Should i take a gap year or would my time be wasted?

Im in yr12 and i did my mocks and they werent good. I know i need AAA predicted grades atleast and I dont think ill get this and my gcses arent amazing either, Should i take a gap year?

Reply 1

TSR Hippocrates

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Reply 2

GGIN

Original post by reeliserealeyes

Im in yr12 and i did my mocks and they werent good. I know i need AAA predicted grades atleast and I dont think ill get this and my gcses arent amazing either, Should i take a gap year?

Its hard to comment as the nature of GCSEs not amazing isnt very clear. Not amazing to one person will be very different to not amazing for another.

The vast majority of med schools that i have looked at do consider your gcses in some form or other when they are choosing who to invite to interview. Have a read through the thread with entry qualifications on it and then look at the individual application processes for those that you think your GCSEs might nominally meet.

Understanding the opportunities and limitations of your gcses is going to be the important thing. How will a gap year affect the grades ?

I have also seen sometimes that if you apply with achieved A levels then in some instances (as long as you have the required A level grades and subjects) this might compensate for "not amazing" gcses. Or at least change the selection process in your favour.

If you can get predicted grades of AAA that will massively help your application. I believe some med schools dont look at predicted grades (Leicester I think for example), but they are not in the majority.

The main thing is to push to get the actual grades first time as that will give you more flex.

For many people a gap year becomes a necessity because they dont get their grades, or dont get an offer. What would you lose /gain if you applied this october still with a view to this being a two year process ?

Are you eligible for any of the foundation year course requirements ?

No advice just stuff to think through perhaps. Good luck.

(edited 11 months ago)

Reply 3

rachael-p

Original post by reeliserealeyes

Im in yr12 and i did my mocks and they werent good. I know i need AAA predicted grades atleast and I dont think ill get this and my gcses arent amazing either, Should i take a gap year?

Don't take a gap year purely based on your grades, you can still apply to universities with more lenient entry requirements or take a college course - don't think you can't stay in education just because you didn't do as well as expected! It just depends on whether you know what you want to do or whether it feels like the right time to go to uni. It's worth taking a gap year if you want some time to earn money with a job or do some studying.

My grades were ok and I applied to universities but ended up changing my mind and taking 2 gap years anyway - one because I didn't know what to do and the other because of covid and I didn't feel I was ready.

Choose what feels best for you :smile:

Reply 4

GANFYD

Original post by reeliserealeyes

Im in yr12 and i did my mocks and they werent good. I know i need AAA predicted grades atleast and I dont think ill get this and my gcses arent amazing either, Should i take a gap year?

I am assuming htis is for medicine, given you are in the medicine forum?
If so, dependent on how "unamazing" your GCSEs are, if oyu realistically think you may be able to get AAA at A level, it might be worth an aspirational application this year, with low expectations, as as pointed out, some med schools do not need AAA predicted, or don't look at predicted grades. This would allow practice at UCAT and a knowledge of the system. However, do not do this if it would jeopardise your chances of achieving the required A level grades. I would expect to take a gap year, as many of those not looking at predictions have high GCSE requirements, so achieved AAA+ would open more doors.

Original post by rachael-p

Sadly, unless the OP has WP flags, medicine does not work this way - the entry requirements are fairly uniform accross the board at AAA-A*AA

Reply 5

username5063840

Original post by reeliserealeyes

Im in yr12 and i did my mocks and they werent good. I know i need AAA predicted grades atleast and I dont think ill get this and my gcses arent amazing either, Should i take a gap year?

Can you try increasing them next year? In my school, we got given the option to increase our predicted grades by doing well on topic tests.

(edited 11 months ago)

Reply 6

Anonymous0305

Hey, so as you probably know already there's some other exam you need to take (I think they're called UCATs) for medical school applications. A friend of mine didn't do so well in their UCAT exams so decided instead of applying and putting pressure on themselves to go through the application process this year (with grades they didn't think were good enough to get in), they would take a gap year and take the UCATs again. Medical school is a HUGE commitment so it may be good for you to take a break before going back into education but it's different for everyone - don't feel pressured to take one or not to take one just because someone told you to/not to!

Gap years are not a waste of time as long as you use your time and don't sit around doing nothing. You don't necessarily have to do anything related to your chosen career; you could travel, work a part time/full time job, take some time for hobbies, enter essay competitions etc. If anything, it can often "show initiative" to take a gap year and start gaining work experience, as I've been told this is what has been said to people I know by employers in job interviews.
You could apply and if you don't get in, take a gap year and try again the next year, or differ your place if you do get in and decide to take a gap year anyway.