Sixth Form Advice (Year 12 Edition)

So, I've had a few requests to do a blog post on starting A-levels. It seems like some of you guys are quite nervous, so I'm here to put you at ease (or at least try to). So I am answering the questions that you guys want being answered, I asked you guys to message me questions that you have and I also have some things of my own that I wanted to mention.

We'll start with your questions first.

1) Is the difference between GCSE and A-levels really as high as everyone says?

YES! I knew it would be difficult but honestly I didn't get what everyone meant when they told me that A-levels were a huge jump from GCSE. Now I understand. You can go from being an A* student to getting U's if you don't put in the work. Its not like GCSEs where you're completely spoon fed information and sometimes can ace an exam with no revision. If you don't study, you will fail. That being said, if you work hard you can do it. Don't fall into the trap of thinking work load will be small because you're going from 12 subjects to 3/4. The workload is actually far larger even with only three subjects. This brings me on nicely to the next question.

2) How do you manage your time effectively and stay on top of work?

My biggest tip I have for you is to start revising from the beginning. Make your flashcards and posters from the start of the year. I did that to begin with but stopped around Christmas time (what an idiot) and let me tell you, I got STRESSED. After every lesson, make sure you go over everything and understand all the content because during the exam period, teachers don't have time to be teaching you things over and over again. Keep everything organised into binders or folders and divide them into each topic so during exam season you already have the resources to study from. I wish I knew this sooner.

In terms of managing time, make sure you have a planner/agenda. I wrote EVERYTHING in mine. Even little things. When you're busy it is so easy to forget things so make sure to write it down and always look at your planner everyday because I once forgot to look at mine for a week and realised I had a presentation due the next day that I hadn't even started. I ended up having to do it in my free and completely winged the speakers notes to go with the slideshow. So check your planner! Also, use your frees. I'm working in pretty much most of my free periods. Do homework so you get a bit more time to yourself at home, do some revision, go through class notes. Really use your free time effectively. Its so tempting just to nap on the sofa (guilty of that) but honestly, using your free periods will make a huge difference to your stress levels and even your final grade. To be honest I could do an entire post on time management and work load, so I'm going to leave it here before it gets too long.

3) How long did it take you to get used to sixth form?

I got used to sixth form life very quickly. Mentally I still couldn't process that I wasn't a high school student anymore. It felt strange to tell people I left school, but actually getting used to sixth form wasn't difficult. I guess for me it was mainly because I already knew most people as I stayed at my school's sixth form. Everyone's experience is different but I was fine.

4) How did you avoid getting stressed?

You literally can't. Stress follows you when you're at sixth form. You think you're done with all the work for the evening and then remember another one you didn't write down. You think you're done with work in your free and go to relax but your mentor screams EPQ. Stress is real in sixth form. I thought year 11 was intense but man. The good thing is that I've learnt how to handle it now. I've kind of figured out how to minimise it as much as I can. My advice would be to remember that grades aren't everything and to take it one step at a time. Its very easy to see your long list of tasks to do and want to crawl in a hole. Break the list down and do everything in chunks. Don't feel like you need to do 10 things all at once. Sit down and plan. Its all about organisation really.

So those were the questions you guys wanted me to answer and now I'm going to answer some that I think are important that weren't asked.

5) How do you make new friends at sixth form?

Now, like I said I went to my school's sixth form so I knew pretty much everybody, however there are external members that I was first getting to know. When you're in secondary school, you make so many friends that become your best friends and it can be hard to make new ones after being with the same people for 5 years. Making new friends can be difficult but it really doesn't have to be. My advice on making new friends is to talk about your summer, prom or sixth form. These are all good ice breakers and conversation starters. If you did NCS you can tell everybody about your experience, you could talk about prom or even share your thoughts about what you think sixth form will be like. These sort of conversations really break the ice and will hopefully lead you into a beautiful friendship.

6) Do you get a lot of support when it comes to the work?

You get support from teachers and mentors where it is needed. You'll never be left completely alone, especially if you're learning something new. However you are expected and going to have to do your own work and research outside of lessons and school hours. That might be simple things like reading textbooks and watching documentaries. They won't spoon feed you all the information that you need like back in school. They'll sort of be like the backbone. They'll provide you with a foundation but you have to build upon it.

7) Is it all work or do you have fun at sixth form?

No. Sixth form is not just all about work. It may seem that way but you actually do have fun. You get to go on trips and do fun things too. I went to London for the day with my politics class to visit parliament and then we spent a couple hours on oxford street shopping, we went ice skating during the Christmas season, we the £5 challenge where we were each given a fiver and had to turn that into a profit. Sixth form isn't all work and stress. So look forward to it!

My final advice to you is to get involved. When it comes to year 13 you can really show yourself off and put all you've done on your personal statement and mention them at interviews for universities and apprenticeships. I was a mentor for younger students, I helped out at school discos and school events etc. All these things that you may not want to do at the time will really pay off so say yes to opportunities.

If you're starting sixth form now or in the future, I hope this was helpful and answered some of your questions! Make the most of it because it will be gone in a blink.

Thanks for reading,
Have a great day x