing course, you're lucky you got a D for English as opposed to Math, because then I doubt they'd just sweep it under the rug and make you an offer. So there is hope for you
Reply 10
Yeah, definitely I'll have to contact all of them individually. But can you tell me how the resit would look like ? I'm in Year 13 at the moment.

Is is still possible to resit this exam this year and how would I put my English grade on my application if I'd do that?
I got a D too and went through the full ucas process twice with only one rejection. I also got accepted and went to a 3rd University. My courses were Maths based, but fwiw, it didn't seem to hold me back.

Now on my CV I just list my GCSE grades, and not what subject corresponds to which grade. I know my D wasn't a true reflection of my ability, and by the rest of your results the uni's should see that also.
Reply 12
punkskamonkey
I got a D too and went through the full ucas process twice with only one rejection. I also got accepted and went to a 3rd University. My courses were Maths based, but fwiw, it didn't seem to hold me back.

Now on my CV I just list my GCSE grades, and not what subject corresponds to which grade. I know my D wasn't a true reflection of my ability, and by the rest of your results the uni's should see that also.


Yes :smile: This is what I think. Someone with a very poor language wouldn't be able to get AAB in A Levels which were built up mainly of the written work, and they're not stupid, they should notice that.
Reply 13
Can anyone tell me how long does it take to do the IELTS test? and when is it possible to take it ? are there any specific dates?
it probably will be a problem but if it's explained why you got a D in your personal statement or reference the uni's may let you off.

You're going to have to hope that your A-level results are awesome