What to do if you didn’t get your grades

if you didn’t make your university entry requirements, your plan B will need to involve retakes, clearing or perhaps a complete change of tack as you take stock of what you want to do

Exam grades are an important gateway to success. But whether you got the ones you wanted or not, if you do what you love and what you are naturally good at, you will go far in life. There are always options. Never forget: you are not alone.

Albert Einstein left school at 15 with no diploma. Sir Winston Churchill failed the entrance exam to the Royal Military College twice. And Jeremy Clarkson got a C and two U’s in his A-levels (he likes to remind everyone via Twitter every year). Plus, he has a Mercedes-Benz.

Established in 1974, David Game is an independent, co-educational college in London that specialises in preparing students for examination success at GCSE and A-level – some of them retakes – so they can gain entry to their chosen university or career.

Vice-principal John Dalton says: “Don’t panic if the results are not what you hoped for. Stand back and reflect. For starters, were you doing the right subjects? Should you retake or try another subject entirely?

“If someone comes to me with a U in maths, the first question I ask is: ‘Should you really be doing maths?’ If, however, they’ve got a C and a D and they need two As, there is an opportunity to retake.

“Typically, we can bump results up by two grades in a year. But you can’t just repeat what you did last time, in terms of revision and study. We need to look at the student and restructure their outlook on studying.”
"It’s vital that students understand that their potential isn’t defined by the past and that they should be optimistic about their futures"Rachel Sherman, vice-principal

As fellow vice-principal Rachel Sherman points out, there is also the clearing option – ringing round universities with places to fill to ask if they will accept your results.

“If you’ve just missed your grades at A-level,” she says, “this is a great option.”

“You need to speak to them directly or even – if your results were very close – speak to the university you missed out on and ask them if they’ll still accept you. Don’t be frightened of talking to admissions officers – they’re very helpful and they want to fill their courses.

“If you’ve missed by a lot, you need to sit down with your family and have a serious think. The options are to retake or take a different course.

“Medicine is notoriously difficult as medical schools don’t like retakes. I always tell medics: ‘Have a plan B.’

“But generally universities don’t mind if you retake, as long as the person writing your reference outlines the mitigating circumstances. Anyone can have a bad year.

“You should also seek advice from your UCAS adviser or your head of sixth form. Failure isn’t the end of the world. Lots of people fail first time or get low grades. They try again or they find other avenues. Don’t feel like you’re the only person in the world that this has happened to.”

She adds: “One other great option – especially for engineering or chemistry – is to do a foundation course at a university that leads on to a degree.

“Most of all, it’s vital that students understand that their potential isn’t defined by the past and that they should be optimistic about their futures.”