Adult A-Level Courses?
Discussion
Evening all,
I've recently been thinking about doing an A-Level in Maths, in order to help me move my career on a stage, and show me up to be a potential candidate for more learning with my current employer. I'm currently employed as a Cable Jointer within the power industry, and have completed a level 2 NVQ in Electrical Power Engineering. I'm wanting, at some point, to be able to complete a degree in the same field.
My questions at the moment are:
Do I need to do any access type courses to be able to do this? I currently have a GCSE in Maths at a grade C, but it was 2006 when I achieved it!
Is it possible to do an evening course at college to gain an A-Level in this subject? I'm one of those people who likes to be able to ask questions to an actual person, as opposed to doing it via email, like some of the online stuff that only has email support.
Does anyone have any recommendations for colleges in or around Essex to be able to do this?
Finally, is it even likely that I'll be able to get the qualification that I want? I worry that although I have the motivation and drive to do it, I'll end up at a point where I just can't get my head around it, and I'll need a bit of support to get through it.
Thanks in advance for any help you can give me with this!
I've recently been thinking about doing an A-Level in Maths, in order to help me move my career on a stage, and show me up to be a potential candidate for more learning with my current employer. I'm currently employed as a Cable Jointer within the power industry, and have completed a level 2 NVQ in Electrical Power Engineering. I'm wanting, at some point, to be able to complete a degree in the same field.
My questions at the moment are:
Do I need to do any access type courses to be able to do this? I currently have a GCSE in Maths at a grade C, but it was 2006 when I achieved it!
Is it possible to do an evening course at college to gain an A-Level in this subject? I'm one of those people who likes to be able to ask questions to an actual person, as opposed to doing it via email, like some of the online stuff that only has email support.
Does anyone have any recommendations for colleges in or around Essex to be able to do this?
Finally, is it even likely that I'll be able to get the qualification that I want? I worry that although I have the motivation and drive to do it, I'll end up at a point where I just can't get my head around it, and I'll need a bit of support to get through it.
Thanks in advance for any help you can give me with this!
expensivegarms said:
Evening all,
Is it possible to do an evening course at college to gain an A-Level in this subject?
Yes, but...Is it possible to do an evening course at college to gain an A-Level in this subject?
I followed the easier route and did Maths and Further Maths after O-levels at school back in the dark ages, before doing Applied Physics & Electronics at University. I also did a few (different) A levels some years ago at the local 6th form college. Maths is offered by the local college (Eastleigh).
A levels are now in two parts, year 1 is the AS level and then follow up with the A2 level. You can do the AS level as a standalone exam/certificate. The local college wants a B at GSCE to get on the AS course. Exams are in June, courses start in September, so you may be able to get up to good GSCE level by then. I'd suggest you need to be comfortable with algebra.
Maths also splits into Statistics and Mechanics. Physicists/Engineers are typically encouraged to take the mechanics options to get the Differential Calculus background, although in industry a good grasp of statistics is also required.
As with any evening course it will depend on what you put in. Also be aware that an Electrical Engineering degree will require lots of Maths.
I'm sure someone with more recent experience may be able to help, but try researching evening courses at local 6th form colleges. You may also wish to look at various funding options, speak with your local college.
davepen said:
Yes, but...
I followed the easier route and did Maths and Further Maths after O-levels at school back in the dark ages, before doing Applied Physics & Electronics at University. I also did a few (different) A levels some years ago at the local 6th form college. Maths is offered by the local college (Eastleigh).
A levels are now in two parts, year 1 is the AS level and then follow up with the A2 level. You can do the AS level as a standalone exam/certificate. The local college wants a B at GSCE to get on the AS course. Exams are in June, courses start in September, so you may be able to get up to good GSCE level by then. I'd suggest you need to be comfortable with algebra.
Maths also splits into Statistics and Mechanics. Physicists/Engineers are typically encouraged to take the mechanics options to get the Differential Calculus background, although in industry a good grasp of statistics is also required.
As with any evening course it will depend on what you put in. Also be aware that an Electrical Engineering degree will require lots of Maths.
I'm sure someone with more recent experience may be able to help, but try researching evening courses at local 6th form colleges. You may also wish to look at various funding options, speak with your local college.
Thanks for your really useful answer Dave, appreciate that. Thankfully, as part of my work, I did have to do some algebra along with transposing electrical equations so I'm fairly comfortable with the basics of that, but my worry would be not understanding, well enough, the more complex parts of it.I followed the easier route and did Maths and Further Maths after O-levels at school back in the dark ages, before doing Applied Physics & Electronics at University. I also did a few (different) A levels some years ago at the local 6th form college. Maths is offered by the local college (Eastleigh).
A levels are now in two parts, year 1 is the AS level and then follow up with the A2 level. You can do the AS level as a standalone exam/certificate. The local college wants a B at GSCE to get on the AS course. Exams are in June, courses start in September, so you may be able to get up to good GSCE level by then. I'd suggest you need to be comfortable with algebra.
Maths also splits into Statistics and Mechanics. Physicists/Engineers are typically encouraged to take the mechanics options to get the Differential Calculus background, although in industry a good grasp of statistics is also required.
As with any evening course it will depend on what you put in. Also be aware that an Electrical Engineering degree will require lots of Maths.
I'm sure someone with more recent experience may be able to help, but try researching evening courses at local 6th form colleges. You may also wish to look at various funding options, speak with your local college.
Another side of me wants to get some A-Levels to prove to myself that I can do it, as I did go to 6th Form, but achieved the grand total of 3 U's. I think a big part of wanting to do it now is to show myself how far I've come with regards to learning!
expensivegarms said:
My questions at the moment are:
Do I need to do any access type courses to be able to do this? I currently have a GCSE in Maths at a grade C, but it was 2006 when I achieved it!
I would start by redoing the GCSE. Both my sons got A at GCSE but found the step up to A level very hard, and that was without a 10 yr break. You weren't allowed to take A level maths at their school unless you got an A or a high B at GCSE.Do I need to do any access type courses to be able to do this? I currently have a GCSE in Maths at a grade C, but it was 2006 when I achieved it!
Have you found any GCSE past papers to test yourself? You may find that you already know what's needed to get a reasonable grade. You can buy GCSE books and watch youtube videos if you need to do some revision. Basic trig and algebra should be good enough at GCSE level.
An option is to sit the exams as an external student. I didn't do second year A-Level maths at college, which I needed to get into university 4 years later. I went into the local college to pay for the exams (less than £40 in total) and spoke to the tutors to find out what books I should buy. Using textbooks and youtube videos got me my maths A-Level.
I don't know how much an evening course costs, but it could work out cheaper having a personal tutor for a couple hours a week if you need to ask someone questions and get feedback.
The self-study route does take lots of commitment though, but it does set you up well for university and similar types of learning.
Best thing to do is start now while you have plenty of time before the courses start next year. It will give you a better idea of your ability and help decide how you want to get your A-Level.
An option is to sit the exams as an external student. I didn't do second year A-Level maths at college, which I needed to get into university 4 years later. I went into the local college to pay for the exams (less than £40 in total) and spoke to the tutors to find out what books I should buy. Using textbooks and youtube videos got me my maths A-Level.
I don't know how much an evening course costs, but it could work out cheaper having a personal tutor for a couple hours a week if you need to ask someone questions and get feedback.
The self-study route does take lots of commitment though, but it does set you up well for university and similar types of learning.
Best thing to do is start now while you have plenty of time before the courses start next year. It will give you a better idea of your ability and help decide how you want to get your A-Level.
RicharDC5 said:
An option is to sit the exams as an external student. I didn't do second year A-Level maths at college, which I needed to get into university 4 years later. I went into the local college to pay for the exams (less than £40 in total) and spoke to the tutors to find out what books I should buy. Using textbooks and youtube videos got me my maths A-Level.
^^^^THIS. Youtube is brilliant for this. Every subject in the maths GCSE and A level syllabus is covered and you can pause it/ replay it until you get it. Better than school!A-levels maths is frickin hard, (I did it back in the early 90's) are you 100% sure you're ready for the pain 
I got C in GCSE maths...worked hard, had a good grasp of things but still didn't quite get the grade..
Soldiered on with A-level Maths and Stats (and Economics and computer science)...got an F..basically ballsed it up.
We (as a class )were so poor crossing over from GCSE, our 'ol skool teacher pulled out some O-Level maths books to check we could actually cope with the "basics"...
just to add, i'm now, many moons later...a qualified accountant and work on database systems type stuff..so generally not that thick (I think)
I got C in GCSE maths...worked hard, had a good grasp of things but still didn't quite get the grade..
Soldiered on with A-level Maths and Stats (and Economics and computer science)...got an F..basically ballsed it up.
We (as a class )were so poor crossing over from GCSE, our 'ol skool teacher pulled out some O-Level maths books to check we could actually cope with the "basics"...
just to add, i'm now, many moons later...a qualified accountant and work on database systems type stuff..so generally not that thick
(I think)A similar thing happened to me, aced O-level maths (the last year it ran) and then ran into a brick wall with A-level. Mind you, the maths teacher was terrible. Even the kids who were utterly brilliant at it only managed a B grade. That guy screwed up many many careers. Nowadays there would be complaints, an investigation and all the rest, but back then you just accepted it and moved on.
Anyway, a few years ago I decided I really wanted to re-do maths and physics (I'm an engineer, my maths and physics are pretty darn good to be honest, but I need to prove it to myself) and approached my local college about it. To cut a long story short, if you aren't 16-18 then they don't want to know. Getting information out of them has been difficult to say the least. At the moment I'm working through some EdExcel e-books that a friend passed on to me. It feels a bit like doing su-do-kus for relaxation, but with more variety.
ETA: Forgot to say, this might be an option: https://www.openstudycollege.com/courses/a-level-m...
Anyway, a few years ago I decided I really wanted to re-do maths and physics (I'm an engineer, my maths and physics are pretty darn good to be honest, but I need to prove it to myself) and approached my local college about it. To cut a long story short, if you aren't 16-18 then they don't want to know. Getting information out of them has been difficult to say the least. At the moment I'm working through some EdExcel e-books that a friend passed on to me. It feels a bit like doing su-do-kus for relaxation, but with more variety.
ETA: Forgot to say, this might be an option: https://www.openstudycollege.com/courses/a-level-m...
regarding the power engineering degree, how does this fit into your career plans? what kind of roles do you expect to move into which you can't without that piece of paper?
i work in power generation/transmission. i think only our top guy on the HV side has any university level quals, maybe a couple of the regional engineering managers as well. pretty much all the HV guys i work with on projects [commissioning and operations] came up through the tools.
i work in power generation/transmission. i think only our top guy on the HV side has any university level quals, maybe a couple of the regional engineering managers as well. pretty much all the HV guys i work with on projects [commissioning and operations] came up through the tools.
shirt said:
regarding the power engineering degree, how does this fit into your career plans? what kind of roles do you expect to move into which you can't without that piece of paper?
i work in power generation/transmission. i think only our top guy on the HV side has any university level quals, maybe a couple of the regional engineering managers as well. pretty much all the HV guys i work with on projects [commissioning and operations] came up through the tools.
To be honest, later on in my career, I want to be an engineer. I understand from the engineers at work, you don't need a degree, but they have all been through HNC and HND courses at some point.i work in power generation/transmission. i think only our top guy on the HV side has any university level quals, maybe a couple of the regional engineering managers as well. pretty much all the HV guys i work with on projects [commissioning and operations] came up through the tools.
I want to do A-Levels and a degree for myself though. I like learning stuff, and as I get older I've found that I like the academic stuff just as much as the hands on stuff. It's a shame I never realised it until I had wasted my opportunities at school! I'm pretty driven though, so if it helps me become the top guy on the HV side, then I'll be satisfied!
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