#a level advice

[peachblossomstudy]

// tips for year 12

once again it’s the time of year where i have the audacity to assume people would be interested in my advice! but seen as i’ve reached the half way point of my summer holiday i thought i’d offer some advice for new year 12s.

my most important tip is to use! your! frees! if you do nothing else on this list, please do this - it may be tempting to just hang out/nap/go on your phone (and i’m not saying you can’t have a break if you really need one), but you’re given frees for a reason and should use them wisely. you can use your frees to consolidate the day’s learning, make your notes/flashcards, and revise. if you’re doing four a levels and have less frees than everyone else (like me :’( ) it’s even more important to use them productively.

i think i already said this in my tips for year 11 post, but it’s even more important to make your notes as you go along for a levels because there’s so much content. the same goes for revision - try to do a little revision as you go along.

it’s really important that you understand all of your content before you start revising it, so make sure you understand everything you’re taught in each lesson - don’t wait until later to look something up or ask for clarification. if you have any questions, ask your teacher at the end of the lesson or find explanations on youtube that make sense (or drop me an ask! i study computer science, physics, maths and further maths and am happy to help if i can).

try to stick to a good sleep schedule if you can - i know it’s really easy to get sucked into the glorification of getting little sleep, especially if you go to an academically competitive school, but sleep is extremely important! as well as all the physical benefits, when you sleep your memories are sorted and retained, so sleeping well will help you remember new information. i’d aim for between 7-9 hours a night, with 9 being the more ideal end of the scale. sleep time should be non-negotiable - if you need to stay up ridiculously late to do work then you may want to work on time management.

if you have time, try to participate in extracurriculars related to your subjects, as this can be really helpful for your personal statement. you can also read articles and books that interest you in your subject areas, as these can also be interesting and useful to write about.

on a less academic note, don’t worry if your friendship groups shift a little - you may have joined a new sixth form/college, or people might have left and new ones joined. you’re entering a pretty new phase of life and it’s completely normal for friendship dynamics to change, even if you promised they wouldn’t at the end of year 11. 

finally, another repeat from my year 11 post is if you’re struggling, please ask for help! whether you’re having mental heath, physical health or academic problems there’s absolutely nothing good about suffering in silence - please, please reach out and get help if you feel you need it.

everyone’s welcome to drop into my ask box if they need to vent or want any specific advice 💕

[okay so this is an edit, apparently i completely imagined an advice for year 11 post, the last year group advice post i did was for year 10]

[mathmatcs]

a level advice & results!

i didnt make a post about it cause i’m not happy w my a level results but i realised it’s probably helpful to know what i got and what worked for me.

i took a level maths, law, further maths and i completed an epq in maths. i firmed ucl & insured edi and i ended up getting into uni of edi for maths.

i got an A* in maths, A* in maths, A* in epq and a B in further maths (:()

& here’s my advice:

law - quizlets are the way forward. i learnt the general flow of answering questions and then i put the key cases for each topic into a quizlet and just memorised that (if anyone wants the link to my whole quizlet, message me!). honestly i didnt spend much time revising law, so i spent around 4 hours the day before just cramming cases. this might not work for everyone, so i’d also recommend spacing out the learning over several months and just going over and relearning the casest keep it in ur long term memory.

maths - honestly, bc i did further maths i didn’t really need to revise maths HOWEVER i recommend doing as many problem questions as possible, and then revising the actual content when you get stuck on questions. use ur textbook and past paper questions, physicsandmathstutor is also a good shout.

further maths - i was stupid, and didn’t start revising for further maths until a week and a half before my first exam, which i did the worst on (the rest of the papers were at an A grade). revise, even if you struggle to pay attention. do 10 minutes and then take 10 minutes off if you really struggle with staying doing an activity, bc it’s better than doing nothing, it’s mainly just staying consistent with your studying and starting at the start lol.

epq - honestly man just set a timeline n stick to em. i didn’t but i’m a quick reader so i could absorb sources quicker. google scholar is ur best friend, alongside citethisforme, and look at people’s tips for quickly reading the sources. if the abstract & conclusion don’t address your question, don’t read the whole source.

hope this helps someone lol.

also, don’t compare ur grades to anyone. i’m not unhappy w the B, it’s a good grade, just unfortunately it meant i couldn’t get into my firm choice uni & has limited my choices at uofe. if i got into my firm choice uni with BBB, i would be just as happy as if i got A*A*A*. for me, grades weren’t as important as my place at uni. it’s different for everyone.

[alilystudies]

Hey, I was scrolling through your blog and thought you'd be a good person to ask: so everyone I've spoken to says A Levels are so much harder than GCSEs, but having done the 9-1 harder system, do you agree? If so, how should I go about preparing for it? Thanks! Xx

Right gonna be controversial here, I wouldn’t say that a levels are that much harder. I think the only positive thing that has come out of the new system is that the step up to a level is smaller. Honestly when I first started it wasn’t the way in which we learn’t or what we were learning, because for me that was kinda the same I guess. The only thing I had and still do whoops, is the exam techniques; they are different to gcse as the content you do requires a more in-depth but not too waffley ( which I find really hard ) analysis whilst trying to build on your main argument. Obviously I can only talk about humanities subjects because that’s all I do! So really I don’t think it’s “harder” in the sense of learning content ( unless you’re doing stem subjects I guess ) but I think it’s “harder” because you have to put SO much time and effort into it, as the amount of content you have does increase. But if you stay on top and put the hours in then you’ll be ok!

To prepare over the summer firstly if you’ve just done gcses, have a break!! enjoy the summer! The only prep work I did for alevels was the work they set me when I went to the taster/Inset day. And honestly I didn’t really do much else and I was fine when I first started so don’t worry too much !

[lame-studies]

Throughout my time in sixth form I’ve worked in 3 different places, only spending 4 months of the last two years unemployed. I managed roughly 8-21 hours a week at McDonald’s for the whole of year 12 (and came out with ABB) then became a Christmas temp for Lush, working 8 hours a week until January (coinciding with my year 13 mock exams in which I achieved ABC). After a short break I picked up another job in May, averaging 11 hours a week right in the middle of my year 13 exams (in which i achieved AAAB). Not working was not an option for me, I come from a low-income background, my mum is divorced and I have two sisters with a lot of extracurricular activities so I had to help out but, that’s not to say that working was easy. It takes up a lot of time and can be exhausting so I put together a few tips and tricks for managing A level studies with part-time work. 

1. Plan your time, this is super simple but noting down what you have to do in the day (whether in a bujo or just as a list) is a super good way of focusing yourself. By making a list you can prioritise tasks also and get an idea of how long you’re going to need to study for, something that is especially important if you have long shifts as a schedule gives regularity.

2. Learn to turn down shifts, I know the need for money can take over and that it can be scary to turn down extra work when you have a manager pressuring you but it is sometimes necessary. Most employers will respect the fact that you have exams/are studying and be as accommodating as possible if you tell them in advance but, if they’re still offering you extra work, it’s ok to say no.

3. Work on your breaks, I know they’re called breaks but they’re really useful in terms of studying when it comes close to exam time. My breaks at McDonald’s were either 35 minutes long or 50 minutes long so there was always time to work. My breaks at my latest jobs have only been 20 minutes but that's enough to go through some flashcards at least, take advantage of the time you have.

4. Wake up earlier if your shift is long and you won’t have time to study after work then studying beforehand is never a bad idea. Just make sure you have enough sleep so you’re not too tired to stand-up and work. 

5. Study on the way to work, My place of work is a 30-45 min bus journey away from where I live and so this provided me with the perfect chance to do a past paper or write an essay. It makes the journey go by quicker and also helps you to tick a task off your to-do list.

6. Study late, This one can be hard, especially if you’ve already gotten up earlier than usual to do some work and endured a full working day but it is important. Most of my exams this year were morning exams so I didn’t have that extra couple of hours that an afternoon exam provides and so nighttimes had to be utilised. The best way to manage a late night is to rope someone into staying up with you, to have plenty of snacks and to make sure you have a really clear list of the most essential stuff to go over before your exam. If you know exactly what you have to do it’s much harder to not do it and you get that productive feeling from ticking it off your list.

7. Make sure you at least get the minimum amount of sleep that suits you, This may contradict the last point and point 4 but it’s very important. I worked out the minimum amount of sleep I needed to feel rested/be able to focus on study or manage at work and tried to fit my work and studying around this. I don’t sleep much so I was able to get around 5 hours a night and still function for the rest of the day but every person will have a different minimum level. Once exams are over the amount of time available for sleep grows and you’re able to feel more well rested.

8. Take a day every so often for yourself, This is hard, in fact depending on the hours you actually work it may seem close to impossible but it is entirely necessary. When you’re balancing a busy school life with constantly working you need to give yourself a breather, no matter how guilty it makes you feel. It’s ok to not be productive every single day.

9. Take part in 100 days of productivity, This may not suit everyone but it certainly suited me, Taking part in the challenge forced me to post every single day meaning that every day I had to post something I was proud of and so had to work to a high enough standard. This isn’t necessarily strictly related to working but it may motivate you to put aside some time to study before or after work if you feel the pressure to upload every day.

[studybuddies101]

A Level History

If any year 12 or year 13 students would like any advice on how to get an A with the new reformed a level, then let me know! I am experienced ;)

[scienceismynepenthe]

I want to do Chemistry and Biology next year but I am really scared I got a 5 in maths instead of a 6 and thats what my college requires. I cant do anything as I am not there for enrollment. Should I instead think about a plan B career path? I was dreaming of becoming a zoologist but now I am really scared

Hey anon! Sorry for taking so long to get back to you. I had to brood over my answer for a bit.

I've had a lot of people send asks about the maths in Biology and Chemistry. And I will continue to say: it is do-able.

However, you college of choice will set their requirements realistically. And I'm afraid that, realistically, if you don't get at least a 6, you're unlikely to get higher than a C at Chemistry, and you're probably unlikely to get an A in Biology. Maths is particularly important in Biology because the A level mark schemes are ridiculously specific, so most people count on maths questions for definite marks.

That being said, you are not out of luck if you get a 5. I know you mentioned not being there for enrollment, but you should still be able to contact them. I wouldn't worry about it before results day - there's nothing you can do now. However, if on results day, you get a 5, I would recommend contacting the college you're applying to and saying that you are prepared to put extra work into your maths.

If you're not prepared to put extra work into improving your maths, then yes, you may need to consider a plan B. But I think that's regardless of your GCSE results. In my opinion, it's always a good idea to have a plan B, because at the end of the day, your life isn't dictated by grades.

[greatbigboots]

Is there anyone who's done A-Level Maths that I could talk to? I'm about 70% sure I'll need to take it but I'm having doubts. I just want to ask about workload/difficultly and just the content. It'd be alongside Physics, Chemistry and English Language. I'm also taking the OCR Free Standing Maths Qualification. Drop me an ask/message! ^-^