I Basically applied to Manchester, Edinburgh, Bath and Oxford to study Chemical Engineering for Undergraduate level. Here’s my case:
I took A-Levels, but completely messed up. My grades were:
“A” Chemistry. “B” Biology, “D” Mathematics
for their corresponding AS Levels, it was:
“A” Chemistry, “A” Biology, “C” Mathematics
I also took 6 IGCSE subjects, and have an A* in all of them.
BUT I also took American exams-qualifications, with MUCH better scores.
SAT II Chemistry: 800/800
SAT II Maths Level 1: 720/800
AP Calculus BC [Maths]: 5 - Equivalent to A in A-Level
AP Psychology - 4 - Equivalent to B in A-Level
ACT: 32/36 - Equivalent to 2120/2400 on the SAT
My question is, do I stand a chance because my American test scores are good but I messed up BIG TIME in my AL Maths? Do you think they would still consider my application?
P.S: Oxford explicitly states that they accept candidates with a minimum ACT score of 32, for Manchester and Bath it’s 27 minimum, and for Edinburgh 28.
Would they at least offer a conditional offer?
@londondad : any opinion?
The students I know had absolutely zero leeway. If their condition was an A in maths - and, at these universities, it likely would be - and they didn’t get an A, they lost their place.
OP have you applied already or are you t making 'for next year’s?
@MYOS1634 I don’t think any of the Unis mentioned would admit a ChemE student with ABD! The Unis here are fairly transparent and will list “typical offers” for each program. Typically Engineering at top Unis is AAA to 3 As. My son’s friend has a AAA offer from Bristol,
OP, are your A level grades actual grades or predictions?
My grades are the actual grades I received- not predictions. However, my official predicted grades from my school were A*AA. Would it help to send an e-mail to them stating that?
OP, if you applied for 2016 entry you have already heard (Oxford’s offers went out in January), and applications for 2017 entry don’t open until 6 September.
I can’t think that telling the unis that you were predicted A*AA and acheived ABD would help- unless you have such an extraordinary reason for having ‘messed up’ that would make it seem amazing that you did as well as you did.
I was also confused about the timings here, as A level results aren’t out until August, but on investigation I see there’s is a January sitting for international a candidates, with results out in March. they should have been sent to UCAS and any university which was considering you then. the optimistic predicted grades are irrelevant unless you had been given a conditional offer you had mised, but that doesn’t seem to be the case from what you see. And I think Oxford would be a rejection with those grades, no matter how brilliant a candidate you might otherwise be,
Did you definitely get your application in before the application deadline in October for Oxford/January for other universities?
Your only option now is to resit your Bio A level and Math A and AS level and go for Sept 2017 entry.
Even then, I think Oxford would reject.
Even with the January sitting / March results (thanks @Conformist1688), if the OP has actually (as distinct from “basically”) applied to these unis, all of them would have responded by now for autumn 2016 entry. So, @Kimo212: did you actually apply for 2016 entry?
Your predicted A level marks don’t meet the required offer for Engineering at Oxford: AAA, with math the A* and to include Physics. Oxford does say that if you are ‘only’ predicted AAA, but there are compelling extenuating circumstances, they might make an offer - but it would b conditional on actually achieving AA*A. So- without extenuating circumstances, Oxford was a non-starter (not to mention that Engineering at Oxford requires sitting the PAT).
But even if Oxford didn’t even know about your A levels, and knew only about your US scores, you don’t meet the minimums to qualify for Oxford: you would need a 5 in Physics (and fwiw, neither the score of 4 nor the subject of psych would count towards admission, and the 32 ACT score is a minimum, not sufficient for admission).
You mention on another thread that you were sitting 3 A levels, which is rare in your school, and the pressure was too intense and you simply couldn’t manage it. To be kindly honest, if sitting 3 A levels is overwhelming, Oxford is seriously not the place for you. You may be more than smart enough, but Oxford isn’t just about smart: It is incredibly intense. I have seen students who whizzed through 4 A levels or 5 APs (yes, in one season) crumple under the volume of work and the high expectations of the tutors.
I see, I understand. Thanks for explaining. I do have some good news. I received a conditional offer from Manchester a couple of days ago. They demanded 5 in Both Calculus and Psychology, but I got a 5 on Calculus and a 4 in Psychology. Do you think if I e-mail them they would still accept me with a just-missed grade? I felt confident that they emailed my one week after my application, even with the ABD in A levels.
Thanks for explaining. I do have some good news. I received a conditional offer from Manchester a couple of days ago. They demanded 5 in Both Calculus and Psychology, but I got a 5 on Calculus and a 4 in Psychology. Do you think if I e-mail them they would still accept me with a just-missed grade? I felt confident that they emailed my one week after my application, even with the ABD in A levels.
Thanks for explaining. I do have some good news. I received a conditional offer from Manchester a couple of days ago. They demanded 5 in Both Calculus and Psychology, but I got a 5 on Calculus and a 4 in Psychology. Do you think if I e-mail them they would still accept me with a just-missed grade? I felt confident that they emailed my one week after my application, even with the ABD in A levels.
Email them, but it’s unlikely.
It’s possible. ask and find out.
They will most likely ask you to wait for decision until A-level results come in for the UK students. They want to evaluate the whole pool
Alright, thank you very much!
You should also look into Clearing on the UCAS website to see if any other Unis are accepting kids into your major.
Alright, thanks for your help and time!
I am a little confused. You took A levels and got A Chemistry B biology and D maths, and you took AP Calc 5 and AP Psyc 4. Manchester offered you conditional on 2 AP’s at 5. I can only assume the conditional offer came before your AP results were known. If you take your best grades Ap Calc 5, A level Chem A and A level Bio B with a 32 ACT I would think you have an excellent chance at Manchester, Edin or Bath with those grades especially if you are an international fee student. E mail or phone if your UCAS site hasnt updated, I suspect because they have not received your AP results. What were the offers from the other universities??