The upcoming university freshers will be the first cohort in three years to have sat exams, though will have had their entire A-level experience shaped by the pandemic.
Where last year's A* results were almost one in five (19.1%), they have now declined to 13.5%, just as the amount of A*-C grades has dropped from 88.5% to 82%.
On paper, this year has reached a level of normality in the examination process, however that cannot negate the chaotic lead-up to the exams.
If there’s anything the pandemic has taught us, it’s that the A-level and GCSE exam process is tired and outdated
It’s easy to see the three letters on a page as a defining statement of two years of work, but if there’s anything the pandemic has taught us, it’s that the A-Level and GCSE exam process is tired and outdated.
Boiling two years of content down to an average of three hours' worth of exams is not productive for either students or the teaching methods that've been instilled in them.
At the end of the day, A-levels all come down to practising exam tricks and memorisation techniques, rather than improving raw technical ability in relation to the content.
Many students are crying out for a more coursework-related study with less strict conditions that are more reflective of the world post A-levels.
Within weeks of being here, those three letters you staked so much of your self-worth on will be behind you
If you're coming to university now and still feel the sting of A-levels haunting you, don't worry. Thousands of freshers will be in the same boat, and within weeks of being here, those three letters you staked so much of your self-worth on will be behind you.
With that being said, if you're coming to university on a high from your results, embrace them, as this isn’t to say they aren’t earned.
University offers a new style of examinations, varying from coursework, 24-hour take-home exams, projects, as well as the old school strict exam conditions. So if exams were never your forte, university welcomes students with all kinds of strengths and weaknesses.