What did you get for your A Levels (if you did them)? (Trigger warning - a levels 💐🫂)

It’s so much pressure on very young people. And few young people have adults around them who aren’t their parents or immediate family, who they’re less wont to listen to; or who are celebrities posting online saying “I didn’t get great grades but look at me now” and don’t necessarily offer much reassurance. The World of Work is so much wider than many 18-year-olds know, there are so many avenues. I do still keenly remember the trepidation of thinking my entire future rested on whether I got an ‘A’ or a ‘B’ at 18, which does such a disservice to so many smart young people.

I’m giggling at all the responses clarifying that “there was no A* in my day!” Alright babes we can tell that you’re all clever clogs from your AAA, no need to justify yourselves 😂

I was predicted ABB but my parents decided to divorce when I was in sixth form and we then had financial difficulties so I stopped caring about my studies and basically worked every hour that I could. Ended up with BBC which looking back really isn’t bad but it was the year before annual tuition fees rose from £3k to £9k so intake was huge that year and my second choice uni wouldn’t take me even though my C was one mark off my B (I needed BBB). I was inconsolable and had to go through clearing, ended up in a below average uni but I absolutely thrived being away from home, came away with a first class degree and best friends for life, and now have a career that I love. Sometimes things happen for a reason eh?

DD and U ungraded. Skipped uni, made mo difference to me. I always felt the years I would have been in uni spent getting real life experience set me in better stead. Now a 6 figure earner. I wouldn’t advise university to anyone unless it’s a clear path to a career and would always recommend apprenticeships and learning in job over uni.

I got a D in English Literature, an E in French and an N in Dress (clothes design, needlework, textiles). I had a rubbish education, which really didn’t equip me for A levels and the 3rd A level was a complete waste, not me at all. It was just the one thing I was praised for being good at.

Still managed to do a joint honours degree including 50% French through clearing and am very fluent etc. Missed a 2:1 by a hair width. My lecturer tried to tell me to appeal my grades, but wasn’t allowed to in those days. The percentages were published 2 weeks after the grades. And only after the appeals deadline had passed. I presumed he was talking about my friend. When I saw I had 2 x 59% and only needed one of those to go to 60, I was gutted.

I now also have a qualification in German, which is the equivalent to A level. I can’t remember the grade I got. But I think it would be an A or B in A level. I didn’t study hard for that, but was in my early 30s. I had a lot of trauma and some mental illness in my younger years, which stopped me from reaching my potential. This grade is the true me.

Sorry about the glandular fever, that illness really is the pits 😩

E, E, C..blame it on glandular fever but I was probably headed that way anyway. Why the flip did I even take maths ?

I was going to say AAA (English, French, History) but then I remembered I did General Studies, so AAAA. Who knows what I would have got in this brave new era of A*s.

C,D and E. Did hardly any work. I easily could have got a higher grade in eeach.I wish I had! No one at my college got As!

Did better at uni when I finally decided to apply myself!

My kids are far more driven and always striving for top grades.

Yes, we know. It's like saying "i nearly died" when you get a shock, it's not meant to minimise all the people who actually nearly died irl.

ABB. I was chuffed to bits, nobody saw it coming because I was quite lazy.

Don't get me started 😂!

Still feel all of our English class should have had a re-mark - all predicted A-C grades and the highest mark was a D.

French A, Russian B, General Studies C, English Lit E. All before A stars.

DDU- I was gutted- went through clearing as I was determined to go to uni.
Came out with a 2.1 and a dyslexia and adhd diagnosis.
Subsequently I've done an MA and MSc. Working as a senior professional so not all bad.
Not everyone gets education at 18 and are more suited to doing it later if they want.

Late 1970's BOO. Biology , chemistry and maths. O grade was not A level standard but not a complete fail. I was gutted, I had worked so hard and really thought I'd get the CCC I needed for biology at York. Worked out okay though, I did HND ( 2 years) then a degree ( 2 years) . Everyone on the HND was in a similar position and many did well.

AAA(A)D
Biology, chemistry, physics (general studies), maths
Early noughties, A* didn't exist.

BCU - back in the dark ages, a B and a C were considered to be perfectly fine grades. My university offer was BBC and they let me off one of those Bs for some reason... In I went having done almost no work at all.

AAAA in Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Maths ( you couldn't get A* at A-Level at that time).

Went to Oxford to study Physics and was home by March.

BCC in chemistry, Physics and Maths. Also dark ages so I got an A in Geography and C in Biology. I think. No one ever asked past my clearing offer of CCC. No one cares when you are 40 kids. No one ever asked about the AS levels or GCSEs

There are no A levels in a sense of humour.

AABB for English Language, General Studies, Geography and French.
I didn't go to uni as it was the first year that tuition fees were bought in and I just couldn't afford it. I thought I would go at some point but it's just never happened and the fees kept increasing.
I might go when the kids fly the nest, never too late and all that.

BEE. VERY disappointed. Too much executive functioning for my (at that time, undiagnosed) ADHD brain. Couldn’t do my dream course. Went through clearing and did something completely different, which I did well at (2:1) but didn’t particularly enjoy. Due to going through clearing, there was no student hall places left. I never really made friends and living away from everyone else made it much harder.