Would Durham reject based on one bad GCSE grade?

I'm in year 12 and considering applying to Durham in a few months. I know Durham focuses a lot on GCSE grades to differentiate between applicants and I was wondering if they would reject me based on one fail in my GCSEs. I got four 9s and three 8s, but I also got one 3. I'm not applying for anything to do with that subject, and my GCSE grades in the subjects I do for A-Level subjects were 998, but is it likely to affect my chances since other applicants will also have gotten mostly 8s and 9s, and probably at least passed all their subjects?

Reply 1

Durham Students

Official Rep

Original post by Anonymous #1

Hi there

What course are you applying for? Most courses at Durham (with a few exceptions) do not have any formal GCSE requirements so the admissions team lays more focus on the other aspects of your application like A-levels, references, personal statement and entrance tests (if applicable to your course). GCSEs are usually only considered as a last resort to differentiate between candidates of similar strength. Therefore, I would recommend applying irrespective of your GCSE grades. Maybe try to balance this out with the other unis you're applying to as you'd want to keep 1-2 aspirational choices while the others should be more realistic.

Hope that helps :smile: