Tips & Tricks blog
WHAT TO DO IF YOU FAIL YOUR A-LEVELS?
Where’s the fun in getting things right the first time? OK – sorry, if you didn’t achieve the grades you wanted this year, you’re probably in no mood for light-hearted rhetorical questions. I certainly wasn’t after AS levels results day.
However, I want to give you a little glimpse of the future and show you how bad grades can actually be a blessing in disguise.
To start off, no matter what your grades are, it is not game over. You can turn this situation around. Why should you believe me? Because I turned my D’s and U’s into straight As, secured a place at a top university and wrote and sold 30,000 copies of a book showing others how I did it.
Also, having mentored thousands of students, I know a thing or two about turning bad situations into good ones. You wouldn’t believe some of the ‘academic rags to riches’ stories I’ve seen.
One student flopped his AS levels, got kicked out of 6th form for a fight and had to enrol into a private college. He worked a part-time job to pay for his tuition. To make matters worse, his teachers couldn’t control the class and many didn’t even finish teaching the course before exams.
Despite all these obstacles, he turned BCCE into straight As. Now he works at a top investment bank, owns several properties in London and earns a lot of money. He’s only 28 years old!
You may not feel it’s possible now, but you can achieve what he and many others have. You might be thinking ‘how do you know what I am capable of? You don’t know me’. I don’t need to know you.
All I know is that your capabilities are not set in stone. They are not a constant. They are a variable that can change and improve with effort. Sounds parental, I know, but it’s true! I’m a living breathing example of why it’s true. Did my intelligence suddenly improve between AS and A2 or was it something else?
Is there a silver lining to achieving bad grades? Yes. You can come back from this and if you do, it will do more for your character than a few letters on a piece of paper could ever do. Those who bounce back from a ‘rock bottom experience’ early in their life have a unique advantage over those who seamlessly excel without a hiccup.
It develops a pitbull-type resilience.
Till this day, I’m thankful that I failed my A-levels. Turning my Ds and Us into As in one year felt like coming back from 6-0 down to win in the champions league final.
It left me with an underlying confidence that with hard work, I could make vodka lemonade out of any lemons I ever faced in life. This helped me succeed in university, my career, relationships and in business.
When will I receive my A-level or GCSE results this year (2020)?
By the end of July.
Will your A-level predicted grades be your final grades?
No, the Department of Education realise this would be unfair and will consider other factors to calculate your final marks.
What if I'm unhappy with my grades?
You can appeal the decision, and if necessary, sit an exam after your school or 6th form reopens. You also have the option to sit your exams in summer 2021.
If I take the exam option, will I still be able to go to university this year?
This can't be guaranteed, but Universities UK have assured that most universities will be flexible.
WANT TO NAIL YOUR EXAMS?
Yojana, our personalised study strategy, shows you when, what and how to achieve top grades in each of your subjects. Give it a go below!
I’m currently in my 2nd year of A levels (just started) and I failed my AS exams: Maths(U), Physics(U) and Computer Science(E). I’ve consulted one of my Sixth form leaders about this but she keeps putting it off and I need to talk to someone about this and get an answer on what I should do, I don’t want to re-take AS because I’ve been told that I can’t take Computer Science if I do and my dream job is to become a Software Engineer. I revised as much as I could and anything I do never seems to work. A friend suggested I try going college but I’d prefer to pass my A levels.
I really need some advice as soon as possible as college applications end soon.
Also I’ve been having seizures for an unknown reason, I’ve been to the doctor’s and they can’t find out the reason why and so I haven’t been in school as much lately.
I also have really bad memory so it would be nice to get some advice on how to revise and actually remember it.
Hi Safa. We spoke on the phone, but thought I’d outline the key points on here to help both you and any other students who are in the same situation. First off, sorry to hear about the seizures and I hope the doctors get to the bottom of them soon.
Your main question was ‘should I retake year 12?’. In my opinion, no, you should crack on with year 13.
As mentioned on the phone, some universities penalise students for securing their grades across 3 years instead of the usual 2. This means that, all things being the same, a students who secured 3As across 2 years will be favoured over one who got 3As across 3 years. You’re far better off knuckling down this year and revising properly. Plenty of students underestimate the jump from GCSE, fall short in their AS levels, figure out how to revise properly, work hard and then succeed.
In fact, I was one of them. I got Ds & Us in my AS levels, then turned these into straight As in a single year.
I am currently doing 2nd year of A levels. And I am not doing so well. Due to COVID – 19, I had assessment just 3 weeks ago to act as an ‘AS exam.’ I had not done well at all. I had got a A-B in Biology, D in Chemistry and an E in Maths. But got predicted grades of A,B,C (Maths) last week. I really don’t think it is achievable for me. Biology I think I can pull off an A, if possible. But Chemistry and Maths, not so confident. I really don’t understand I things Maths actually, I really don’t know why I took it all. I know I have a weaker memory than others and find it difficult to understand things for exams. I am not dyslexic though. I am planning to apply for uni a year later. But I really am unsure of what to do. I really don’t have an aspirational career I want to do, or of that sort.
I had gone through some rough times from the start of this year, 2020. Even a time where I had become mentally depressed, even tried to *you know*. But that’s besides the point. I really feel am not good enough to pass A-levels. Ever since the start of this year I have had thoughts of dropping out of A-levels, doing something else. But not sure of the other paths to take, so continued school. But failed almost every exam that passed by me. Even if I do continue a do A-levels and fail, i don’t want to retake the exam, because I really don’t want to go with studying A-level again.
You may not understand my situation. But I really would appreciate any advise or help thrown at me.
Please let me know on your thoughts. Really appreciated.
Varsha, you’ve clearly had a tough two years and I’m sorry that you’ve had to go through all that. I’m going to highlight a few of the problems that you mentioned and provide some feedback on each…
“I don’t have an aspirational career I want to do” – You’re in luck. Unlike other countries, many employers in the UK don’t require you to have any specific degree. For example, if you study Theology at uni, you’re not expected to become a Theology professor! Investment banks, asset managers, insurance companies, accountants, large conglomerates, marketing agencies…etc will accept your CV. You can kick the can down the road, go for a course at uni that you’re good at (like Biology) and make your career choice later.
“Chemistry and Maths, not so confident. I really don’t understand Maths actually, I really don’t know why I took it all.” – These are both what I call ‘Method & Understanding’ subjects and require a certain level of stubborness when revising. Your constantly going to get stuck on questions, but eventually, your understanding of each problem/topic will click. You can’t predict when it will click, but it will.
“I really feel I am not good enough to pass A-levels” – Despite the confidence most people show on the outside, most people are deeply insecure about their own abilities. So, you’re not alone. For as long as I could remember, I had this internal debate going on in my head about whether I was intelligent enough to achieve the same results those top students in my class were getting.
On August 14th, I walked into college to pick up my first year A-Level results and walked out with DDDU – brilliant! I joke about it now, but those grades really….really hurt.
Not for the obvious reasons. Sure, I wanted to make my parents proud, and get into a top university and secure a top job.
It hurt because the voice in my head that told me I wasn’t good enough had yet another piece of evidence to wave in my face when things got tough. I knew the next time I was stuck on a practice question or trying to motivate myself to start revising, that voice would turn up and say ‘look how many times you’ve failed, why bother?’.
In the days that followed, I stayed bitter and angry, but with the help of an older mentor, started taking positive steps. From speaking to successful students in the year above to reading about learning techniques, I used my research to write a revision plan that outlined exactly how to improve my grades. Nothing fancy…just 3 pages long.
Then something remarkable happened – for the first time in my life I started being productive. Why was that remarkable? Because goals and plans were nothing new to me. I had made plenty before without acting on them, but this time it was different.
The sting from those bad grades combined with the motivation from an older mentor rewired my brain. I just had enough of being rubbish, and that was all the motivation I needed.
Those few weeks after results day set the theme for my entire year. I adjusted, iterated and followed my strategy. The more I worked, the more I could see my strategy working and the quieter the negative voice in my head became.
After retaking all my exams, I left 6th form with straight As and got into my first choice university. Some teachers said it was one of the best turn-arounds they had ever seen. At university I used the same principles to achieve a First Class Honours and an award by the dean of students for achieving one of the highest scores in the Engineering faculty.
A few years later I turned my 3-page revision plan into two books called How to ACE Your GCSEs and How to ACE Your A-Levels. They sold over 40,000 copies, racked up over 250 five star reviews and held the top spot in two Amazon categories for 3 consecutive years. My study-skills videos were viewed by over 2.4 million students.
Don’t ruminate over the past or future, just focus intensely on mastering the topic or question that’s in front of you. Do this day after day and soon that negative voice in your head will become quieter.
Hi
Amazing article
So I never finished my alevels so I have none . However I was still able to go to university.
I’m current year of leave and getting experience in the industry . So I retake my alevels during this “gap yet “ ?
Forgot to add I really want to work in investment banking, I’ve been able to get all the way to a assessments centre for one of the biggest investment banks .
Hi Laura,
No, most investment banks don’t look at A-levels so doing them would be a waste of time. You have the right idea with gaining work experience thought industry placements. Keep on that line of thinking, and if you want a good strategy to secure internship and job offers, check out my by book How to Land Your Dream Graduate Job. I used this approach to secure 4 offers (3 investment banks – GS, HSBC & RBS + a hedge fund in the middle east).
Hi I recently got my AS results for Physics and Chemistry and I got a C in Physics and a D in Chemistry (couple of marks from a C)
I literally just went through the books not doing any exam style questions and not practicing technique. Having got these grades I have been feeling quite upset but from reading your article I feel that if I work very hard I can try to bump them up.Is that a good idea?
Hi Mari,
Thanks for your message and sorry that you didn’t achieve the grades you were expecting. There are two paths you can go down from this point onwards…
Path A: You pass judgement on yourself and identify as a ‘D or C’ grade person for the rest of your life. This means going to a D or C grade university. D or C grade job. You’ll settle for a D or C grade life. With this path, you stop aspiring to do better because you believe that you aren’t capable of being an A or A* student.
Path B: You look at those grades and think ‘that’s not me, I can do better’. Then you do everything in your power to prove that you are more than capable enough to achieve top grades.
I know a lot of people who chose path A and also those who went for path B. Several years after graduating university, these two groups are miles apart when it comes to success and freedom. Different planets! I personally chose path B and it is one of the best decisions I have ever made. I suggest you do too!
I hope that helps.
Raja
Thank you Raja,
I will choose Path B and work really hard, Your words are very encouraging! Thank you.
I’ll try and come back to you in the future and let you know how things went
As a student who is self studying it’s been hard so I have also ordered your book too.
I got BBD in my AS. D in physics. should I appear for physics again next year?
Hi Kiran,
Thanks for your question. This is hard to answer without knowing the full picture. Are you planning to go to university next year and, if so, what undergraduate course will you apply for? I also achieved a similar grade in Physics and turned it into an A – so you can improve. I actually only took the subject because there were no other options available and it ended up being one of my favourite subjects.
Raja
I got low a in my as level is there a possibility to get a* if I start preparing two months before my exam
Hi Katherine,
I’ll need to know more details about your situation to give you a definitive answer.
Thanks,
Raja
Hey. I did my As levels and got a CEU. I just retook the subject I got a U in and still don’t expect it to be good. I was planning to resit the subjects again. this time for the one I got an E in too along with my A levels. In total, I’ll be giving almost 15 exams in the CIE may/june.
should I repeat my As levels or just do my best in the A levels?
Hey Laiba,
Thanks for your question. Do the 15 exams that you are taking in the summer all count towards your final A-level grade?
Thanks,
Raja
In 2015 I withdrew from the AS Level exams due to stress. A year
later I took up distance learning in A Level Maths but got a U. Now I haven’t got a clue what to do. Should I retake AS? I fear trying to do A2 and get As in a year will mean far too much work. Also do AS Levels play a part in university entries? I prefer to pace myself towards success.
Hi Philip,
Thanks for your question. My instinct is to advise you to do your A2s in one year. Time is a funny thing, knowing that you have a relatively short space of time to study can push you to get more done than pacing yourself over 2 years.
Some top universities look at AS levels, but the bottom line is this: if you leave with a good set of final A2 grades next year, chances are you’ll get into a good university.
What did you do for distance learning? Did you use a company or platform? If so, which one?
Raja
Raja
The day I received my Maths IGCSE result from Cambridge was also the day I forgot what I am capable of. Maths, was what I could call “my thing” until I did not obtain the A* I was expected to get.
However, I’m trying to push that aside and move forward. Afterall, I still have my other subjects to focus on since Maths was the only subject I took in Yr10 (a year early).
To be honest, I’m struggling to obtain the A* I want to achieve especially from triple award sciences and English literature. (Add in Arabic)
The only aid I could think of is your book regarding How to ace IGCSEs and I’m looking to buy it once I get back.
Any more tips / advices? I could use your help.
PS. Frankly, I’m really not the study type of person. My system just treats “studying” as if it’s an alien it wants to combat. I felt my case is different because no one understands it when I say “no matter how much I try, I just can’t study.”
Hi Mac,
Thanks for your interest and question. It sounds like your standards are high – this is good! Keep it that way. Many students become disheartened after falling short, but it’s important to stay stubborn and ambitious. Have a read of the book first as it will probably answer many of the questions you may have. If it doesn’t, feel free to come back on here and I’ll be happy to help.
Raja
Hi i just got as results of maths and physics (e,e).I will give chemistry in November.I was really upset and i am really confused what to do now should i retake or i continue with my a2.I am into sports and i want some techniques as to how can i improve my grades.Thanks
Hi Shujaat,
Don’t be disheartened. As you may have seen on the video on this page, I was in the exact same page as you. I’ve also helped thousands of students in your position improve their grades – so you’re in the right place.
One thing is for sure, if you choose to try again (which is entirely up to you), your approach needs to change. I can’t offer you any substantial advice over a short message, and that’s why I recommend reading my book – How to ACE Your A-Levels. It should answer all your questions, and if not, come back on here and we’ll be happy to help.
Thanks,
Raja
I wrote As level Chem, Biology and Math this May/June. I think I did okay in Math and Bio but not Chem. Thinking of rewriting Chem in Oct/Nov as well as A2 Chem,A2 Math and A2 Bio.
Should I rewrite Chem or not???
PLEASE HELP ME😑
Hi Lani. It’s difficult to answer this question without knowing more. Feel free to book in a 10-min call with us here.