(University/Career related)… Feeling like such a waster/afc atm. Here’s my situation:

[Roy]

I live in the uk so during 16-18 you study to attain qualifications called a levels, usually you obtain 2 a levels. Now how well you do in these will determine which university you go to.

I really screwed up in mine, I never really worked hard, so I ended up retaking a year in order to bump them up which makes me 19.

The good thing was that I discovered the dj/pua community around this time which really helped my mindset. And so I worked hard, I obtained good grades for my January modules but when the overall results came last week, I only got average grades (C,C,C), I did however improve the individual module marks a lot.

I have been really down since then as I have limited choice in the uni I want to go to, and right now I have a place at the uni I didn’t even speak off this year (because that’s where all the rejects from my town go to). I wanted a fresh start and I know too many people there, I feel have matured and I know the crowd there will not have ‘their heads screwed on’.

The thing is I really don’t want to go there, the retake year helped me discipline myself and realise what my potential is and that I can get what I want if I put my mind to it.

But taking another year out will mean that I will be 20 when I got to uni and that it would have taken me 4 years to complete my a levels. Therefore I’m not sure whether unis will look down upon this and it could decrease my chances of going to a good university. If I do decide to take another year out I would have to gain relevant work experience and do things which will make me stand out from other students who are applying next year and the same time as me.

So basically my options are:

Go to a uni that’s full of rejects, most of them will be similar faces, however the career prospects are quite good there, but the reputation of the uni is not great.

Or

Take another year out and improve my grades by a grade (B,B,B), reapply to better unis, hopefully in London/Birmingham.

Im planning on doing a business related degree so getting a 2.1 or above is important.


If you need more info on my situation, just ask…

Its my future guys, please help me out...its appreciated…

 

[Roy]

Oops, mistake in first paragraph... i meant "... qualifications called a levels, usually you obtain 3 a levels. Now how well you... "

 

[Jules Verne]

Can you attend the first university and transfer a year later?

 

[Roy]

Can you attend the first university and transfer a year later?

Yes, i will have to pass my first year above a certain grade to be considered for a good uni, there are no guarantees though but worth a try i guess.

 

[mpimpin]

Can you attend the first university and transfer a year later?

At this point in your life This sounds like a good option. If you really want to be at a different Uni you will work hard to achieve it and make it happen. Good Luck!

 

[Wiesman44]

Just go to a college here in the US. That'll fix things quickly

 

[sosuave_guy]

There's nothing wrong with retaking your A-Levels. I study pharmacy at the number 1 school of pharmacy in the uk (Well it was when I applied ) & most of the people on my course are resit students aged 20-21. I think it is far better to improve your grades & go to a university that will give you a great social life & a valuable qualification, than a university which will have a rubbish social life & a less valuable degree. Also because you'll be entering a competitive job market, having a degree from a reputable university will definitely be worth spending another year on your A-Levels. Re-siting really builds character too. I got AAB for my A-Levels but ended up failing two exams in my first year & barely passing. But the students who re-sat their A-Levels passed their exams because they had built the right work ethics.

I don't think SoSuave would be the best place to ask this question. The community at:

http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/

Will definitely be able to help you .

 

[Hooligan Harry]

Son, you live in the UK. Get yourself a trade. You will make more money and wont have a problem getting a job. The world needs engineers and tradesmen at the moment. Not another financial analyst.

 

[sosuave_guy]

There's nothing wrong with resiting your A-Levels. I study pharmacy at the best pharmacy school in the UK and most of the students on my course are A-Level resit students aged 20-21. It's far better to spend another year on A-Level, so that you can go to a great uni that has an amazing social life & earn a valuable degree, than go to a uni with poor prospects & a crap social life. Re-siting your A-Levels also builds great character. I got AAB for A-Levels but ended up failing two of my exams in the first year. The students who had re-sat their A-Levels, however, did very well because they had built great work ethics. Don't bother trying to transfer uni because a lot of universities don't accept transfer students & it's harder to get good marks in uni exams than A-Levels. Best of luck to you bro!

P.s Go to http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/ for much better advice from students who have been in exactly the same position as you.
P.p.s Ignore all the negative stuff people are saying about university. It's a great place to grow as a person and become a better man, as well as get a qualification which will help get you a good job . It's a lot of hard work & expensive, but I believe it is definitely worth it .

 

[Latinoman]

Son, you live in the UK. Get yourself a trade. You will make more money and wont have a problem getting a job. The world needs engineers and tradesmen at the moment. Not another financial analyst.

I am an engineer. It was a five year degree for me with a LOT of science and maths. Perhaps the hardest undergraduate degree there it is.

Not everybody can become one.

 

[Hooligan Harry]

Agreed Latino. I mentioned in another thread something similar. I should have been clearer. If he decides to go to varsity he should get something worthwhile like an engineering degree. The world does not need another finance graduate

 

[Ingeniarius]

I am an engineer. It was a five year degree for me with a LOT of science and maths. Perhaps the hardest undergraduate degree there it is.

Not everybody can become one.

I'm in engineering school, and a good one too. Latinoman's post sums up my experiences as well.

I think that improving your A-levels and going to a better university is definitely worth more than completing your degree one year earlier, seeing that going to university is not really about the stuff you learn there. In fact, most of my professors advise me that maybe 10% of the material there will be of direct use in my career.

The point of going to college is developing those often-cited intangible soft skills, and by those I don't mean social. My boss during my internship was a solid-state physicist with a PhD.He started out by investigating surfaces of glued parts his company(largest company in the world in his field), a lab job, paid well but not great. Now he does financial analysis for the same company.
Point is, he learned in university how to learn difficult material by himself and work scientifically without the help of others. As such, he is a valued employee because he has learned to truly think outside the box. He has told me many times that his studies really enabled him to think the way he does.

For me, that is the real benefit of going to university, not just completing a degree in x amount of years.