I don't meet the entry requirements for my GCSEs, what should I do?

hi,
so for all the vet med unis in the UK that I wanna go to ask for five 7s in the GCSEs, but Ive got four, do yall think I would be rejected immediately or not even get a chance to apply?

Reply 1

DataVenia

Volunteer Team, Clearing and Applications Advisor

Original post by seleneee

hi,
so for all the vet med unis in the UK that I wanna go to ask for five 7s in the GCSEs, but Ive got four, do yall think I would be rejected immediately or not even get a chance to apply?

GCSE grade requirements are normally non-negotiable. Do you have a GCSE which is a grade 6 which you could retake, to get it to a 7? (I'm assuming your in year 12 right now.)

Or look at vet med schools which don't need five GCSEs at grade 7 instead.

Reply 2

ajsklalskdj

I do have a subject in mind to resit, but I missed the deadline to book it for this summer so..
would you say that UCAS automatically rejects my application if I do not meet the entry requirements or do the unis even have a chance to look through my application? 😭

Reply 3

DataVenia

Volunteer Team, Clearing and Applications Advisor

Original post by seleneee

UCAS don't make any decisions like that. They'll definitely forward it to all the universities you've applied to. It those universities which are quite likely to reject it, if you don't meet their GCSE requirements (and I'd there's no prospect of you doing so).

Is the subject you were thinking of resitting Maths or English Language? If so, you can sit those in November. Failing that, you could resit the GCSE next summer alongside your A levels.

In either case, as you'll be applying to university in time for the October deadline, you'd need to enter your existing GCSE results, plus your resit GCSE with a grade of "pending" (in addition to the original grade).

Universities then have the choice to specify your offer conditions in terms of just your A level grades (i.e. overlooking the missed GCSE requirements) or to specify that you must achieve at least a grade 7 in the GCSE resit too.

Reply 4

ajsklalskdj

Original post by DataVenia

UCAS don't make any decisions like that. They'll definitely forward it to all the universities you've applied to. It those universities which are quite likely to reject it, if you don't meet their GCSE requirements (and I'd there's no prospect of you doing so).
Is the subject you were thinking of resitting Maths or English Language? If so, you can sit those in November. Failing that, you could resit the GCSE next summer alongside your A levels.
In either case, as you'll be applying to university in time for the October deadline, you'd need to enter your existing GCSE results, plus your resit GCSE with a grade of "pending" (in addition to the original grade).
Universities then have the choice to specify your offer conditions in terms of just your A level grades (i.e. overlooking the missed GCSE requirements) or to specify that you must achieve at least a grade 7 in the GCSE resit too.

applying again next year sounds great to me, but I have heard that you'll have higher requirements if you reapply in year 13, eg) if AAA was the requirements, they would ask for A*AA so it is harder to get in and its far more competitive
and you need a reason why you're a year late to apply. is that true?

Reply 5

DataVenia

Volunteer Team, Clearing and Applications Advisor

Original post by seleneee

I didn't suggest "applying again next year", I suggested retaking one of your GCSEs next year.

I said above "I'm assuming your in year 12 right now." As you haven't corrected me, I'm going to continue in the basis of that assumption.

When do you plan to apply to university? If you're applying for veterinary medicine, and you're in Year 12 right now (still an assumption) then you'll be applying by the 15 October 2024. At which point you'll be in Year 13. Agreed?

What I was suggesting is that you register to retake your GCSE in summer 2025, which is when you'll be sitting your A levels. When you complete your UCAS application, you enter all your existing qualifications (your GCSEs), with their grades. You will also enter all the qualifications you hope to get before starting university. For most people this will be three (or perhaps four A levels). For you, you'd also include the GCSE resit as an exam you'll be taking before starting university. That's it.

So you're not applying later than anyone else, and you're not taking an "extra" year to do your A levels. Your taking your A levels at the "usual" time, applying for university at the "usual" time, but just retaking a GCSE in summer 2025, at the same time that you're taking your A levels.

Reply 6

Vetmum13

Vet schools are so over subscribed you will be rejected if you do not meet their GCSE requirements. Sorry to be brutal but it is a really easy decision for them to make. Chances of getting a vet place are approx 1 in 10 even with the right academic requirements.

Reply 7

RambleAmple

As others have said, unfortunately when you're applying for a course with 10+ applicants per spot with the vast majority of said applicants meeting all the basic requirements, there is no reason for them to make an exception. I would resit the ones you need as soon as you can, even if it's not this summer - generally I'd aim for 7s in English, maths, biology and chemistry (+ one other 7, and if you can get it in physics then great) as that means you should be able to apply to pretty much every uni, giving you the most chance. You could try emailing the unis to ask directly if you have any extenuating circumstances for your grades, but unfortunately I wouldn't really expect them to make exceptions. Additionally, you could look into gateway courses if you are eligible for them, but bear in mind most unis only have like 20 spots for those so it may be even more competitive and you will need to meet the criteria.

As for your question about grades being higher if you apply after Year 13, that's not strictly true. All unis have different requirements so you would have to look those up, and if unsure you can always email the admissions team. If you are applying for the first time to any uni without any A Level resits, you'll have the standard requirements. I don't think GCSE resits apply but may be worth checking, particularly for the Scottish unis as they are a bit stricter on resits (they don't accept resits for A Levels). For Liverpool if you resat an A Level the grades would go from AAA to A*AA, but again I don't think that counts for GCSEs. Applying say after a gap year but not resitting any A Levels does not increase your grade requirements. Some unis only accept 2 application rounds which may be something to bear in mind when choosing options - i.e. applying 'on a whim' to see if they may make an exception when you don't meet requirements and you haven't contacted them about it may not be totally risk free.

(edited 1 year ago)

Reply 8

yoyomamacita207

a little question from someone randomly scrolling:

what if i got a 5 in gcse english language but is a predicted a* in a-level english lit.?

my teachers said that it won't matter since i'm doing english lit., and if i get amazing grades, the uni be willing to check my application.

Reply 9

RambleAmple

Original post by yoyomamacita207

a little question from someone randomly scrolling:
what if i got a 5 in gcse english language but is a predicted a* in a-level english lit.?
my teachers said that it won't matter since i'm doing english lit., and if i get amazing grades, the uni be willing to check my application.

You can emai/ring to ask the individual unis but unfortunately as your grade is only predicted rather than actual they still don't have to make an exception. Did you get higher in English lit for GCSE? If I remember correctly unis don't necessarily specify English language but I may well be wrong as I haven't looked at requirements in quite some time. If that isn't the case, you could resit your GCSE alongside A Levels, and it may not be as difficult to raise your grade as you are already doing English at a higher level. I know might not be the answer you're necessarily hoping for but the unis just can afford to be as fussy as they want with the amount of applicants they get.

Edit as I didn't realise you aren't necessarily applying for vet med, and my advice is only relevant to vet med applications.

(edited 1 year ago)

Reply 10

DataVenia

Volunteer Team, Clearing and Applications Advisor

Original post by yoyomamacita207

In this hypothetical scenario, what are the GCSE entry requirements for the course? Do they ask for GCSE English Language 6 but you have 5?

And in this scenario are we still talking about Veterinary Medicine (which is what the original poster was applying for), a significantly over-subscribed course where they have plenty of applicants who do meet the GCSE grade requirements?

(Just out of interest, what did you get for English Literature GCSE? Going from a GCSE grade 5 in English Language to an A level grade A* in English Literature isn't very common.)

Reply 11

yoyomamacita207

Original post by DataVenia

In this hypothetical scenario, what are the GCSE entry requirements for the course? Do they ask for GCSE English Language 6 but you have 5?
And in this scenario are we still talking about Veterinary Medicine (which is what the original poster was applying for), a significantly over-subscribed course where they have plenty of applicants who do meet the GCSE grade requirements?
(Just out of interest, what did you get for English Literature GCSE? Going from a GCSE grade 5 in English Language to an A level grade A* in English Literature isn't very common.)

my bad that i commented this under vet med. i'm applying for law.

i was a predicted grade 8 in english language, but my grades dropped because of the grade boundary inflation post-covid.

i think it's best that i re-do gcse english language...BUT THANK YOU FOR REPLYING SO FASTTT :smile:

)

Reply 12

Vetmum13

Original post by yoyomamacita207

my bad that i commented this under vet med. i'm applying for law.
i was a predicted grade 8 in english language, but my grades dropped because of the grade boundary inflation post-covid.
i think it's best that i re-do gcse english language...BUT THANK YOU FOR REPLYING SO FASTTT :smile:

)

The same applies with law- it’s a very competitive course so no wriggle room on grades- esp on English language