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Soas 2025

Hi guys! I’m planning to apply for SOAS Korean subject for September 2025 after a 1.5 gap year full really bad mental health struggles after alevels.
I also didnt apply to uni because of financial struggles, I just immediately wanted to earn money to help my mum afford basic necessities.

I was predicted, from what I remember, A*AB during alevels, but because of my mental health (and disabilities I later got diagnosed with) I fell under pressure and got ACD.
I was incredibly disappointed, and payed £90 for my philosophy papers to be remarked as I was 3 marks off a B, but unfortunately my grade didn’t change 🥲 (grading was so harsh that year …)

Do I have a chance of getting into SOAS? I’m very passionate at Korean, I can read Hangul and form basic sentences, I’m also interested in the general East Asian studies of the course.
I wasn’t sure if SOAS only take grades into consideration, so I wanted to come here for advice on whether its worth applying or not :smile:

Reply 1

Grant18

Original post by Anonymous

Hi guys! I’m planning to apply for SOAS Korean subject for September 2025 after a 1.5 gap year full really bad mental health struggles after alevels.
I also didnt apply to uni because of financial struggles, I just immediately wanted to earn money to help my mum afford basic necessities.
I was predicted, from what I remember, A*AB during alevels, but because of my mental health (and disabilities I later got diagnosed with) I fell under pressure and got ACD.
I was incredibly disappointed, and payed £90 for my philosophy papers to be remarked as I was 3 marks off a B, but unfortunately my grade didn’t change 🥲 (grading was so harsh that year …)
Do I have a chance of getting into SOAS? I’m very passionate at Korean, I can read Hangul and form basic sentences, I’m also interested in the general East Asian studies of the course.
I wasn’t sure if SOAS only take grades into consideration, so I wanted to come here for advice on whether its worth applying or not :smile:

Hi! I hope things are going better for you now and that you and your mum are ok. I too took a gap year after not receiving the grades I wanted, I applied for International Relations and Japanese at SOAS which required AAA, but I had ABB and still got in - so I think you absolutely have a shot of getting in!

BA Korean I think has ABB requirements (plus it sounds like you could get contextual which is BBB), so I reckon that if you show the university you are passionate about the language in your personal statement you can get in! Best of luck, I hope this helps!

Reply 2

Anonymous #1

Original post by Grant18

Hi! I hope things are going better for you now and that you and your mum are ok. I too took a gap year after not receiving the grades I wanted, I applied for International Relations and Japanese at SOAS which required AAA, but I had ABB and still got in - so I think you absolutely have a shot of getting in!
BA Korean I think has ABB requirements (plus it sounds like you could get contextual which is BBB), so I reckon that if you show the university you are passionate about the language in your personal statement you can get in! Best of luck, I hope this helps!

ooh okay thankyou so much!!

Reply 3

Anonymous #2

Original post by Anonymous

Hi guys! I’m planning to apply for SOAS Korean subject for September 2025 after a 1.5 gap year full really bad mental health struggles after alevels.
I also didnt apply to uni because of financial struggles, I just immediately wanted to earn money to help my mum afford basic necessities.
I was predicted, from what I remember, A*AB during alevels, but because of my mental health (and disabilities I later got diagnosed with) I fell under pressure and got ACD.
I was incredibly disappointed, and payed £90 for my philosophy papers to be remarked as I was 3 marks off a B, but unfortunately my grade didn’t change 🥲 (grading was so harsh that year …)
Do I have a chance of getting into SOAS? I’m very passionate at Korean, I can read Hangul and form basic sentences, I’m also interested in the general East Asian studies of the course.
I wasn’t sure if SOAS only take grades into consideration, so I wanted to come here for advice on whether its worth applying or not :smile:

Hi, I hope you’re feeling much better now. I was in a similar situation last year and really struggled with my mental health during my A-levels. I ended up doing quite poorly, so well done on doing much better than I did. I called SOAS during clearing, and they offered me a place in one of their foundation courses. SOAS has two foundation courses to choose from, and if you successfully complete one, you can progress to most of their undergraduate courses. This year, I’m starting my actual degree.

Reply 4

Anonymous #2

Here is a link to the foundation years
https://www.soas.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/foundation-years

Hope this finds you well! Wishing you all the best - take care!

Reply 5

SOAS Student Rep

Official Rep

Original post by Anonymous

Hi guys! I’m planning to apply for SOAS Korean subject for September 2025 after a 1.5 gap year full really bad mental health struggles after alevels.
I also didnt apply to uni because of financial struggles, I just immediately wanted to earn money to help my mum afford basic necessities.
I was predicted, from what I remember, A*AB during alevels, but because of my mental health (and disabilities I later got diagnosed with) I fell under pressure and got ACD.
I was incredibly disappointed, and payed £90 for my philosophy papers to be remarked as I was 3 marks off a B, but unfortunately my grade didn’t change 🥲 (grading was so harsh that year …)
Do I have a chance of getting into SOAS? I’m very passionate at Korean, I can read Hangul and form basic sentences, I’m also interested in the general East Asian studies of the course.
I wasn’t sure if SOAS only take grades into consideration, so I wanted to come here for advice on whether its worth applying or not :smile:

Yes, you definitely have a chance of getting into SOAS! While your grades were lower than expected due to mental health struggles and personal challenges, SOAS takes a holistic approach to admissions. This means they’ll consider not only your grades but also your passion for Korean and East Asian studies, your commitment, and your personal circumstances. Be sure to highlight your interest in the subject, your progress with Korean, and explain how your health and financial responsibilities affected your academic performance. Your gap year experience and resilience will also work in your favor. It's absolutely worth applying!

I know many students who achieved lower than required grades, but were still able to enrol on their desired course, due to mitigating circumstances, alternatively you may be offered a course on our foundation year program, where after completing you should be able to enrol in Korean

For more information feel free to contact our admissions team +44 (0)20 3510 6974 or email us at [email protected]

Marjan Karim
SOAS Student Ambassador

Reply 6

Raenv

Original post by Anonymous

Here is a link to the foundation years
https://www.soas.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/foundation-years
Hope this finds you well! Wishing you all the best - take care!