pass at A level

Lil_Me_2

*max* wrote: »

Oh that's nice. You're the exception though.

Do you have any statistics to back your statement up? I would assume that those with E's at A Level are higher up the pecking order than those with no A levels, those with no AS levels and those with no GCSEs.

WhiteHorse wrote: »

I have a vague feeling that this may not be the sort of job that most working people would consider to be 'real'.

And oh my lord that is the most big headed comment I have ever seen! I assume you're referring to what the majority of my posts on here are about which is my work as a mystery shopper. Did it ever cross your mind that I could have a full time job and that I might be self-employed too?

Like many other working people my bog standard mon-fri 9-5 job doesn't challenge me enough, so I do a little extra to keep the brain cells ticking. I don't look a gift horse in the mouth though, if my employer wants to pay me to sit and browse MSE all day then that suits me just fine :rotfl:

Person_one

juno wrote: »

No they don't. That's rubbish - and harmful rubbish at that.

Its not rubbish at all.

Most courses start making offers to outstanding candidates long before the deadline, so its pretty obvious that you have a better chance of getting in if you apply in October when there are say, 100 places left than if you apply right at the deadline in January when there are only 30 or 40 left.

Person_one

WhiteHorse wrote: »

I have a vague feeling that this may not be the sort of job that most working people would consider to be 'real'.

What on Earth does that mean? If they get paid it sounds real enough to me, unless they pay in monopoly money or mars bars or something...

seriousDFW

GCSEs are usually only really considered passes if they are C or above, even though technically G-D are also passes.

At A-level there is no universally-accepted cut-off point for a 'good' pass.

The value of A-level grades are all relative - as has been discussed, the most important thing is to try to achieve the grades you need for uni or a job. Also different courses have different values. For example, a grade E in Physics can be considered in some contexts to be a more valuable qualification than a grade A in Media Studies. But it depends what you want to use the qualification for.

Person_one

seriousDFW wrote: »

a grade E in Physics can be considered in some contexts to be a more valuable qualification than a grade A in Media Studies. But it depends what you want to use the qualification for.

In what situation is that true? Sounds more like the usual media studies snobbery to me!

seriousDFW

Person_one wrote: »

In what situation is that true? Sounds more like the usual media studies snobbery to me!

That's not how it was intended.

My point was that the value of the course/grade depends on what one wishes to do in the future. If I want to be an engineer, Physics and Maths are what I need, and my grades will need to be good enough for the unis I want to go to, or better than the other people applying for the same jobs.

However, if I wanted to be, say, something in media, Physics and Maths, even at grade A would perhaps be less useful than even a grade C in Media Studies.

My point is that it's all relative to what the person wants to do. IMHO I don't rate certain 'soft' subjects, but that's because I'm a mathematician and that's where my strengths lie and so I'm hugely biased. If I were more creative, I'm sure I would value other subjects more. But rest assured that the reverse is true and there are many people who consider me to be something of an oddity because I like maths...

That's why people should play to their strengths. I got an A in A-level maths, because I find it reasonably easy. If I did A-level Art, there is no way in hell that I would even pass. As such I have huge respect for someone who can get an A in Art, in the same way I'm sure some people would feel the same about my A in Maths, even though to me it's not a great achievement as that comes naturally to me.

anguk

My daughter is in her final year of A levels and hoping to go to university in September, she put her UCAS application in at the beginning of December and she'd received offers from all five of her choices by the 2nd week in January.

If I'm honest we all sighed with relief when her application went in, she spent a lot of time doing the application, especially the personal statement that took her a couple of weeks and several drafts before she was happy with it.

property.advert

E is a pass but worth next to bu55er all.

JC9297

I think the question of the value of an E depends on when you got it. Now when anybody with half a brain can take A levels it probably doesn't mean much, but in the 80s and earlier passing any A levels at any grade was an achievement that not many young people managed.
Same thing with GCSEs really, anything above a C is (theoretically) equal to an O level and below is like a CSE, which is why you need Cs and above to do anything that in the past required O levels.

Seanymph

JC I'm not sure I agree with you.

I think in the 80's and earlier many people perfectly capable of taking and passing A Levels with considerably higher grades were unable to go due to financial constraints. Politically there wasn't the drive to retain young people in higher education, but to get them 'to work'. So it was limited by the families who could afford to support their children in that way.

Now, or recently (because it's changing again) all children are supported and families are supported to keep children in education. So therefore more children are enabled to remain in education. It doesn't mean that the work involved is suddenly less because more take them - just that attending college is more accessible.