regret
Hi, so I got really bad grades in my December Mocks (U's) and im in year 13. This was due to really severe depression and it impacted my studies. I am currently also feeling really hopeless with my a-levels and my career options. These a-levels weren't the a-levels i was originally planning to do, before sixth form i wanted to do psychology sociology and economics or t-level in digital design and development/digital media. But my stupid self wasn't educated that the courses are more important than the institution itself. I ended up liking the subjects towards the end of year 12 and was planning to drop out in the first two months of year 12 but no colleges were enrolling so I couldnt. I was stuck. But I didn't realise it'd come to this. I have 3 months till my A-Level exams and I don't know if I can atleast get an ABB from here, my goal was to get A*AB in year 12 but now thats both out the window. I just feel extreme regret and depression from my choices and I wish I was smarter. I would've been a lot happier. These past few months have been hell. And now i'm possible going to be withdrawn from all my a-levels leaving me with no qualifications to show for after two years. This is basically all my fault and I'm so stupid, I just don't want to be here. Does anyone have any solid advice? I even wanted to do a degree apprenticeship but thats out the window if i cant even get good grades
Reply 1
20
Original post
by SofiiisjjejeHi, so I got really bad grades in my December Mocks (U's) and im in year 13. This was due to really severe depression and it impacted my studies. I am currently also feeling really hopeless with my a-levels and my career options. These a-levels weren't the a-levels i was originally planning to do, before sixth form i wanted to do psychology sociology and economics or t-level in digital design and development/digital media. But my stupid self wasn't educated that the courses are more important than the institution itself. I ended up liking the subjects towards the end of year 12 and was planning to drop out in the first two months of year 12 but no colleges were enrolling so I couldnt. I was stuck. But I didn't realise it'd come to this. I have 3 months till my A-Level exams and I don't know if I can atleast get an ABB from here, my goal was to get A*AB in year 12 but now thats both out the window. I just feel extreme regret and depression from my choices and I wish I was smarter. I would've been a lot happier. These past few months have been hell. And now i'm possible going to be withdrawn from all my a-levels leaving me with no qualifications to show for after two years. This is basically all my fault and I'm so stupid, I just don't want to be here. Does anyone have any solid advice? I even wanted to do a degree apprenticeship but thats out the window if i cant even get good grades
Go and talk to your Head of Sixth Form or similar - this is exactly what they are there for.
Do this on the first day of term.
Reply 2
5
Original post
by McGingerGo and talk to your Head of Sixth Form or similar - this is exactly what they are there for.
Do this on the first day of term.
Do this on the first day of term.
I dont even know what to say though, I dont want to retake two years. I'd rather continue my a levels and just get it over with
Reply 3
Hi there!
Sorry if this response comes up twice, it didn't work the first time.
Believe it or not, I know what you're going through. I am a year 13 student as well and I have faced a lot of obstacles since year 12 (this was because of my school).
I understand the feeling of wanting to stop, I even considered home schooling a few times, as I saw it as a better option for me (I did stay at school though). It's up to you on what you decide to do, but, you are right, do you want to have gone through all of this for 2 years of work with nothing to show for it? Maybe just stick with it, exams are not too far away now, maybe just try and revise and practice, you could still get the grades you want and even if you don't, you still got grades out of it. The road doesn't end there and you can find options along the way.
Do you have someone you can talk to, parents, mentors, teachers (doesn't have to be head of sixth form, could be any teacher or pastoral, or even a teacher from GCSEs if you have that option. As long as you're comfortable talking to them).
I hope this helps and we're all feeling the pressure! Good luck! : D
Sorry if this response comes up twice, it didn't work the first time.
Believe it or not, I know what you're going through. I am a year 13 student as well and I have faced a lot of obstacles since year 12 (this was because of my school).
I understand the feeling of wanting to stop, I even considered home schooling a few times, as I saw it as a better option for me (I did stay at school though). It's up to you on what you decide to do, but, you are right, do you want to have gone through all of this for 2 years of work with nothing to show for it? Maybe just stick with it, exams are not too far away now, maybe just try and revise and practice, you could still get the grades you want and even if you don't, you still got grades out of it. The road doesn't end there and you can find options along the way.
Do you have someone you can talk to, parents, mentors, teachers (doesn't have to be head of sixth form, could be any teacher or pastoral, or even a teacher from GCSEs if you have that option. As long as you're comfortable talking to them).
I hope this helps and we're all feeling the pressure! Good luck! : D
Reply 4
Original post
by SofiiisjjejeHi, so I got really bad grades in my December Mocks (U's) and im in year 13. This was due to really severe depression and it impacted my studies. I am currently also feeling really hopeless with my a-levels and my career options. These a-levels weren't the a-levels i was originally planning to do, before sixth form i wanted to do psychology sociology and economics or t-level in digital design and development/digital media. But my stupid self wasn't educated that the courses are more important than the institution itself. I ended up liking the subjects towards the end of year 12 and was planning to drop out in the first two months of year 12 but no colleges were enrolling so I couldnt. I was stuck. But I didn't realise it'd come to this. I have 3 months till my A-Level exams and I don't know if I can atleast get an ABB from here, my goal was to get A*AB in year 12 but now thats both out the window. I just feel extreme regret and depression from my choices and I wish I was smarter. I would've been a lot happier. These past few months have been hell. And now i'm possible going to be withdrawn from all my a-levels leaving me with no qualifications to show for after two years. This is basically all my fault and I'm so stupid, I just don't want to be here. Does anyone have any solid advice? I even wanted to do a degree apprenticeship but thats out the window if i cant even get good grades
Hello,
I am really sorry to hear you are having such a difficult time right now. To start with, have you sought any support for your depression either from those around you or your doctor? Such support could make a world of difference and really help you over the next few months as this stage in your A Level journey is not easy.
In terms of your grades, it is possible for you to get ABB, I've heard of it happening before but for this you will have to put in lots of hard work and effort. I will share some of the essentials which you must do to help increase your chances of getting higher grades.
Firstly, you must know the content. Therefore, you must start revising everything which you have learnt from both years 1 and 2 now. The earlier you start the better. I know it is not easy but it is very much about finding the right revision method for you. Given your situation, I would suggest that maybe you start by using Seneca Learning and continue to use it consistently. For those higher grades, I would urge you not to use the platform as your only way of revising but it is great to help you remember the general gist of what you need to know.
Secondly, once you have the knowledge you need to do as many past exam questions and past papers as possible ideally under exam conditions. This will allow you to develop your exam technique as well as see which areas of your knowledge you need to work on. This will then help you prioritise what is most important for you.
Finally, regardless of what grades you want, there are opportunities to do a degree so don't feel like this is no longer an option for you. There are plenty of options out there, such as the Open University which don't ask for any specific grades, but do look around if the University is of interest to you.
Something else which may help if your motivation by keeping you accountable and thus grow your grades may be to start a Grow Your Grades blog on here. If you do this do let me know as it would be good to follow your progress.
If you have any further questions or anything at all please do not hesitate to ask.
Charlie
Law LLB Student
Reply 5
hi, im so sorry that you are finding alevels so stressful, as im sure everyone can relate to the overwhelm of sixth form but havign additional mental health issues makes it all a lot more complex im sure. I have found online a-levels that you can take as I am planning on taking a year out to do A-level further maths (I want to do engineering). So if you don't feel comfortable in your current school, some online courses can be done in a year so you may be able to achieve these alevels quicker
Reply 6
Hey, was literally in a similar situation to you last year. For context, I started sixth form in 2022, so I was in year 13 last year. I suffered from severe depression throughout sixth form and in my year 13 December/ Jan mocks I achieved UUU. There are lots of options for you, from here on out. I felt extremely stuck and confused as well, this time last year when I was in year 13 but there are things you can do to turn this around. I'm not sure what subjects you're taking and how much you currently enjoy them. But what I personally did, was drop two a levels (I was originally doing Psychology, Biology and PE - ended up just continuing with Psychology). Dropping two enabled me to just focus on psychology so that despite achieving a U in the mocks and being predicted a U, i achieved an A* in the actual exams last year. I dropped the two subjects in April I think, and then devoted a lot of time to catching up with psychology.
Additionally, some colleges offer A level intensive courses, that only last a year. I however dont know where you're situated as I only know of one college in London that offers intensived and I think one in Birmingham?
I also don't know if you want to go to uni/ how soon you want to go to uni. But, you could also see how you do this year with your exams and then teach yourself content next year and sit the exams privately. While I'm currently enrolled on a biology intensive course, I am also teaching myself sociology. I taught myself majority of A level psychology last year due to awful attendance and I didn't find psychology that difficult to self teach due to the abundance of resources available online etc. I would especially recommend Uplearn for psychology, but unfortunately you do have to pay around £200 (but it's free if your family is low income - refer to their website for pricing if interested). I got it for free this year due to my family being low income.
Also, a lot of colleges offer 'Access to higher education courses' that you can do after you're 19, and I believe these are often free if you don't have a full Level 3 qualification (not sure tho, you'd have to check). Majority of unis accept these in place of A levels, and the course only lasts a year and I doubt they're that difficult. I was planning on doing this instead of the A level intensive course/ self studying at home but I'm desperate to go to uni in 2025 so I didn't want to prolongue living at home and waiting a year as I'm currently still 18.
Of course, I don't know what your living situation is like so I'm not sure how soon you want to leave home to go to uni etc. But just know that life isn't over because sixth form hasn't gone particularly well. There are so many opportunities and options out there for you, and I completely understand how you're feeling now. No one told me about the abundance of different options and courses available to me when I was in your situation, so I thought I was just destined to fail. Things will get better for you, and I believe that you will make it. Please ask me any more questions etc. I hope my response was clear.
I hope you feel better soon
Additionally, some colleges offer A level intensive courses, that only last a year. I however dont know where you're situated as I only know of one college in London that offers intensived and I think one in Birmingham?
I also don't know if you want to go to uni/ how soon you want to go to uni. But, you could also see how you do this year with your exams and then teach yourself content next year and sit the exams privately. While I'm currently enrolled on a biology intensive course, I am also teaching myself sociology. I taught myself majority of A level psychology last year due to awful attendance and I didn't find psychology that difficult to self teach due to the abundance of resources available online etc. I would especially recommend Uplearn for psychology, but unfortunately you do have to pay around £200 (but it's free if your family is low income - refer to their website for pricing if interested). I got it for free this year due to my family being low income.
Also, a lot of colleges offer 'Access to higher education courses' that you can do after you're 19, and I believe these are often free if you don't have a full Level 3 qualification (not sure tho, you'd have to check). Majority of unis accept these in place of A levels, and the course only lasts a year and I doubt they're that difficult. I was planning on doing this instead of the A level intensive course/ self studying at home but I'm desperate to go to uni in 2025 so I didn't want to prolongue living at home and waiting a year as I'm currently still 18.
Of course, I don't know what your living situation is like so I'm not sure how soon you want to leave home to go to uni etc. But just know that life isn't over because sixth form hasn't gone particularly well. There are so many opportunities and options out there for you, and I completely understand how you're feeling now. No one told me about the abundance of different options and courses available to me when I was in your situation, so I thought I was just destined to fail. Things will get better for you, and I believe that you will make it. Please ask me any more questions etc. I hope my response was clear.
I hope you feel better soon
Reply 7
Original post
by UoL StudentsHello,
I am really sorry to hear you are having such a difficult time right now. To start with, have you sought any support for your depression either from those around you or your doctor? Such support could make a world of difference and really help you over the next few months as this stage in your A Level journey is not easy.
In terms of your grades, it is possible for you to get ABB, I've heard of it happening before but for this you will have to put in lots of hard work and effort. I will share some of the essentials which you must do to help increase your chances of getting higher grades.
Firstly, you must know the content. Therefore, you must start revising everything which you have learnt from both years 1 and 2 now. The earlier you start the better. I know it is not easy but it is very much about finding the right revision method for you. Given your situation, I would suggest that maybe you start by using Seneca Learning and continue to use it consistently. For those higher grades, I would urge you not to use the platform as your only way of revising but it is great to help you remember the general gist of what you need to know.
Secondly, once you have the knowledge you need to do as many past exam questions and past papers as possible ideally under exam conditions. This will allow you to develop your exam technique as well as see which areas of your knowledge you need to work on. This will then help you prioritise what is most important for you.
Finally, regardless of what grades you want, there are opportunities to do a degree so don't feel like this is no longer an option for you. There are plenty of options out there, such as the Open University which don't ask for any specific grades, but do look around if the University is of interest to you.
Something else which may help if your motivation by keeping you accountable and thus grow your grades may be to start a Grow Your Grades blog on here. If you do this do let me know as it would be good to follow your progress.
If you have any further questions or anything at all please do not hesitate to ask.
Charlie
Law LLB Student
I am really sorry to hear you are having such a difficult time right now. To start with, have you sought any support for your depression either from those around you or your doctor? Such support could make a world of difference and really help you over the next few months as this stage in your A Level journey is not easy.
In terms of your grades, it is possible for you to get ABB, I've heard of it happening before but for this you will have to put in lots of hard work and effort. I will share some of the essentials which you must do to help increase your chances of getting higher grades.
Firstly, you must know the content. Therefore, you must start revising everything which you have learnt from both years 1 and 2 now. The earlier you start the better. I know it is not easy but it is very much about finding the right revision method for you. Given your situation, I would suggest that maybe you start by using Seneca Learning and continue to use it consistently. For those higher grades, I would urge you not to use the platform as your only way of revising but it is great to help you remember the general gist of what you need to know.
Secondly, once you have the knowledge you need to do as many past exam questions and past papers as possible ideally under exam conditions. This will allow you to develop your exam technique as well as see which areas of your knowledge you need to work on. This will then help you prioritise what is most important for you.
Finally, regardless of what grades you want, there are opportunities to do a degree so don't feel like this is no longer an option for you. There are plenty of options out there, such as the Open University which don't ask for any specific grades, but do look around if the University is of interest to you.
Something else which may help if your motivation by keeping you accountable and thus grow your grades may be to start a Grow Your Grades blog on here. If you do this do let me know as it would be good to follow your progress.
If you have any further questions or anything at all please do not hesitate to ask.
Charlie
Law LLB Student
im in a similiar situation ive been revising the day before of my mocks and got c and ds for a level sociology and literature since the grade boundaries are high ive been a few marks of from a b in multiple occassions i want to lock in and get those bs as or possible a stars so how would i do that?for my third subject btec applied law ive gotten distinctions throughout so i can dedicate pretty much all of my revision for both a level sociology and english literature.
Reply 8
Original post
by Juventusfan20070im in a similiar situation ive been revising the day before of my mocks and got c and ds for a level sociology and literature since the grade boundaries are high ive been a few marks of from a b in multiple occassions i want to lock in and get those bs as or possible a stars so how would i do that?for my third subject btec applied law ive gotten distinctions throughout so i can dedicate pretty much all of my revision for both a level sociology and english literature.
Hello,
Firstly, you need to both revise the knowledge and do as many past papers as possible under exam conditions. This will develop your exam technique but also identify areas of weakness which you can work on.
For the As and A*s you need to demonstrate an in depth knowledge of the subject. For this it helps but is not essential if you can include dates for the cases, that really polishes up your answers but the names of the cases is the most important. You should be able to explain the content in great detail and apply the knowledge to factual scenarios and in unfamiliar contexts.
Also, when I did A Level psychology, for evaluation some people are told to do just three evaluation points. We were told for AS Level to do 3 and A Level to do 4, I tried 4 at both AS and A Level, and got top grades. This allows you to create a line of argument.
I hope this helps, if you have any further questions please do let me know.
Charlie
Law LLB Student
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