Education.

[Tom_]

At uni? At college? Still at school?

What are you doing at the moment, and also what age are you?

Just wondering really, Iv just left school after the first year of Alevel (so only got a couple of AS levels) And I now want to do a motorsport engineering course at college, then go onto a 3-5 year uni course.

No real reason for this, just wondering really.

[BenLeacock™]

Just finnished year 11

[Wrayvon]

Just finished my first year at Edge Hill Uni, went there straight from school after getting my a levels.

Thoroughly enjoyed my first year, hope that the remaining 2/3 will be just as fun.

Edit: Oh and I'm 19 by the way

Edited June 16, 2008 by Wrayvon

[The Stig]

17 i have 10 GCSE's and just about to finish my first year in a BTEC National Diploma in Public Services..... Distinctions in most Will either go to uni then a gap year or a gap year with work then go straight into the Marines then..... Either way going into the marines.

Tom

[Mark W]

11 GCSEs.

4 A-Levels.

Gap year.

Just finished my second year of uni at London Southbank, doing Digital Photography. I'm 21.

[monkeyseemonkeydo]

8 Standard Grades.

5 Highers.

3 Sixth Year Studies.

(I'm from Scotland...)

Unintended gap year (supid uni didn't understand the Scottish system).

MEng Aerospace Engineering at Southampton Uni.

3rd year doing an Engineering Doctorate again in Southampton.

26 and still riding silly little bikes :$.

[Haz]

11 GCSES

4 A Levels, 1 As

1st year Uni BA(arch) Architecture at The University of Kent.

[Tomm]

I get my final BSc grade on Friday. Eek.

[monkeyseemonkeydo]

I get my final BSc grade on Friday. Eek.

Good luck with that! Are you back for your final year of medicine after the Summer?

[531joshua]

11 GCSE's, and im currently doing my a-levels, just finished my as exams, im at 6th form and im 17.

[1a2bcio8]

I only got about 5 gcses, then I dropped out of college about 7 times but recently I have managed to stick my at my present course (Access course) and have a place at Bristol Uni to study Neuroscience - providing I manage to organise my portfolio and hand it in on time. However, I intend to change to philosophy when I start Uni as I've realised that the method of learning science doesn't particularly interest me. Accumulating facts to regurgitate in an exam =

[Joe_Elding]

7 Gcses - 4 A*s 3 A's

Just started second year of Alevels - Maths, Physics and Electronics.

Job interview at next on thursday lol.

[Tomm]

Good luck with that! Are you back for your final year of medicine after the Summer?

Yep! Can't f**king wait!

the method of learning science doesn't particularly interest me. Accumulating facts to regurgitate in an exam =

Yeah, my course this year (Physiology) was structured very similarly to Manchester's Neuroscience course. The exams were the same structure, and many of the course units overlapped (I could have basically done the neuroscience units had I wished). I didn't like the course very much, mostly for the reason you said. It was VERY focussed (last year I learnt more about ion channels than anyone would care to know), and the exams only required revising two subjects per module (I did 6 modules) as there was a choice of two questions from five. So I had to basically accumulate lots of facts on a very narrow subject, that would be regurgitated and then forgotten again. One module in particular was a total joke - I had lots of exams in the days before it so I had done no revision until the night before. Then I revised the two subjects I hated least (which predictably came up in the exam), and scrawled an answer. By the end of the day I had forgotten most of what I had learnt. Seemed like a rather pointless (and hellish) way to spend 24 hours

Medicine, on the other hand, I find very interesting. It's very broad so there's lots to learn, and it's flexible to a large degree so you can learn what you want. It's (obviously) very vocational, and you can easily see how your accumulation of knowledge is very useful in real-world situations, potentially for saving lives. Like I said, I can't wait to get back to that.

I would love to do something like maths or philosophy at university, looks very interesting and a totally different way of learning. I have a friend who is doing a maths PhD and his workload at the moment simply involves 'thinking' for 4 hours a day (any more is pointless, apparently). Alas, we can't just spend all our lives at university (actually I want a proper job anyway - I'm tired of being skint).

[Dani.]

Doing my Baccalaureat as we speak (3 more days of exams left) which is the equivalent of A-levels in the UK except that he have to take everything: Maths, physics/chemistry, biology/geology, history/geography, philosophy, sports, german, english (haha) and literature. Sucks to be me then . I'm 18 at the moment.

Next year i'm off to uni and studying molecular biology and biochemistry for at least 5 years if all goes well.

Oh and whats the difference between A-levels and AS-levels?

Edited June 16, 2008 by Dani.

[JonMack]

5.5 GCSEs.

BTEC ND Graphic Design - Merit Merit Distinction

BA(Hons) Graphic Design - University of Wales, Newport - 2:1

Just finished uni. Graduation ceremony next month, get certificate in mid November.

I'm 21 in 2 months, 3 days.

[Tomm]

Oh and wehats the difference between A-levels and AS-levels?

AS levels are new (ish) and you have to do AS levels for one year, then A-levels for the next year. It just means that the exams are split so you can do half your exams in the first year at sixth form, then half in the second year.

Some people do more AS levels than A levels though - quiet a few people do 4 AS-levels and then drop 1 and do 3 A-levels.

[Mark W]

Oh and wehats the difference between A-levels and AS-levels?

AS-levels are basically Year 12, and A-levels are Year 13. They're almost like a foundation, then the A-levels are the qualifications, pretty much. An AS-Level, to UCAS, is worth half the amount of an A-Level at any rate.

[Jed]

Just need to finish my last GCSE on Thursday (graphics), then 3 months of holiday! So 16.

[1a2bcio8]

Yep! Can't f**king wait!

Yeah, my course this year (Physiology) was structured very similarly to Manchester's Neuroscience course. The exams were the same structure, and many of the course units overlapped (I could have basically done the neuroscience units had I wished). I didn't like the course very much, mostly for the reason you said. It was VERY focussed (last year I learnt more about ion channels than anyone would care to know), and the exams only required revising two subjects per module (I did 6 modules) as there was a choice of two questions from five. So I had to basically accumulate lots of facts on a very narrow subject, that would be regurgitated and then forgotten again. One module in particular was a total joke - I had lots of exams in the days before it so I had done no revision until the night before. Then I revised the two subjects I hated least (which predictably came up in the exam), and scrawled an answer. By the end of the day I had forgotten most of what I had learnt. Seemed like a rather pointless (and hellish) way to spend 24 hours

Medicine, on the other hand, I find very interesting. It's very broad so there's lots to learn, and it's flexible to a large degree so you can learn what you want. It's (obviously) very vocational, and you can easily see how your accumulation of knowledge is very useful in real-world situations, potentially for saving lives. Like I said, I can't wait to get back to that.

I would love to do something like maths or philosophy at university, looks very interesting and a totally different way of learning. I have a friend who is doing a maths PhD and his workload at the moment simply involves 'thinking' for 4 hours a day (any more is pointless, apparently). Alas, we can't just spend all our lives at university (actually I want a proper job anyway - I'm tired of being skint).

Ah, thanks for saying that Tomm because it's been a struggle for me to choose a subject (philosophy) that doesn't much lead onto something else (unless I achieve my probably unrealistic ideal of becoming a writer/lecturer) but to be honest, I'm the sort of person who can't perform unless very interested in what I'm doing. Although I find the subject matter interesting and love to learn about Neuroscience/science in my own time, formal learning of Science this year has kinda sucked (for the reasons stated) and when we were set a 4000 word essay on whatever we liked as part of my course, I wrote on the philosophy of mysticism/consciousness and it f'ing rocked to be honest. I think I'm much more likely to come out with a better degree if I'm doing what I enjoy. I only hope Bristol Uni are cool with my changing subjects.

Props for becoming a medical doctor though - I envisage that as being very rewarding. I've certainly considered it before but I'm not sure I could handle the workload. I can barely manage my life when I'm neither working or studying! I like the idea of becoming a Dr. of Philsophy though

[Gandalf the Yellow]

i think

12 GCSEs

2 A levels

1 AS level

at the moment just finished my 2nd year undergraduate doing Bsc Applied Geography at Bournemouth University.

steve

[Egg Fried Rice]

AS-levels are basically Year 12, and A-levels are Year 13. They're almost like a foundation, then the A-levels are the qualifications, pretty much. An AS-Level, to UCAS, is worth half the amount of an A-Level at any rate.

I thought A level was the course, AS is the first year and A2 is the second year? I might be wrong so :$

[Mark W]

Nah, you're pretty much right, I just always call the A2 ones the A-level, 'cos the whole "AS" becomes "A2" thing sounds stupid Like the AS is Advanced Subsidiary, then the A-Level should just be Advanced Level, not Advanced 2 Level...

[Tomm]

Ah, thanks for saying that Tomm because it's been a struggle for me to choose a subject (philosophy) that doesn't much lead onto something else (unless I achieve my probably unrealistic ideal of becoming a writer/lecturer) but to be honest, I'm the sort of person who can't perform unless very interested in what I'm doing. Although I find the subject matter interesting and love to learn about Neuroscience/science in my own time, formal learning of Science this year has kinda sucked (for the reasons stated) and when we were set a 4000 word essay on whatever we liked as part of my course, I wrote on the philosophy of mysticism/consciousness and it f'ing rocked to be honest. I think I'm much more likely to come out with a better degree if I'm doing what I enjoy. I only hope Bristol Uni are cool with my changing subjects.

Props for becoming a medical doctor though - I envisage that as being very rewarding. I've certainly considered it before but I'm not sure I could handle the workload. I can barely manage my life when I'm neither working or studying! I like the idea of becoming a Dr. of Philsophy though

Doing medicine isn't that hard. I have a pretty good memory for facts which is what you need, but I think even for the averagely intelligent person, it's not too hard. In fact, I have found the exams for my BSc far more demanding and stressful! What is hard about medicine is getting onto the course in the first place, and when you're on the course it's very hard to excel within a year group full of very clever people.

As for choosing a subject that doesn't lead onto something else - I am lucky in that medicine is a very vocational course and assuming I pass all the relevant exams, my career path is quite well set-out. But most graduates don't use any of what they've learnt at university for their future career, for better or for worse. My point is, don't worry too much about doing a non-vocational course, because that's the situation 95% (that's a guess) of graduates are in. Apparently philosophy is good for Business & Research, Retail, Finance, Health & Social Work, Public Administration, Community, Social & Personal Service, Manufacturing, Transport and Hotels & Restaurants. I have a friend who did PPE (Politics, Philosophy and Economics) and she loved it, and has now got a pretty sweet banking job guaranteed in the City of London for September.

As for changing subjects I don't really know. Here it's pretty easy to swap courses within a faculty, but I'm not so sure about swapping from life sciences (Neuroscience) to social sciences (Philosophy).

I just re-read my post about neuroscience and I realise it's very negative, perhaps I'm being pessimistic. You might really enjoy neuroscience. Certainly it won't be much like anything you've learnt so far, the level of detail, the teaching style etc. Personally I want to know a little bit about everything, and I found the level of detail required for my course was restricting that. It may, of course, be completely different at Bristol.

[Z o o !!]

Just finnished year 11

[Simpson]

10-12 GCSE's cant remeber... but 4 A's and the rest B's

A year Failed AS levels, 3 U's and a D... (with a resonable'ish medical excuse)

Resitting AS hoping for A, B, C, D