gap year for engineering, good or bad?

hey everyone, I was hoping to gain advice on my situation. I had my end of years (on which predicted grades are based on) and they weren't as good as I wanted them to be due to external circumstances, however the teachers said that the grades will still be based on this test and its gonna be hard to take into account other stuff. so overall I dont think my grades are gonna be very good, the thing is I wanted to study engineering (or computer science related degrees) at competitive universities ( like imperial, ucl, nottingham etc.) . I was planning on taking a gap year since I know I can do a LOT better in the actual exams and also to gain some exerience in the industry. Some people that I've spoken to told me not to do this since sometimes for engineering (and other maths based subjects) univesities are less likely to accept gap year students since they are more likely to "forget" maths. I'm aware there are other ways to gain experince in industy (like year in industry), I'm mainly doing this since I absolutly destroyed my mocks and its likely my grades are not good enough for good non competitive universities. I wanted to know if I'm making a big mistake and if this is the right decision whether to apply to unis this year to (I'm in year 12).

sorry for the long paragraph and thank you for reading

subjects I take: further maths, maths, chemistry and physics

If you don’t get As or A*s as predicted, the chances of obtaining A*s in your exams are very slim. I’m not saying it’s impossible, but data says it’s very unlikely. I would ask to re-sit my mocks in September to improve my predicted grades and my overall knowledge of yr12 content.

And they are not ‘less likely’ to accept gap year students if they have used their gap year for useful purposes like work experience close to the area of interest.

As above, if you take a gap year, use it well and wisely so as to not end up at a disadvantage compared to other applicants.

Before you absolutely set your mind upon taking a gap year, at least wait for your mock results to come back so you can decide if your predicted grades will meet or exceed the entry requirements for the courses you are interested in.

I see, I tried asking my teachers for resiting my mocks however they said that its very unlikely they're gonna have another test in september. I dont think I did horrible in my subjects, the subjects that I'm mainly worried about it maths and further maths (the most important for engineering) in tests that I did at home before I've been getting above 75% but due to extrenal circumstances I wasn't able to revise very much last month (especially for further maths) so I didnt do my best. do you think I should apply to universities this year ? and then if my results are a lot higher I can decide to take a gap year later

yeah I get my results this month, thank you for the advice

I see, I tried asking my teachers for resiting my mocks however they said that its very unlikely they're gonna have another test in september. I dont think I did horrible in my subjects, the subjects that I'm mainly worried about it maths and further maths (the most important for engineering) in tests that I did at home before I've been getting above 75% but due to extrenal circumstances I wasn't able to revise very much last month (especially for further maths) so I didnt do my best. do you think I should apply to universities this year ? and then if my results are a lot higher I can decide to take a gap year later

Just explain your extenuating circumstances to your teachers and I’m sure they’ll let you resit your exams (if they are valid reasons).

hey everyone, I was hoping to gain advice on my situation. I had my end of years (on which predicted grades are based on) and they weren't as good as I wanted them to be due to external circumstances, however the teachers said that the grades will still be based on this test and its gonna be hard to take into account other stuff. so overall I dont think my grades are gonna be very good, the thing is I wanted to study engineering (or computer science related degrees) at competitive universities ( like imperial, ucl, nottingham etc.) . I was planning on taking a gap year since I know I can do a LOT better in the actual exams and also to gain some exerience in the industry. Some people that I've spoken to told me not to do this since sometimes for engineering (and other maths based subjects) univesities are less likely to accept gap year students since they are more likely to "forget" maths. I'm aware there are other ways to gain experince in industy (like year in industry), I'm mainly doing this since I absolutly destroyed my mocks and its likely my grades are not good enough for good non competitive universities. I wanted to know if I'm making a big mistake and if this is the right decision whether to apply to unis this year to (I'm in year 12).

sorry for the long paragraph and thank you for reading

subjects I take: further maths, maths, chemistry and physics

hey everyone, I was hoping to gain advice on my situation. I had my end of years (on which predicted grades are based on) and they weren't as good as I wanted them to be due to external circumstances, however the teachers said that the grades will still be based on this test and its gonna be hard to take into account other stuff. so overall I dont think my grades are gonna be very good, the thing is I wanted to study engineering (or computer science related degrees) at competitive universities ( like imperial, ucl, nottingham etc.) . I was planning on taking a gap year since I know I can do a LOT better in the actual exams and also to gain some exerience in the industry. Some people that I've spoken to told me not to do this since sometimes for engineering (and other maths based subjects) univesities are less likely to accept gap year students since they are more likely to "forget" maths. I'm aware there are other ways to gain experince in industy (like year in industry), I'm mainly doing this since I absolutly destroyed my mocks and its likely my grades are not good enough for good non competitive universities. I wanted to know if I'm making a big mistake and if this is the right decision whether to apply to unis this year to (I'm in year 12).

sorry for the long paragraph and thank you for reading

subjects I take: further maths, maths, chemistry and physics

hey everyone, I was hoping to gain advice on my situation. I had my end of years (on which predicted grades are based on) and they weren't as good as I wanted them to be due to external circumstances, however the teachers said that the grades will still be based on this test and its gonna be hard to take into account other stuff. so overall I dont think my grades are gonna be very good, the thing is I wanted to study engineering (or computer science related degrees) at competitive universities ( like imperial, ucl, nottingham etc.) . I was planning on taking a gap year since I know I can do a LOT better in the actual exams and also to gain some exerience in the industry. Some people that I've spoken to told me not to do this since sometimes for engineering (and other maths based subjects) univesities are less likely to accept gap year students since they are more likely to "forget" maths. I'm aware there are other ways to gain experince in industy (like year in industry), I'm mainly doing this since I absolutly destroyed my mocks and its likely my grades are not good enough for good non competitive universities. I wanted to know if I'm making a big mistake and if this is the right decision whether to apply to unis this year to (I'm in year 12).

sorry for the long paragraph and thank you for reading

subjects I take: further maths, maths, chemistry and physics

Yes, for maths-based courses this is true. I would say to apply to backup options, secure an offer and reject on results day if the results are as competitive for these Uni's (AAA+). Then, I would recommend you sit A-Level Further Maths in your gap year (if you are not sitting this A-Level. If the Uni's that you wish to apply for require you to sit an entrance exam (check on the entry requirement websites for each Uni), then I would say that sitting Further Maths would be unnecessary as you would be proving that you are still capable of Maths during your gap year. Don't listen to the people saying in this thread that you are unlikely to improve - work your backside off next year to get your grades and try to sort out a situation that removes the personal circumstances you mentioned.

thank you so much for the advice, I take A level further maths already so taking it again may not be a good idea but I'll look into university entrance exams.

My bad, didn't see you mention it earlier. I would just replace taking Further with any Maths Olympiads or just any proof of independent study (you could do some cool engineering coding project or something and put on your PS). That being said, this stuff is probably the least of your priorities rn. Focus on getting the grades then take it from there

Staying sharp at mathematics will definitely be important however if you do some revision the last month or so before university you’ll be fine.

I don’t really see a gap year as either a net pro or con. You have 40+ years so a couple extra years before you enter the workforce wont make a tremendous difference. However i do think taking 12 months you still need to channel your time in a proactive manner wether you work/volunteer etc.