#alevelresults2018: Two years of hard work and anxiety-inducing exams are finally over
- Published
The big day has arrived. Gulp.
Here we go then, the day you've been prepping for, sweating over, stressing about for two years. The thing that's given you a permanent squint after too many hours poring over textbooks and laptop screens: your A-level results are finally in your hands.
Literally. Freaking. Out.
Across the country, thousands of teens are using #alevelresults2018 on social media to vent about the sheer overwhelming emotion of finally getting the results they've been working towards for so long.
Some are offering messages of support to their peers
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Others are saying that this year's exams felt as if they were harder than most
And some are giving themselves a very well deserved pat on the back
In fact earlier this year, a YouTuber famous for her revision vlogs and straight A* GCSE results, filmed herself crying after an exam, and people were pretty shocked.
Jade Bowler, aka UnJaded Jade, posted an Instagram story showing herself coming out of an A-level Biology exam.
“I have never in my entire life done this badly in an exam,” she told the camera. “I just feel so disheartened because I feel like I put so much time and effort into it, and then any examiner could read my answers and think I didn’t know the content – just because I was rushing and I didn’t have enough time at the end."
But she later posted an update on Instagram saying that, although she was stressed out about that exam, she was pleased the whole thing sparked such a huge debate.
“This is an issue I am passionate about,” she said. “The amount of stress that we as teenagers are put under, the exam pressure, the expectations… I feel like it’s kind of shedding a light on it. If that means that a massive photo of me with my puffy face crying is in the Daily Mail, then, amazing, because it’s getting that conversation going.”
Jade Bowler, aka Unjaded Jade, shared a video of herself after her biology exam
Her fans were quick to send her their love and support.
And some said it was a sign the exams were just too hard.
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But what do the exam bodies have to say?
A spokesperson for the Joint Council for Qualifications, which represents the UK's exam boards, told us: “The Government sets the content of the new A-levels and GCSEs. The exam boards work hard to support and prepare students and schools for the examinations. The grade boundaries reflect the difficulty of a paper and a candidate’s award will reflect his or her effort and hard work.”
Whether tests are getting harder or not, exam stress is a big deal, and it's clearly something that's affecting a lot of pupils getting their GCSE and A-level results this month.
If you haven't got the results you wanted, don't worry - take this as an opportunity to think about what you really want to do, and to contact universities about clearing., external If not clearing, you might want to think about taking a gap year - or even reconsider whether university is genuinely what you want to do.
But most importantly, remember to eat well, relax, be kind to yourself. And don't feel disheartened - the pressure gets to all of us every now and then.
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article help and support is available here.
Originally published 12 June 2018
