A levels

Hxc · 18 Jul 2011 at 17:47

DJmartin said:
I know I am going to have to get my ass into gear for A levels but I still don't think that something that requires a hell of a lot of work, especially outside the class is my type of subject

Do push yourself, it sounds like you are quite like me, and I missed out on uni last year because of it. I came out with A*ABCC from A level (now upped to A*AACC) and missed my offer by 5ums, which is about 2 marks in one exam. If I had worked to my hardest I could've got A*A*AAA, and I know it.

Fortunately it all worked out and I'm doing a different subject this year which I'm much happier about at the same uni I would've been going to, but I still wish I had worked harder!

Dark Sun · 18 Jul 2011 at 17:57

I would do what you enjoy personally but within reasonable parameters (respected subjects). At the end of the day you will have to sit there and study the ******* during A levels and then for a degree, and possibly beyond. Lots of people I know have taken very hard subjects because that's what they thought employers wanted, only to drop out after a year or two at uni because they can't face spending hours locked away knee deep. They leave with no degree and a nice pile of student debt.

Liampope · 18 Jul 2011 at 18:46

I did Physics, Maths and Design Technology (the one with making stuff, electronics, design, etc if it still exists). Back in maaaaaaaaaaar day that was a standard pick for getting into engineering but is pretty good/general for leaving doors open. Sounds like you might have some interest/creativity/artistic streak if you were considering art, and indeed you are planning to go into design, albeit games design, so Design Tech might be a complimentary course, its pretty easy/fun, and ought to be regarded better than art for the sort of thing you want to get into eventually.

I did indeed go into engineering. I dunno about all this alleged difficulty in engineering grads finding jobs - I can only imagine there are a lot of crap engineering grads with thirds from Mickey Mouse institutions who are the ones struggling, because we are literally crying out for engineers in the oil/gas industry at the moment. If you're good you'll get employed easily, and there's plenty of pay in this industry too.

If you're really set on the computing side, further maths would be good as said many times. You might consider going to your head and making an appeal for yourself if you havent already. You seem to have the grades so if you show a real enthusiasm you might get the opportunity. Seems a bit crap to be honest they are not actively encouraging you??

clv101 · 19 Jul 2011 at 10:36

DJmartin said:
I know I am going to have to get my ass into gear for A levels ...

Absolutely, A-Level are the most important thing to get right. Decent A-Levels set you up for a decent degree from a decent uni... muck up the A-Levels and you'll be on you back foot for years, with a degree from Plymouth rather than Imperial for example.

Nitefly · 19 Jul 2011 at 10:39

clv101 said:
Absolutely, A-Level are the most important thing to get right. Decent A-Levels set you up for a decent degree from a decent uni... muck up the A-Levels and you'll be on you back foot for years, with a degree from Plymouth rather than Imperial for example.

In that sense, I would probably agree that A-levels are some of if not the most important exams you will ever take.

Disco Boy · 19 Jul 2011 at 10:48

It's hard for everyone to find a job. Don't not do Comp Sci because your Dad's mate is struggling and your teachers think it'll be hard. If you have a good degree (2:1/ 1st) from a good university and are a good candidate then you won't struggle too much.

As for your A level choices, physics and maths are strong. Computing is not supposed to be a great A level, but it's not as bad as anything that ends in studies (business etc.) or other micky-mouse ones. As for art, well you're dropping it anyway so if you enjoy it for a year it's not doing a lot of harm.

Kraven · 19 Jul 2011 at 10:59

Bill gates and mark zuckerberg both studied comp science, just saying :-P

. Anyone saying it isn't a strong degree does not understand the degree to be honest.

Judgeneo · 19 Jul 2011 at 11:02

If you back a CompSci degree up with people skills and experience, you can't go far wrong.

Most graduates don't have these

Kreeeee · 19 Jul 2011 at 11:04

UK-AL05 said:
Highly competitive universities do care, for computer science at say bristol they ask for maths + further maths at a-level for sure.

They didn't need further maths for me, and I graduated top of my class for computer science at UoB. It's not needed at all.

I did Maths, Physics and Double IT.

Disco Boy · 19 Jul 2011 at 11:12

There is a fair chance that it has changed though Kreeeee, they definitely need maths at least.

daz · 19 Jul 2011 at 11:30

DJmartin said:
I was asked in my interview for 6th form what I wanted to do after A levels and I replied that it would be to do a computer science degree, I have since found that this is incredibly difficult to find a job from (apparently). My Dad's mate had a degree in computer science and he felt the need to do another in accountancy as he wasn't finding any jobs at all which obviously worries me.

If you have a mediocre degree in Computer Science, you may well struggle to find a decent job.

If you get a good degree from a good university, you will be fine. There is a shortage of good quality computer science talent out there at the moment.

DJ_Martin · 19 Jul 2011 at 11:58

daz said:
If you have a mediocre degree in Computer Science, you may well struggle to find a decent job.

If you get a good degree from a good university, you will be fine. There is a shortage of good quality computer science talent out there at the moment.

I suppose. I was actually surprised when I looked at numbers when it says that it's hard to find a job with a CS degree and then the number is at 85% of people in employment? It is probably my own naivety but I would have thought this would be a decent percentage. You would generally be considered in the bottom 15% to not get a job?

Anyway my original plan was to look at Cardiff with it being so close and after I was told it was pretty good but it looks pretty low down on here. Would Cardiff be one of these bad universities you are talking about then? Bristol seems the closest one that is pretty high up but then if I am going to have to move away I suppose it doesn't really matter how close I am to home. Oh well, I am at least a bit more confident in my choices, I'll go look at the qualifications needed to get into some of those top ones in a second. If computing is never mentioned then I will look into changing a suppose but I don't really want to and as far as I know, cannot do further maths. Also computing does seem like quite an easy A level even if you don't learn all that much.

Disco Boy · 19 Jul 2011 at 12:12

Forget geographical location when choosing a university.

Judgeneo · 19 Jul 2011 at 12:14

Disco Boy said:
Forget geographical location when choosing a university.

100%
If possible, try and ignore the 'night life' when choosing as well, your almost guaranteed to have a good time no matter where you go.

If your good on the maths, seriously look into a further maths AS, even self study as it is a massive advantage both for A level maths and university places

DJ_Martin · 19 Jul 2011 at 12:35

Alright, I'm probably looking a bit too far into the future or maybe not but still, looking for a little guidance on how this works. I found the UCAS site which seems to just be a site with all the courses at all the universities and information to go with it. Anyway as I had just looked at Bristol I went there first and found my way here. I'm struggling to see how all of the qualifications work as it is quite a long page. It tells me I will need a GCSE in Maths and English Language but not the grade needed. If it is just a pass then that's easy enough but if they are looking for A/A* I am not sure I can deliver on the English Language side.

Also Where it says A level qualifications it just says AAA including maths. Does this mean if I had an A grade at A level maths and then an A in any other random subjects it would be OK? I ask this because at least in Wales we do a thing called Welsh Bacc. Basically we are told that universities see it as an A grade A level but something makes me think that they just see it as a load of bull**** as most of the current 6th formers have said they basically do **** all in Welsh Bacc lessons.

Also would this course be seen as more impressive than the previous one linked because it takes an extra year?

Judgeneo · 19 Jul 2011 at 12:45

Well the second course gives you an undergraduate masters, so yes it is more impressive

Yes, if you get an A in maths and 2 more random A's then you will get in. Critical thinking and general studies don't count towards this however.

As for the Welsh Bacc, I have no idea

Souleh · 19 Jul 2011 at 13:04

In my 3rd year at uni now, started on comp sci and swapped to software engineering.

On my placement atm and have been offered a part time job for when im back at uni (as opposed to the usual part timer) and had a 25% pay rise already due to the work ive done here.

Received an award from the uni and travelled a fair bit. Had my work shown at events from Las Vegas to Amsterdam by Sanjay Poonen (President, SAP, Global Solutions) too, amongst others! (I dont work for SAP but a business partner)

Also received a 4k investment into my own code work from the government approving local innovation.

Really enjoying the industry as a whole and mixing with big names has been a great step back into forthcoming final year.

To say there isnt big money in the industry would be a bit of a wee white one but you need to work hard for it. Just think - theres how many people the world over who can code and make pretty stuff..

In brief, would I recommend it to you? Hell yes.

Gribs · 19 Jul 2011 at 19:02

UK-AL05 said:
There no difficulty difference between maths and further, just that you can do more modules.

This certainly wasn't the case when I did it and I can't see that it's been dumbed down that much. It could be made easier by doing both the lower level mechanics and stats modules but the higher level mechanics modules covered a lot of the same ground as I covered in the first year of a physics degree. As a major benefit they did make normal A'level maths seem much easier though, especially the pure papers.

Hxc · 19 Jul 2011 at 19:10

DJmartin said:
Also Where it says A level qualifications it just says AAA including maths. Does this mean if I had an A grade at A level maths and then an A in any other random subjects it would be OK? I ask this because at least in Wales we do a thing called Welsh Bacc. Basically we are told that universities see it as an A grade A level but something makes me think that they just see it as a load of bull**** as most of the current 6th formers have said they basically do **** all in Welsh Bacc lessons.

AAA is the typical offer they give. They can give you a lower offer if you have certain circumstances/subject choices. They can also give you a higher one. My offer for Maths the year before last was AB, when the typical offer was AAB because of the subjects I was taking and the way in which I was doing them. Unis are entirely at their disgression to admit who they like; they may say they require an A in maths but if the applicant is exceedingly strong in other ways and say, has for some reason already done some MS qualifications or something, they might make an offer anyway. Take what UCAS says as a guidline, not a fixed setup.

It is very unlikely if they say "with an A in maths" that you will get an offer that doesn't include an A in maths, unless you have exceptional circumstances, mind.

Don't bother with any stupid Welsh bac or AQA Bac, all the Russell group unis I talked to didn't give a toss about them or even know what they were. Useless qualifications if you are aiming high. Do real A levels.

DJ_Martin · 19 Jul 2011 at 19:44

We don't have a choice as far as welsh bacc goes. I assumed it was compulsory for all the welsh schools but I could be wrong. I suppose it doesn't really hurt my chances even if it doesn't help them to get it. Apparently other than community service and 20 hours of Spanish. You do nothing really