How to Survive Your A Levels

Beforehand, you will need the following: a)patience, dedication and copious amounts of self-motivation and hard work, b) good, organised notes to easily revise from, and c)a LOT of pens and paper.

1. Choose Your A level subjects wisely (AS & A2).

Many students fail to thoroughly think through their choices. Merely liking a subject or having an interest in it will not guarantee you do well at it. A levels are entirely different to GCSEs: the subjects are incredibly harder and some could even do with warning signs. So do your research! Consider your GCSE results, look up the relevant subject syllabuses, ask any A levellers you know for their opinion on your potential subjects, check university preferences/entry requirements, consult any adults or connexions advisers and select a subject combination that you can work with. And don't forget to hold your breath and hope for the best.

2. Attend your lessons and take notes, please!

If you want to stand a chance of achieving a decent pass in your A levels, attending most (if not all of your lessons) and taking good notes is a no-brainer. Keep track of your notes, make sure you've got them all, don't lend them out and have them in a format you can easily revise from. Investing a little time in your notes will really pay off when it comes to the exams since you'll be less stressed and more focused on killing your exam papers.

3. All Play and No Work at AS Can Lead to Disastrous Outcomes.

If not extremely stressful ones. Why? Because you will have to work doubly hard in your A2 year, retaking those failed AS modules on top of doing your A2 exams/coursework. Your AS grade amount to 50% of your overall grade. Get an A at AS and you can slack off a bit at A2 instead of panicking about being predicted dreadful grades for university or failing your courses.

4. Keep Track of Your Work and/or Coursework

That means keeping on top of your work and/or coursework. Deadlines were put in place for a reason, so work to them as this is where you can pick up more points. Aim to get a high mark for your coursework units as this significantly increases your chances of getting a good overall grade. Do your homework and essays because practice does make better.

5. Don't Forget to Chillax and Reboot the System.

When it gets a bit too much, take deep breaths. Or run away. As long as you have everything under control on the academic front, it's fine to party and have fun. Re-energise and then return to conquering your A levels!

6. Exams, exams and more exams!

Within these two years, you will be sitting too many very important exams. Good exam preparation is key for success. Make sure you are organised, start your revision early, are familiar with the exam content and any relevant websites for your course, know what exam boards you are with and have attempted all the practice exam papers available (whilst looking at the markschemes). If you mucked up on your revision, play it strategically. You are entitled to retake, just decide which one and plan accordingly.

7. Results - the End of the Beginning?

Or the beginning of the end since you never know how it turns out with these exams. However, with the help of this article, your resolve and many other factors, you will successfully survive your A levels. So keep those fingers crossed and don't think too much about the results, until you get them. Then hopefully, celebrate or just get drunk. Drinking before getting the results helps too. Whatever the case, best of luck. You need it.

Warnings

1. Loss of any form of a social life close to exam seasons
2. Possible depression due to feelings of being a failure, terrible weather, the neverending workload or ever mounting stress.
3. Periods of prolonged lethargy accompanied by a loss of motivation and alternating feeling of guilt and indifference
4. The remote chance of brain atrophy
5. The development of an addiction such as indulgent passive smoking, caffeine addiction, smoking or drinking