Bad A-level grades, can bite you in the rear end, 6 years in the future

[spirit]

York is ok. TBH its always going to come down to prestige of uni. At the end of the day the books are the same etc so you could come out knowing exactly the same stuff, i guess, but the employers but a lot of weight on where you've been, then what grade you got. They will use alevels etc to seperate the wheat from the chaff..
Take for instance Warwick a few of my mates there (esp for econ) are doing no work and getting high 1sts whereas my mates at camb/lse/oxf are working hard but getting 1sts and 2.1s.. where you go does matter. Your 2.1 from top10 i think is worth more than a 1st from a worse uni.. IMO

 

[NickXX]

I think the A-level criteria is to make sure that your 2.1 is not from a carp Uni. In my opinion a first from a bottom 33% uni is worth less than a third from a top 10.
By asking for your A-lavels they are kind of asking 'did you go to / could you have gone to a decent uni?'

Yup, this is why they ask for your A-level grades - it is essentially their way of filtering out degrees from the poorer universities.

However the OP seems to have been stung by this, as Bristol is meant to be very good.

 

[PaulStat]

The content of the course will be similar across universities, but (having attended a 2nd quartile uni but top 5 department) I would suggest that the assessment standards are much higher at 'better' universities and therefore a first does not mean the same at every uni.

Good point i suppose, I know I was only a few marks off of a 1st for my degree, and was surprised by how many of my friends acheived the same level of degree as me considering how much help I had given with assignments etc.

I don't mind helping, and even given example code. But when they take that example code, change a few variable names and then submit it as their own work that annoys me slightly (And it happens loads)

 

[w11tho]

By asking for your A-lavels they are kind of asking 'did you go to / could you have gone to a decent uni?'

Couldn't agree more. When you do a degree, you'll be put on a course aimed at the level of those who met certain academic requirements. If the course require a D at A-Level Maths, it's going to assume that the students should be taught at that level and at an appropriate speed. If you come out with a 1st, it means that you were able to master the problems and course content aimed at that particular level.

A "degree" is a very subjective qualification, and employers will use whatever means necessary to distinguish between degree X and degree Y.

 

[PaulStat]

Couldn't agree more. When you do a degree, you'll be put on a course aimed at the level of those who met certain academic requirements. If the course require a D at A-Level Maths, it's going to assume that the students should be taught at that level and at an appropriate speed. If you come out with a 1st, it means that you were able to master the problems and course content aimed at that particular level.

A "degree" is a very subjective qualification, and employers will use whatever means necessary to distinguish between degree X and degree Y.

So time to

(a) Retake Maths A-level, possibily Physics too?
(b) Do a part-time Masters degree for the hell of it?

 

[reflex]

If i was doing interviews i'd probably put the 'charachter' of the person above or on the same level as the qualifications of that person.

 

[cleanbluesky]

I admit it I have crap A-Levels which is why on my CV i don't specify my grades.

But since my A-levels I have managed a 2:1 (Hons) from a respectable uni and I have 2 years commercial experience in applications programming.

But alas I got turned down for an interview because of my A-Level grades

Lie? No-one has ever checked my A-Level grades...

 

[wsurfa]

I'm going to go against the flow and disagree that most employers would prefer a poor quality degree from a good quality univeristy. It's all about balance, a good degree from a good uni is obviously best, and a poor degree from poor uni is obviously worst. I think many employers appreciate that people who gained a 1st from a "lesser" uni have worked considerably harder than a private schoolboy who got lazy at uni and obtained a desmond.

/Off topic - How do people in here rate the University of York?

I've had more than decade with talent acquisition and retention as part of my job, and those companies that target higher achievers and have a high level of involvement in their selection procedures will value an Oxbridge 2.1 above a former poly 1st, very likely that they will value a 2.2 above the poly 1st.

 

[PaulStat]

Lie? No-one has ever checked my A-Level grades...

I think if I were to put A for physics and A for maths they'd soon find out, as I can't remember diddly squat about them

 

[w11tho]

(a) Retake Maths A-level, possibily Physics too?

Hmm, I'm not sure to be honest. Because there's no guarantee you'll do too much better, I don't think it would bare the same brunt with employers if they knew you'd retaken the A-Levels at a much later date. No harm in giving it a shot, but I'm not sure how much it would help.

(b) Do a part-time Masters degree for the hell of it?

I'm not sure this would add anything significant to your bow. Could be a lot of money and not much advantage. Again, there's no harm in giving it a shot, but there's no guarantees!

Sorry dude.

 

[penski]

EED!

Psychology, Philosophy, Computing.

Go team crappy A Levels!

*n

 

[cleanbluesky]

I think if I were to put A for physics and A for maths they'd soon find out, as I can't remember diddly squat about them

You expect your employers to quiz you on physics?

Seriously, how often are you asked anything remotely related to your subject at interview?

I think they just ask as they have nothing better to ask and want to see how many details they can pin you down on... I don't think that a grade from a better uni has a different academic value to one from a more regarded one, especially if the department has a higher reputation than the uni... but it certainly does have a social connotation...

 

[PaulStat]

Hmm, I'm not sure to be honest. Because there's no guarantee you'll do too much better, I don't think it would bare the same brunt with employers if they knew you'd retaken the A-Levels at a much later date. No harm in giving it a shot, but I'm not sure how much it would help.

I'm not sure this would add anything significant to your bow. Could be a lot of money and not much advantage. Again, there's no harm in giving it a shot, but there's no guarantees!

Sorry dude.

To be honest I think once I have 4-5yrs commercial experience under my belt, my teenage days won't be considered anymore (bloody hope so anyway)

The lead developer in my company, hasn't got any A-levels or a degree, but has 15yrs + experience in development from working as an apprentice up. If I were an employer i'd give him the job over someone who has A-levels, a degree, and a masters but next to no commercial experience. I'd hope most employers would do the same?

 

[wsurfa]

So time to

(a) Retake Maths A-level, possibily Physics too?
(b) Do a part-time Masters degree for the hell of it?

If you're in the tech sector then (generally) the recognised qualifications will be professional, not Masters . e.g . Cisco/Juniper in networking would carry more weight than an Msc IT(networking).

 

[w11tho]

You expect your employers to quiz you on physics?

No, but they'd expect him to be someone who has the ability to gain an A in A-Level Physics. It's not the subject matter they're interested, it's the achievement.

I really wouldn't advise lying on your CV; major firms will definitely check the details you've given, and if it turns out you've fibbed, they'll drop you like a ton of bricks and it will follow you to future applications, making things much tougher.

I don't think that a grade from a better uni has a different academic value to one from a more regarded one

I really don't agree with this, and I don't think employers do. You can't measure degrees from different Universities with the same measuring stick - the differences in course content and the means of testing can vary immensely!

 

[sinister_stu]

I really don't agree with this, and I don't think employers do. You can't measure degrees from different Universities with the same measuring stick - the differences in course content and the means of testing can vary immensely!

So how does the quality of the department come into it?

 

[DaveyD]

Lieing about grades isn't the best option in my opinion, I had to give copies of all my certificates to my placement job, though it's different for every company, sods law will mean you end up getting caught, though in practice that's very unlikely. Retaking them now probably isn't the best option. Perhaps just keep looking?

The thing is, yes you've had rubbish grades for your A-Levels, but isn't that what the Foundation Year is for? To get you to the required level for your specific subject? I know with Foundation year at Birmingham for Engineering, they get you to a level just between A-Level and the Degree level on the maths and physics side of things, along with load of stuff you will not have learned at a-level, but I guess every foundation year course is different.

 

[geeza]

heres a cat in the bag - what if you got reasonable alevel/national diploma results then went to a lesser uni because you thought you wouldnt do as good as expected and the facilities were really good at the uni?? (a la me and leeds met)

 

[w11tho]

So how does the quality of the department come into it?

Something I'm highly dubious about. In my mind (and it would seem, the mind of employers) that the standard of a course has a very strong correlation with its entry requirements. Departments often get their reputation from research or resident academics, which will have little affect on the standard of the undergraduate course. Don't get me wrong, going to a good dept in a good university is great, but going to a so called top dept which only requires CDE at A-Level can't be offering a course is top notch.

 

[wsurfa]

You expect your employers to quiz you on physics?

Seriously, how often are you asked anything remotely related to your subject at interview?

I think they just ask as they have nothing better to ask and want to see how many details they can pin you down on... I don't think that a grade from a better uni has a different academic value to one from a more regarded one, especially if the department has a higher reputation than the uni... but it certainly does have a social connotation...

1. Yes we will if your role has a physics bias, or if your interivewer has an interest in that area. I've had entertaining times when a candidate has obviously elevated their knowledge of a certain area - it does not go down well

2. Ascertaining someones true experience/quals/motivations is a core part of determining their likely suitability for the role/company/team/environment

3. A Russell group uni will, generally, be regarded more highly than a lower one. When the disparty in regard for Uni is high then, again generally, this will overide degree quality.

Again this can only cover the companies I know well, or have ex-colleagues at, or know the RPO.