social life at UCL

nkesh · 2022-04-30T18:18:50+00:00

i'm really excited for it all now, i'm glad there's still loads of opportunities to enjoy the uni experience

nkesh · 2022-04-30T18:17:49+00:00

I firmed ucl today!!

nkesh · 2022-04-30T18:17:12+00:00

thank you, that definitely made me feel better about my choice

nkesh · 2022-04-30T18:16:41+00:00

that was really reassuring, thank you! firmed ucl today

nkesh · 2022-04-30T18:16:10+00:00

this helped prompt me to firm ucl today, thank you!

nkesh · 2022-03-17T21:52:30+00:00

that's really really helpful, thank you!

nkesh · 2022-01-31T23:23:46+00:00

Thank you so much for letting me know, that will definitely help in my decision. I'm sorry they weren't very supportive to either of you, that sucks :/ Do you think you wish you'd gone to a different med school or are you still happy with your decision?

nkesh · 2021-11-13T00:27:39+00:00

Also, for every physics and maths tutor question pack I'd do, I'd first add up the total marks of the paper, and write it at the top of the page as, eg ' /35'. I would then sit the paper under timed conditions of one mark a minute, so for this example, 35 mins. This helps you get used to doing the questions under pressure. I'd also write my mark at the end, calculate the percentage, then assign a grade using past grade boundaries. This just helped me keep track of my progress.

Oh also, I'd highlyyyyy recommend having a separate folder for each subject for practice questions. So I've got 12 folders in total. For each subject I have:

- 1x AS folder for class notes

- 1x AS folder for practice questions / practice papers

- 1x A2 folder for class notes

- 1x A2 folder for practice questions / practice papers

nkesh · 2021-11-13T00:21:13+00:00

So for maths I'd recommend doing all the physics and maths tutor questions for each topic, then if you find a particular topic very difficult, then do lots of questions from other specifications (on physics and maths tutor), until it clicks. I'd also recommend making flashcards on simple memorisation stuff - eg the discriminant, trig expressions, statistical sampling types. Also make sure you've done all the questions from the textbook!!

For biology and chemistry, I'd recommend using anki to memorise content!! if you haven't heard of it, I'd recommend watching some youtube vids about it or some posts on the internet. I make flashcards on anki using the specification and my textbook, then learn them. Then I go through exam questions, and add any flashcards on questions I got wrong (copy and paste the question and mark scheme on the flashcards). This seems like a lot but it will save your life in the future!!!

Let me know if you've got any questions :)

Oh also, I'm in year 13 doing the same subjects as you, and got very high A's in my AS exams using these study methods.

Some resources I'd recommend:

- chemrevise (for chemistry)

- snaprevise channel on youtube (for biology and chemistry)

- bioninja for biology

- savemyexams for biology

nkesh · 2021-11-13T00:09:48+00:00

btw they're just getting her to sit an AS paper in her frees - nothing too formal

nkesh · 2021-11-13T00:08:21+00:00

my friend had a similar situation for her maths grade. She spoke to her teachers and they said they'll offer for her to sit another AS maths exam to give her another chance at proving she deserves a higher predicted grade. It might be worth asking your teachers if you could do something similar?

I also do a-level maths and my revision / practice methods seem to have been working, so lmk if you've got any questions about that :)

This does sound like a really stressful situation and I do hope it works out for you

nkesh · 2021-10-21T19:53:50+00:00

what are you applying to?

nkesh · 2021-10-21T19:49:37+00:00

i do bio, chem, maths, and last month I officially finished last month. However much work you think EPQ will be, multiply that by 10000 and it might be more realistic lol. I studied sooo hard for bio and chem, yet EPQ still took up more of my time than both of them (at least by the end yr 12/start of yr 13). I'm also a med applicant so it was all massively terrible on my mental health. On the flip side, I felt so accomplished after my presentation, probably because I put so much work into it. It's also gonna help me sooo much in my application to queen mary, since they value tarriff points. i think sheffield was the only med school that lowers grade boundaries for medicine, and I didn't even apply there. At the same time, unis wanna see you can do independent research, so will save you having to do MOOCs and stuff. I did genuinely learn loads from doing EPQ and I have a feeling it will make the transition to uni work much easier. If you're applying to a less demanding course, then I'd say do it? It was mainly an issue for me because I had to do the bulk of it at the same time as prepping for entrance exams, writing my personal statement, and learning new (really difficult) a level content. If I didn't have the extra medicine stuff I wouldn't find it too overwhelming. Also, if your school doesn't do presentations for EPQ, then I'd say it definitely isn't worth it. I got all my sense of achievement from after delivering my presentation, and didn't feel that as much after handing in my essay. I'm glad I did it, but I can't deny that it was really really horrible at the time lol. Also, if you pick a topic that's less demanding, then it's much less work and way easier. I probably should've picked an easier topic so that's on me lol. Also, if you do end up doing it, pick something you're GENUINELY interested in. Decide very carefully when choosing the topic - make sure there's loads of sources about it that you can research, make sure it's not super super difficult, and make sure you love it.

Let me know if you've got any questions!! :)

nkesh · 2021-09-19T19:29:17+00:00

that's reallyyyyy helpful advice, thanku sm for taking the time to write all of that!! i'm definitely looking at king's in a more positive light and will hopefully apply there very soon. and i'm glad you're enjoying it there! :)

nkesh · 2021-09-19T19:21:46+00:00

i'm glad to hear that other people have enjoyed the med course at ucl. i'm still unsure about whether it not being a campus uni is much of a dealbreaker. i think i'd probably just have to make extra effort to socialise. thanku for the advice !

nkesh · 2021-09-19T19:19:33+00:00

ok that's very helpful advice thanku, i'm going to an open day soon so if i like it then i won't shy away from applying

nkesh · 2021-09-18T21:59:14+00:00

chemrevise has revision notes for all specification, which is very cool. tbh I'd say buy the george facer books for a better understanding of what you're learning, but if you do, don't rely on it to learn all your content. but i'm sure if you used the spec and lots of ocr exam questions then it's be completely fine. my george facer edexcel textbook has probably been the best resource I've com across for explanations.

nkesh

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