Aiming for the Stars (GYG 23/24)

bbbbbbb87

4

Hello and welcome to my blog about aiming for the stars. :flower2:

Kinda literally, hoping to get A*s but if that doesn't happen, I hope that I will still do well. Currently I am in year 13 taking maths (AQA), physics (OCR A) and DT (AQA). And my predicted grades AAC with the C in physics. I think I got lucky with an A in maths as the grade boundaries were low for that test. Most of the year, I was getting Cs and Ds.

University Plan:

Currently I'm thinking of doing design engineering, if I do achieve my goals and get my predicteds up, I think I'll apply to Bristol or Imperial. But right now, I'm looking at glasgow, strathclyde and loughborough.

Hobbies:

I like to play hockey, listen to music (lana del ray, taylor and other basic popular singers) and read reincarnation manhwas so most of the time when I get distracted, it's likely due to those things.

Goals:

I want to get A* in all my subject but my current goal right now is to improve my physics grade so I can get a better predicted grade for university as all my choices want AAB.

Week 1 To Do list:

•

Finish homework

•

Revise for maths test

Hey, seems like you're off to a good start this year! What is it about your uni choices that made you pick them?

Sounds like you really know what you need to improve on to get where you want to be. Maybe check out the A-level Physics Study Group as well - bit empty at the moment but it should pick up throughout the year and can be a great place to share tips and resources :smile:

Reply 2

bbbbbbb87

OP

4

Original post by Pwca

Hey, seems like you're off to a good start this year! What is it about your uni choices that made you pick them?

Sounds like you really know what you need to improve on to get where you want to be. Maybe check out the A-level Physics Study Group as well - bit empty at the moment but it should pick up throughout the year and can be a great place to share tips and resources :smile:

Thanks I will definitely check out that group. I mainly chose them as they were rated the top for the subject and they do some really interesting research projects there as well.

Original post by bbbbbbb87

Thanks I will definitely check out that group. I mainly chose them as they were rated the top for the subject and they do some really interesting research projects there as well.

I think one of the best things about uni is being taught by active researchers, so that makes a lot of sense. I hope this term has got off to a good start for you! When is/ was the maths test?

Reply 4

04MR17

Volunteer Section Leader

22

Following - can't wait to see how you get on :smile:

Reply 5

bbbbbbb87

OP

4

Original post by Pwca

I think one of the best things about uni is being taught by active researchers, so that makes a lot of sense. I hope this term has got off to a good start for you! When is/ was the maths test?

Thank you for the goodwishes. The maths test was last week and went really well. I got 80% in the end!

Reply 6

bbbbbbb87

OP

4

Week 1 Review: :yy:

I did finish all my homework and the maths test went very well, I got a score that I was really proud of so my revision for that went well. I have spent the weekend visiting Loughborough University and I really liked the place. It definitely inspired me to work harder so I can hopefully get in. I loved the vibes there and I saw so many sports available to do so I can't wait to try them out. The lecturers were super enthusiastic about the course and they students seem to enjoy it a lot. Right now, I think the place is going to be one of my top choices.

Week 2 To Do List :smartass:

•

I have a lot of homework set this week so I plan to use my frees to finish them off

•

I am also hoping to make some more flashcards for DT on paper 2

•

I am also thinking I might start flashcards for physics, I will probably start with the praticals and definitions since these are my weakest topics

Reply 7

04MR17

Volunteer Section Leader

22

Nice, what sports do you really want to try? :biggrin:

Flashcards for physics - this is good for any formulae you need to remember

Original post by bbbbbbb87

Thank you for the goodwishes. The maths test was last week and went really well. I got 80% in the end!

That's great, well done! The visit to Loughborough sounds really positive as well. Have you got any more open days coming up?

Reply 9

bbbbbbb87

OP

4

Original post by 04MR17

Nice, what sports do you really want to try? :biggrin:

Flashcards for physics - this is good for any formulae you need to remember

Probably cheer leading, that looks so fun. I was always see it in those american teen movies.

Reply 10

bbbbbbb87

OP

4

Original post by Pwca

That's great, well done! The visit to Loughborough sounds really positive as well. Have you got any more open days coming up?

I'm going to see Leeds soon, never seen the city before so that'll be exciting

Reply 11

Loughborough Student Community

Official Rep

11

Original post by bbbbbbb87

Hello and welcome to my blog about aiming for the stars. :flower2:

Kinda literally, hoping to get A*s but if that doesn't happen, I hope that I will still do well. Currently I am in year 13 taking maths (AQA), physics (OCR A) and DT (AQA). And my predicted grades AAC with the C in physics. I think I got lucky with an A in maths as the grade boundaries were low for that test. Most of the year, I was getting Cs and Ds.

University Plan:

Currently I'm thinking of doing design engineering, if I do achieve my goals and get my predicteds up, I think I'll apply to Bristol or Imperial. But right now, I'm looking at glasgow, strathclyde and loughborough.

Hobbies:

I like to play hockey, listen to music (lana del ray, taylor and other basic popular singers) and read reincarnation manhwas so most of the time when I get distracted, it's likely due to those things.

Goals:

I want to get A* in all my subject but my current goal right now is to improve my physics grade so I can get a better predicted grade for university as all my choices want AAB.

Week 1 To Do list:

•

Finish homework

•

Revise for maths test

Hi @bbbbbbb87

Great to hear you're thinking about coming to Loughborough and enjoyed the open day!

I'm currently in my second year here so if you have any questions about student life here at Loughborough or more general questions feel free to get in touch :smile:

Jess

(edited 6 months ago)

Original post by bbbbbbb87

I'm going to see Leeds soon, never seen the city before so that'll be exciting

Leeds is a really fun city with so much to do. Let us know how the visit goes!

Reply 13

University of Strathclyde

Official Rep

15

Original post by bbbbbbb87

Hello and welcome to my blog about aiming for the stars. :flower2:

Kinda literally, hoping to get A*s but if that doesn't happen, I hope that I will still do well. Currently I am in year 13 taking maths (AQA), physics (OCR A) and DT (AQA). And my predicted grades AAC with the C in physics. I think I got lucky with an A in maths as the grade boundaries were low for that test. Most of the year, I was getting Cs and Ds.

University Plan:

Currently I'm thinking of doing design engineering, if I do achieve my goals and get my predicteds up, I think I'll apply to Bristol or Imperial. But right now, I'm looking at glasgow, strathclyde and loughborough.

Hobbies:

I like to play hockey, listen to music (lana del ray, taylor and other basic popular singers) and read reincarnation manhwas so most of the time when I get distracted, it's likely due to those things.

Goals:

I want to get A* in all my subject but my current goal right now is to improve my physics grade so I can get a better predicted grade for university as all my choices want AAB.

Week 1 To Do list:

•

Finish homework

•

Revise for maths test

Original post by bbbbbbb87

Week 1 Review: :yy:

I did finish all my homework and the maths test went very well, I got a score that I was really proud of so my revision for that went well. I have spent the weekend visiting Loughborough University and I really liked the place. It definitely inspired me to work harder so I can hopefully get in. I loved the vibes there and I saw so many sports available to do so I can't wait to try them out. The lecturers were super enthusiastic about the course and they students seem to enjoy it a lot. Right now, I think the place is going to be one of my top choices.

Week 2 To Do List :smartass:

•

I have a lot of homework set this week so I plan to use my frees to finish them off

•

I am also hoping to make some more flashcards for DT on paper 2

•

I am also thinking I might start flashcards for physics, I will probably start with the praticals and definitions since these are my weakest topics

Hey @bbbbbbb87 I love this thread! How is this week going so far? :cyber:

Have your flashcards helped? That's one of my preferred ways to learn, and similarly I used post it notes on my bedroom wall and then took them down and tested myself when I felt like a mini test here and there.

Visiting universities is a great way to stay motivated. If you happen to be visiting Glasgow any time soon it's definitely do-able for you to visit both us and the University of Glasgow in the same day :biggrin:

Let me know if you've any plans and I can give you tips to help you see the city as well as the unis!!

- Caitlin :h:

Official University of Strathclyde Rep

Reply 14

bbbbbbb87

OP

4

Original post by University of Strathclyde

Hey @bbbbbbb87 I love this thread! How is this week going so far? :cyber:

Have your flashcards helped? That's one of my preferred ways to learn, and similarly I used post it notes on my bedroom wall and then took them down and tested myself when I felt like a mini test here and there.

Visiting universities is a great way to stay motivated. If you happen to be visiting Glasgow any time soon it's definitely do-able for you to visit both us and the University of Glasgow in the same day :biggrin:

Let me know if you've any plans and I can give you tips to help you see the city as well as the unis!!

- Caitlin :h:

Official University of Strathclyde Rep

The flashcards are definitely helping, making them helps me understand the content but I need to make sure I actually review them. The post it notes sound like a really good idea, I have a lot of post it notes so that could be fun to try.

I wish I could be able to go to Glasgow but it's so far from London. However, I'm definietly going to look for a way to go as I really want to see them and I heard the city is great fun.

Reply 15

bbbbbbb87

OP

4

Week 3:
I have got quite a few university videos on my TikTok and they are so inspiring. They help me a lot by reminding me of my goals. I am literally so excited right now to go, I actually can't wait! I'm probably going to be so nervous though when it gets closer to exams and handing my application in.

Have done: :u:

- Had another little maths test, which I hope went well. I think the test was fairly alright, the questions were a bit hard at points but I didn't give up which is good.
- Have done some more flashcards for DT for paper 2. I need to work on my exam technique as well I'm realising so I'm going to try to watch some question walk-throughs I saw on YouTube. I also found the examiner report for past exams and those seem really good so I'm going to read through that soon.
- Have yet to do much for physics revision but I've been doing well on the homework which I think is good. I found some flashcards online for physics as well, I have added them to my Anki decks but I haven't checked to see if they cover all the specification.
- My personal statement is finally at a semi-decent point, got it up to the 4000 characters count and it is kinda organised well.

To do: :cool:

- Homework again, I got some new teachers this year and these guys are on it with giving out weekly homework. It's good though as it gives extra practice and actually makes me do some work to do in my frees.
- Send my personal statement to teachers, hopefully, I'll get some good feedback.
- Physics revision. I think I realised my issue last year was that I spent too much time reviewing material and not enough exam practice so I'm going to try to make all my revision posters and flashcards early so that when tests come up, I can spend all my time on practice questions. I probably will start with the year 13 chapters we've done.

Reply 16

04MR17

Volunteer Section Leader

22

Well done for the maths test.

The process of doing it, of practicing, is more important than the result.

At this point in the year it's better to get it wrong, and have low scores, and improve on them, than it is to have decent scores because you aren't going to have it perfect in October.

Reply 17

bbbbbbb87

OP

4

Week 4:

Have done: :s-smilie:

I don't think I did much last week, except do a revision poster for one really easy chapter of the textbook. But half-term is coming up soon and teachers love giving out tests before holidays.

To do: :h:

- Revise for physics test. The topic this test is on isn't too hard but I really need to do well so I can use it as evidence for getting a higher predicted grade. I'm going to aim to make some revision posters and flashcards, then do loads of practice questions.

- Revise for a DT test. I've been making flashcards fairly regulary so I'm going to review all of them and then try find some questions in past papers. Sadly there's not a lot of past papers or resources like there is for physics. :frown:

Original post by bbbbbbb87

Week 4:

Have done: :s-smilie:

I don't think I did much last week, except do a revision poster for one really easy chapter of the textbook. But half-term is coming up soon and teachers love giving out tests before holidays.

To do: :h:

- Revise for physics test. The topic this test is on isn't too hard but I really need to do well so I can use it as evidence for getting a higher predicted grade. I'm going to aim to make some revision posters and flashcards, then do loads of practice questions.

- Revise for a DT test. I've been making flashcards fairly regulary so I'm going to review all of them and then try find some questions in past papers. Sadly there's not a lot of past papers or resources like there is for physics. :frown:

Good luck with your tests! When are they?