Confused on what to do

I have my place confirmed for Mechanical Engineering at Queen Mary University and the A-Levels I recieved was A*AB. I'm looking into taking a gap year and applying to UCL as I know their contextual offer for Mech Engineering is A*AB and I'm pretty sure I am eligible for the contextual offer. I recieve all 5 of my offers for UCAS, all being russel group universities, so I'm not that worried about my personal statement being rejected. I'm just considering what action would be best for me, sticking with Queens or taking the gap year and working on myself while applying for UCL.

Reply 1

04MR17

Volunteer Section Leader

22

Original post by OsmanCalim

I have my place confirmed for Mechanical Engineering at Queen Mary University and the A-Levels I recieved was A*AB. I'm looking into taking a gap year and applying to UCL as I know their contextual offer for Mech Engineering is A*AB and I'm pretty sure I am eligible for the contextual offer. I recieve all 5 of my offers for UCAS, all being russel group universities, so I'm not that worried about my personal statement being rejected. I'm just considering what action would be best for me, sticking with Queens or taking the gap year and working on myself while applying for UCL.

Congratulations on your grades first of all :banana:

Main question - what don't you like about QMUL?

I'm not sure you can recycle PSs from earlier application cycles - @PQ can you confirm this? :colondollar:

EDIT: I was wrong, you can - but it's worth a refresh

(edited 1 month ago)

Reply 2

OsmanCalim

OP

3

I've heard a lot of negative comments about QMUL, my dad was always telling me to no go QMUL during the application process and he's more onboard with me taking a gap year than going there.

Reply 3

McGinger

20

Yes, you can ask for 'deferral' (gap year) while you think about things, BUT you cannot reapply to any other Uni whilst still holding that place - you would have to decline that and then reapply for new choices. You could reapply to that Uni as well - there is no guarantee of an offer but usually it happens.

Original post by OsmanCalim

I have my place confirmed for Mechanical Engineering at Queen Mary University and the A-Levels I recieved was A*AB. I'm looking into taking a gap year and applying to UCL as I know their contextual offer for Mech Engineering is A*AB and I'm pretty sure I am eligible for the contextual offer. I recieve all 5 of my offers for UCAS, all being russel group universities, so I'm not that worried about my personal statement being rejected. I'm just considering what action would be best for me, sticking with Queens or taking the gap year and working on myself while applying for UCL.

Hey @OsmanCalim 👋

Firstly, congratulations on your A-level results! You should be super proud of yourself, your hard work really paid off!

The action that is best for you to take depends on your thoughts. Forget what other people around you are saying for a moment - which university would you prefer to go to... Queens or UCL? There are so many important factors to consider when choosing the right university - what are the course modules? what student societies/clubs can you get involved with? what are your accommodation options (if you'd like to stay)? what student support services are available? what careers support can I obtain? Is there a placement year I could get involved with? etc. It's important for you to establish what factors are important to you, and then consider these when choosing which university to go to.

If you are really unsure, I would suggest a gap year purely so that you can consider your options. You don't want to rush into making a decision if you are unsure.

Best of luck in deciding which university is for you.

Lauren
WrexhamUniReps

(edited 1 month ago)

Reply 5

04MR17

Volunteer Section Leader

22

Original post by OsmanCalim

I've heard a lot of negative comments about QMUL, my dad was always telling me to no go QMUL during the application process and he's more onboard with me taking a gap year than going there.

I'm going to ask @Scotland Yard to give you a few pointers here with more expertise than myself :wink:

Reply 6

Scotland Yard

Universities Forum Helper

20

Original post by OsmanCalim

I've heard a lot of negative comments about QMUL, my dad was always telling me to no go QMUL during the application process and he's more onboard with me taking a gap year than going there.

Hey there,

I'm a Queen Mary student and I like it a lot here. think Queen Mary is often unfairly maligned due to our recent-ish upgrade to Russell Group. We're based in an area that is admittedly not so nice, but the campus itself is a world unto its own and a really calm and pretty place to be in.

I cannot speak for engineering itself but at least in my degree, I can very easily approach my lecturers and get answers very quickly. Also, anecdotally, we have a killer careers service which really does make an effort in providing you with useful advice and tips, speedily. The glowing reviews I've heard from people that have used the careers service at Queen Mary are miles ahead of the grumbling I've heard of students using the careers service at other universities, and I am always inundated with emails advertising careers events. While this might not be something you haven't thought of, it does make a big difference, particularly when leaving university.

If there's any specific concern about Queen Mary you'd like to know more about, please let me know :smile:

Reply 7

Scrax

11

I know people who went to UCL. Yes it is good. But it is very exclusive and the people I know who went there found it much harder to make friends there than I did at Manchester. Are you really sure you want to go there? I personally doubt a good engineering degree from Queen Mary is any way inferior to one from UCL or employers are even going to notice what uni you went to.

Confused on what to do

Quick Reply

Related discussions

Articles for you