I got no offers for university for engineering what should I do!

Original post by username6384455

Im wanting to pursue aerospace/mechanical engineering at University of Sheffield, my home city, im not eager to move out since im not confident with that idea! Though I got no offers applying for a foundation year for 4 different engineering courses, I am predicted ABB in biology chemistry and physics though sure I could achieve A*AB/A if I put more work in. I only achieved a grade 6 in GCSE math, my gcses were pretty mediocre.
What would be best to do? Pursue something else, take a gap year and do A-level math and apply next year?

Ill be blunt, maths is crucial to engineering. Applied physics & engineering is described with maths.

Im guessing (youll have to check) you got automatically rejected based on your GCSE maths score. Typically maths should be taken at A-level to study engineering.

If you want to work in engineering I would suggest:

•

look at other less analytical career routes: perhaps degree apprenticeships (you can get these at top companies such as Rolls-Royce in Derby relatively commutable to Sheffield

•

Consider alternative degrees like product design or which are less reliant on maths

•

Commit to uplifting your maths skills at GCSE & then A-level then re-apply and be prepared for lots more maths, bear in mind in a degree engineering requires strong understanding of university level calculus, linear algebra, complex numbers etc.

Reply 2

anonymoussyy

Original post by mnot

Ill be blunt, maths is crucial to engineering. Applied physics & engineering is described with maths.
Im guessing (youll have to check) you got automatically rejected based on your GCSE maths score. Typically maths should be taken at A-level to study engineering.
If you want to work in engineering I would suggest:

•

look at other less analytical career routes: perhaps degree apprenticeships (you can get these at top companies such as Rolls-Royce in Derby relatively commutable to Sheffield

•

Consider alternative degrees like product design or which are less reliant on maths

•

Commit to uplifting your maths skills at GCSE & then A-level then re-apply and be prepared for lots more maths, bear in mind in a degree engineering requires strong understanding of university level calculus, linear algebra, complex numbers etc.

Thank you for your response,

I was aiming to take a gap year and build my knowledge of mathematics. Would it be necessary to complete gcse math again to achieve a better grade or shall I complete some prior knowledge of it since my foundation is great after most of it being taught within alevel physics, and just do alevel maths?

Reply 3

Original post by anonymoussyy

Thank you for your response,
I was aiming to take a gap year and build my knowledge of mathematics. Would it be necessary to complete gcse math again to achieve a better grade or shall I complete some prior knowledge of it since my foundation is great after most of it being taught within alevel physics, and just do alevel maths?

The problem with a GCSE rejection is these are often non-negotiable requirements, A-levels can have some flexibility at the discretion of the university.

So IF you were rejected because of your GCSE maths then I would at least clarify if the university would consider you with a 6 providing you got an appropriate A-level maths score.

But you probably are best off clarifying the reason for your rejection.

Reply 4

TopBun

Sorry to hear you have not received any offers, its very demoralising

Engineering is a huge field, be careful not to assume it is all highly mathematical - you haven't chosen A level Maths so it may be you should be looking at engineering related subjects that play to your strengths.

What are you good at? What do you enjoy?

An example, I was good at Physics and interested in the design side of Engineering. I did Materials, Engineering and Design. Turned out I had a talent for metals and corrosion, ended up doing that for a while

Another key question is about you wanting to stay in Sheffield - that limits you to 2 Unis (yet you applied for 4 Foundations Degrees?)

A big chunk of the reason to go to Uni is to go away from home, grow yourself and your confidence. Sheffield is within an hour of lots of Unis, so you have plenty of choice

Your other question - what to do next? - IMO look at UCAS Extra (I dont know much about it) and start research for Clearing.

I know some uni admissions people well, and lots of unis are worried about under recruiting this year, especially the mid field unis in financial trouble. I am certain you will find something in Clearing on results day, but you will need to be prepared (ie know the unis and courses you want and have their phone numbers with you) FWIW many unis start putting courses in Clearing on their website well before Results Day

(edited 3 months ago)

Reply 5

anonymoussyy

Original post by TopBun

Sorry to hear you have not received any offers, its very demoralising
Engineering is a huge field, be careful not to assume it is all highly mathematical - you haven't chosen A level Maths so it may be you should be looking at engineering related subjects that play to your strengths.
What are you good at? What do you enjoy?
An example, I was good at Physics and interested in the design side of Engineering. I did Materials, Engineering and Design. Turned out I had a talent for metals and corrosion, ended up doing that for a while
Another key question is about you wanting to stay in Sheffield - that limits you to 2 Unis (yet you applied for 4 Foundations Degrees?)
A big chunk of the reason to go to Uni is to go away from home, grow yourself and your confidence. Sheffield is within an hour of lots of Unis, so you have plenty of choice
Your other question - what to do next? - IMO look at UCAS Extra (I dont know much about it) and start research for Clearing.
I know some uni admissions people well, and lots of unis are worried about under recruiting this year, especially the mid field unis in financial trouble. I am certain you will find something in Clearing on results day, but you will need to be prepared (ie know the unis and courses you want and have their phone numbers with you) FWIW many unis start putting courses in Clearing on their website well before Results Day

I had applied to: chemical, materials, aerospace, mech eng and also pharmacy as I was skeptical to apply to engineering and wanted a backup of some sort if I didn’t want to go the extra mile in pursuing engineering. I hope my alevels are good enough to go through clearing and hopefully end up in an engineering course at Sheffield though my gcse grade is below the grade requirements of 7.

Reply 6

Original post by anonymoussyy

I had applied to: chemical, materials, aerospace, mech eng and also pharmacy as I was skeptical to apply to engineering and wanted a backup of some sort if I didn’t want to go the extra mile in pursuing engineering. I hope my alevels are good enough to go through clearing and hopefully end up in an engineering course at Sheffield though my gcse grade is below the grade requirements of 7.

Applying for a degree without meeting the minimum GCSE requirements is a principle error, your advisors should have informed you this was not a sensible approach.

Additionally applying for several courses at te same university doesn’t increase your chances of an offer- it was almost certainly the case for the engineering disciplines you get an offer to all or none of them, and actually applying to all them might create uncertainty in your peak interest in the subject you are applying for and reduce your likelihood of an offer.

Reply 7

anonymoussyy

Original post by mnot

Applying for a degree without meeting the minimum GCSE requirements is a principle error, your advisors should have informed you this was not a sensible approach.
Additionally applying for several courses at te same university doesn’t increase your chances of an offer- it was almost certainly the case for the engineering disciplines you get an offer to all or none of them, and actually applying to all them might create uncertainty in your peak interest in the subject you are applying for and reduce your likelihood of an offer.

I felt very rushed with sending my ucas application, my sixth form was supposed to check if thrice if there was any issues with it though I don’t think it was done even on my behalf of checking it. I assumed a missed gcse requirement would be fine as long as my grades in alevel were okay. I’m deciding for a sensible option whether doing a degree apprenticeship would be best or uni, though I’m unsure if I can do gcse math resist and alevel math at the same time.

Reply 8

Studbud25

Original post by anonymoussyy

I felt very rushed with sending my ucas application, my sixth form was supposed to check if thrice if there was any issues with it though I don’t think it was done even on my behalf of checking it. I assumed a missed gcse requirement would be fine as long as my grades in alevel were okay. I’m deciding for a sensible option whether doing a degree apprenticeship would be best or uni, though I’m unsure if I can do gcse math resist and alevel math at the same time.

The AMRC has some good engineering apprenticeships that you could consider.
Uni of sheff goes into clearing for most courses, I'm not sure about engineering though.
I don't think its to big of a deal that your one grade below. I know plenty of people that got in even though they didn't entirely meet the GCSE requirements.

Hope it works out for you.

Reply 9

Original post by anonymoussyy

I felt very rushed with sending my ucas application, my sixth form was supposed to check if thrice if there was any issues with it though I don’t think it was done even on my behalf of checking it. I assumed a missed gcse requirement would be fine as long as my grades in alevel were okay. I’m deciding for a sensible option whether doing a degree apprenticeship would be best or uni, though I’m unsure if I can do gcse math resist and alevel math at the same time.

Unfortunately it sounds like you were the recipient of poor advice, as you have made two application errors that experienced caring UCAS advisors could have prevented:

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applying without correctly reviewing GCSE requirements and understanding the impact on the application

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Rushing to meet superficial application speed when as long as you apply before the UCAS deadline you will receive equal consideration

Not really your fault, I would say your school should be picking these up.

You are where you are now, ultimately you will need to consult with the universities if they would accept only A-level maths if you retook in one year or if they would want both GCSE & A level or pursue an alternative route.

I (personally) would seriously look at degree apprenticeships local to yourself. Particularly with major industrial companies as well.

Reply 10