Terrified I’ll be held back because of my awful GCSEs

Cambridge doesn't put that much weight on GCSEs compared to Oxford. UCL only has minimum GCSE requirements (same for most unis).

GCSEs are, in the grand scheme of things, pretty unimportant with only a few exceptions (many but not all courses at Oxford, some courses at LSE, some medical/dental/vet schools).

Yup, I’ve heard Cambridge put less emphasis than Oxford/LSE, but people often reassure others that mediocre GCSE results are fine as long as it’s not in a relevant subject. Unfortunately, mine is…which sucks, because it isn’t representative of my ability at all. I got an A* in my History Mock a week ago…so it’s very unfortunate that I could be held back by the 6 I got a year ago.

I ended up scraping 888765555 at GCSE, but I’ve found renewed academic strength this year (Y12), I’m now predicted A*A*A. I’m top of my class in both English Literature and History, where I got the highest scores in both my end of year papers - I got an A* and almost full marks in my Y12 History mock so I’m pretty confident I can get it in the real thing. History is my subject; I’m genuinely passionate about it, and it’s the only thing I could truly see myself studying next year. My dream is to study modern history at Cambridge.

But unfortunately, despite my progress this year, I sadly ended up getting a 6 in GCSE history. One of the reasons for this was that I didn’t have access to a word processor then, so I ran out of time in all the final exams despite being an otherwise strong student who’d gotten 9s all year. Now that I have access to a laptop/word processor in exams (I’m on the waitlist for ADHD testing after referral) I’ve actually been able to finish my papers, and have been doing extremely well as a result. I’m finally on an equal playing field. God willing, this will count as an extenuating circumstance because my performance was worsened due to a factor outside of my control, but I’m not sure. I also struggled with poor mental health at the time, but I’m not diagnosed with anything.

But I’m just terrified that my poor GCSE results and subpar performance in Y11 will stop me from going to elite universities like Cambridge/Edinburgh/UCL. It just seems so awful, especially considering I’ve made such great progress. In particular, with a University like Cambridge, could I eclipse poor GCSEs with stellar predictions, PS, and a great interview and assessment peformance?

Even if I do exceptionally well in every other part of the admissions process, could I be rejected on the basis of my GCSE results alone?

Yup, I’ve heard Cambridge put less emphasis than Oxford/LSE, but people often reassure others that mediocre GCSE results are fine as long as it’s not in a relevant subject. Unfortunately, mine is…which sucks, because it isn’t representative of my ability at all. I got an A* in my History Mock a week ago…so it’s very unfortunate that I could be held back by the 6 I got a year ago.

If you got a 6 at GCSE but you're now predicted an A* at A level and are top of the class then you're on an upward trajectory, which is what Cambridge will be more interested in. If you have a genuine passion for the subject now and you believe that the Cambridge course is the right one for you, then go for it! (But be sure to check the course structure and contents first, and make sure that it is definitely a course that you would enjoy doing for 3 years.)

I ended up scraping 888765555 at GCSE, but I’ve found renewed academic strength this year (Y12), I’m now predicted A*A*A. I’m top of my class in both English Literature and History, where I got the highest scores in both my end of year papers - I got an A* and almost full marks in my Y12 History mock so I’m pretty confident I can get it in the real thing. History is my subject; I’m genuinely passionate about it, and it’s the only thing I could truly see myself studying next year. My dream is to study modern history at Cambridge.

But unfortunately, despite my progress this year, I sadly ended up getting a 6 in GCSE history. One of the reasons for this was that I didn’t have access to a word processor then, so I ran out of time in all the final exams despite being an otherwise strong student who’d gotten 9s all year. Now that I have access to a laptop/word processor in exams (I’m on the waitlist for ADHD testing after referral) I’ve actually been able to finish my papers, and have been doing extremely well as a result. I’m finally on an equal playing field. God willing, this will count as an extenuating circumstance because my performance was worsened due to a factor outside of my control, but I’m not sure. I also struggled with poor mental health at the time, but I’m not diagnosed with anything.

But I’m just terrified that my poor GCSE results and subpar performance in Y11 will stop me from going to elite universities like Cambridge/Edinburgh/UCL. It just seems so awful, especially considering I’ve made such great progress. In particular, with a University like Cambridge, could I eclipse poor GCSEs with stellar predictions, PS, and a great interview and assessment peformance?

Even if I do exceptionally well in every other part of the admissions process, could I be rejected on the basis of my GCSE results alone?

I really hope you’re right! My worry is that the admissions tutor might think my predictions are inflated or unrealistic based on my GCSEs, but I literally got an A* in the mock 🥲