the biggest A Level mistakes you must avoid! 🚨

Summary

In this video, Sad, the host of the Math Lead channel, discusses common mistakes A-level students make that can hinder their academic performance and university admissions. He emphasizes the importance of balancing extracurricular activities, researching university requirements early, understanding the differences between O-levels and A-levels, maintaining physical and mental health, and learning monetizable skills. Sad advises students to stay focused on their grades while preparing for entrance exams and developing skills that can be used alongside their studies to help cover expenses.

Takeaways

• 📚 **Subscribe and Share**: If you find the content valuable, consider subscribing to the channel and sharing the videos with friends and classmates.
• 🚫 **Avoid Overcommitment**: Students often join too many extracurricular activities, which can compromise their academic performance.
• 🏫 **Research Universities**: It's crucial to research universities and their entrance requirements early to avoid last-minute stress and ensure you meet all criteria.
• 📈 **Understand Equivalency**: Be aware of what equivalency is and how to obtain it, as many universities require it for admission.
• 📅 **Plan Ahead**: Start researching and planning for university entrance tests and requirements as soon as you begin your A Levels.
• 📚 **Don't Underestimate A Levels**: Unlike O Levels, A Levels require consistent effort and cannot be managed with last-minute cramming.
• 🏋️‍♂️ **Maintain Health**: Prioritize physical health and mental well-being to ensure you're in the best shape to handle academic challenges.
• 💼 **Learn Marketable Skills**: Develop skills that can be monetized, such as video editing, content writing, or web development, to help fund your education and other expenses.
• 💰 **Consider Earning Money**: While academics are paramount, consider ways to earn money without compromising your grades, such as remote work or freelance projects.
• 🎓 **Balance Education and Income**: Keep academics as your top priority, but be open to opportunities that allow you to earn while studying.

Q & A

What is the main purpose of the video?

The main purpose of the video is to highlight common mistakes students make during their A Levels that can negatively impact their grades and university admissions, and to offer advice on how to avoid these mistakes.

What does the speaker say about the importance of grades for university admissions?

The speaker emphasizes that grades are the main factor universities look at when admitting students, especially in Pakistan. While some universities consider extracurriculars and personal statements, grades remain the key determining factor.

What is the first common mistake students make according to the speaker?

The first mistake is engaging in too many extracurricular activities, which can lead to students being overwhelmed and compromising their grades. The speaker advises students to balance their extracurriculars without taking on too much.

Why does the speaker stress researching university requirements early?

The speaker stresses the importance of researching university requirements, such as entrance tests or subject requirements, early on to avoid last-minute surprises and to have ample time to prepare.

How does the difficulty of A Levels compare to O Levels according to the speaker?

The speaker points out that A Levels are much harder than O Levels. In O Levels, students might get away with last-minute studying, but in A Levels, consistent work from the beginning is crucial due to the faster pace and greater difficulty.

Why is it important for students to take care of their health during A Levels?

The speaker highlights that students need to take care of their health, as staying up all night and neglecting nutrition can negatively affect their ability to study and perform well. Being in good physical and mental shape is essential for tackling academic challenges.

What does the speaker suggest regarding learning new skills during A Levels?

The speaker suggests that students should learn skills they can monetize, like video editing, content writing, or social media management, to earn extra money and gain independence while managing their education.

What advice does the speaker give for balancing academics and part-time work or learning new skills?

The speaker advises students to prioritize their academics, making sure their grades do not suffer due to extracurricular activities or part-time work. If they feel their studies are being compromised, they should let go of the extra commitments.

What is the role of entrance tests in university admissions, as mentioned in the video?

The speaker explains that many universities, especially medical and engineering institutions in Pakistan, require entrance tests in addition to A Level exams. Students need to prepare for these tests alongside their regular studies.

What final piece of advice does the speaker give to students nearing university admissions?

The speaker advises students to have multiple backup plans in case they don’t get into their first-choice university. They should research different universities, their requirements, and options for equivalency certificates to keep their options open.

Outlines

00:00

🎓 Importance of Academic Focus in A Levels

The speaker, Sad, introduces the channel 'Math Lead by Sad' and emphasizes the importance of academic performance for university admissions. He points out common mistakes students make in A Levels that can compromise their grades and university admissions. The first mistake highlighted is overcommitting to extracurricular activities, which can lead to neglecting studies. Sad advises students to balance their activities and choose those that are relevant to their academics and personal interests. He stresses the importance of understanding one's capacity and limitations to avoid overextending oneself.

05:01

📚 Researching University Requirements Early

Sad discusses the second common mistake among students: insufficient research on university requirements and entrance tests. He explains that many students are unaware of the need to prepare for tests beyond their A Level exams, such as the MDCAT for medical universities or individual tests for engineering institutions. Sad stresses the importance of early research to understand university requirements, including equivalency certifications, to increase the chances of admission. He encourages students to have backup plans and to start researching as soon as they begin their A Level studies.

🏋️‍♂️ Balancing Health and Academics

In the third paragraph, Sad addresses the importance of maintaining good health during A Level studies. He criticizes the glorification of neglecting health and emphasizes the need to take care of one's body and mind to handle academic challenges. Sad suggests that students should exercise, sleep adequately, and engage in light reading to maintain a balanced lifestyle. He argues that taking care of one's health is crucial for academic success and overall well-being.

💼 Learning Marketable Skills

The final paragraph focuses on the importance of learning skills that can be monetized during and after A Level studies. Sad points out that education is becoming increasingly expensive and that students should consider ways to contribute financially to their education. He encourages students to learn skills such as video editing, content writing, and web development that can be learned and offered remotely. Sad shares examples of his own team members who are university students and are able to earn money through their skills. He advises students to start learning these skills early to be able to earn money without compromising their academic performance.

Keywords

💡A Levels

A Levels refers to the Advanced Level General Certificate of Education, an educational course taken in many countries, often leading to university admission. In the video, A Levels are the primary focus, as the speaker discusses common mistakes students make during this educational phase that can impact their grades and university admissions.

💡Extracurricular Activities

These are activities pursued outside of a student's academic curriculum. The video emphasizes the importance of balancing these with academic work to avoid compromising grades. The speaker mentions that students often participate excessively in extracurricular activities, which can lead to neglecting their studies.

💡Research

Research in this context refers to the investigation and collection of information about universities and their admission requirements. The speaker advises students to conduct thorough research to understand the specific tests and criteria they must meet for university admission, such as the MDCAT test mentioned in the script.

💡Equivalency

Equivalency in the video refers to the process of determining that a student's qualifications are equivalent to those required for university admission. The speaker points out that many students are unaware of this requirement, which can be a barrier to university admission if not addressed.

💡Procrastination

Procrastination is the act of delaying or postponing tasks. The video warns against this behavior, as it can lead to falling behind in studies and an inability to catch up, especially in the more demanding A Level curriculum where time management is crucial.

💡Health

Health in the context of the video refers to the physical and mental well-being of students. The speaker stresses the importance of maintaining good health to handle academic challenges effectively, countering the glorification of stress and neglecting self-care that some students may experience.

💡Skills

Skills in this video refer to abilities that students can learn and monetize, such as video editing or content writing. The speaker encourages students to develop these skills alongside their academic pursuits to help them financially support themselves and their education.

💡Monetize

To monetize, as used in the video, means to convert a skill or asset into income. The speaker encourages students to learn skills that they can monetize to help cover their educational and personal expenses, promoting financial independence.

💡University Admission

University admission is the process of gaining entry into a university. The video discusses how grades and entrance test scores are critical for university admission, and how students can prepare for these requirements to increase their chances of getting into their preferred university.

💡Grades

Grades are the marks or scores that students receive for their academic performance. The video emphasizes that grades are the primary factor that universities consider for admission, and students should prioritize maintaining high grades to secure their desired university placement.

💡Academic Journey

The academic journey refers to the educational path a student takes from school to university and beyond. The video is aimed at helping students navigate this journey successfully by avoiding common pitfalls and making informed decisions about their education.

Highlights

Introduction to the channel, explaining the focus on IGCSE and A-Level math and academic support.

Importance of grades in university admissions, especially in Pakistani universities.

Extracurricular activities can be overwhelming in A-Levels, leading to a compromise in grades.

Balancing participation in sports, social events, and academics is essential to avoid exhaustion.

Students often neglect researching university requirements like entrance exams and equivalency.

A-Levels require more consistent effort than O-Levels; last-minute study won't be enough.

The importance of starting research on universities early, including backup plans.

A-Levels time flies by quickly; staying regular with studies, assignments, and avoiding procrastination is crucial.

Students must not compromise their health; exercise, sleep, and mental well-being are critical.

Glorification of stress and lack of self-care is counterproductive during academic challenges.

Students should develop skills during A-Levels that can be monetized to help with personal expenses.

Examples of monetizable skills include video editing, content writing, and social media management.

Students can work remotely and learn skills gradually, allowing flexibility in balancing academics and work.

Earning money while in A-Levels should not come at the cost of compromising grades.

Parents should encourage students to earn while studying instead of waiting until after graduation.

Transcripts

everyone I hope you guys are doing well

my name is sad and you're watching math

lead by sad this is a channel where I

make videos on all levels in igcs math

and a level math and videos like these

and adms I think I didn't mention that

and videos like these to help you

navigate through your academic Journey

so if you haven't subscribed do consider

subscribing and by the end of this video

If you get value out of it then make

sure to share it with your friends

classmates and whoever you think can

possibly benefit from it so today we're

going to be talking about some of the

most common mistakes that students make

an A Levels due to which they end up

compromising their grades and ultimately

due to which they don't end up getting

into the University of their choice

because whether you like it or not the

main thing that universities look for

are your grades yes there are some

universities outside of Pakistan and

even outside of Pakistan there's very

few universities that look for

extracurricular activities and you know

they take everything into account and

your personal statement and everything

and then give you admission but the

single most common deal breaker even in

that case are your grades okay so just

make sure whatever you do you don't end

up compromising your grades so mistake

number one mistake number one is too

much extracurricular activities

basically biting off more than they can

chw okay we're talking about students

here you guys here so a lot of times

I've noticed that students who in all

levels were not given the chance to

participate or maybe they were in a

school that didn't really have a lot

going on or maybe they did it privately

where they not get a lot of

opportunities and now in a levels you

know there are so many events so many

sports events and social events and

everything and now they just want to

make sure that they get a piece of

everything which is understandable

obviously because you want to make sure

that you make up for the loss time but

the thing is you have to make sure that

you don't ultimately end up compromising

your grades you have to make sure that

you pick and choose the events that are

relevant so maybe you can do a balance

of participating in one sport and maybe

one event which is related to your

academics and maybe one event which is

not entirely related to academics so you

got to make sure that you don't exhaust

yourself and you don't bite off more

than you can chew so understand what

your capacity is understand what your

limitations are and then decide

accordingly now mistake number two and

this is the most common and I'm still

surprised that even to this day with so

much information available students

still end up making this mistake and

that is not doing enough research about

universities and what tests they have to

give so if you're in Pakistan and you

want to go to a Medical University or an

Engineering University you have to give

the test you have to give the mdcat test

and if you want to go to an Engineering

University so most of the engineering

universities have their own test so they

don't realize and they just think that

it's just that they have to appear for

the exams for the a level exams and that

would be it that's not it you have to

give Entrance Test and you have to

prepare for entrance tests as well the

sooner you realize that the sooner you

can start preparing and the more chances

you have of getting into the University

of your choice and you know a lot of

universities require equivalency also

and a lot of students are unaware a lot

of students that I speak to are unaware

of what equivalency is and how they

should get it made so as soon as you're

in a levels as soon as you start as you

should start researching about your

universities so okay because obviously

it's not likely that you will get into

the University of your choice I mean I

hope you do but you got to have backup

plans also not just one backup plan but

multiple backup plans so start

researching maybe the university you

want to go to doesn't require you to

give the SAT exam maybe it does maybe it

requires you to have certain subjects or

a certain number of subjects so the

sooner you start researching the better

it is so that you can plan accordingly

if you have to take an extra subject you

have enough time for that if you have to

prepare for some test like sat or if you

have to prepare for any other ENT test

you have time for that so if you haven't

started just start right now so that you

know exactly where you're headed and

what you need to do in order to get into

the University of your choice mistake

number three is that they think it's

going to be easy like o levels now I

teach o levels and a levels and I'm

going to be very honest with you guys

that if in all levels let's say you've

messed up the whole year and you get

serious in the last 3 four 5 months and

given that you have a good base you're

you overall have been an average or

above average student that's enough time

for you to get a decent grade and you

know I'm talking about a sometimes even

a star but it's enough time for you to

get an A or you can end up with a B

comfortably by just studying in the last

four five months okay given that you

have a strong base and you've been an

average or above average student

throughout but you cannot afford to do

that in a levels with a levels there's

something about a levels the time just

flies and before you know it it's mid

year's time and before you know it it's

Mock and then all of a sudden you have

your CIA exam so just make sure that you

don't start a levels with the same o Lev

mentality a lot of students think that

you know in all levels we had a eight or

nine subjects now we just have three

four so that means we can mess around

and study in the last four five months

that's not how it works just make sure

that you are up to speed from day one

you're regular you don't miss classes

you do all the assignments all the

homework so that there is not a lot of

lag because if things start piling up

then the procrastination element will

kick in and before you know it you'll

fall behind to a point where you won't

even feel like you have the strength to

catch up then mistake number four is

basically students don't take care of

their health now I have never been able

to understand why not taking care of

their health or why being completely out

of shape or out of routine is glorified

that you know oh I was up all night oh

I'm so stressed oh I have so much going

on I didn't eat for the past two days I

mean why would you do that why would you

not take care of yourself I mean this is

the only body that you have the only

mind that you have so you want to make

sure that you keep it in the best shape

possible so that you're are capable of

taking on bigger challenges just because

you have like a challenge ahead does not

mean that you should stop taking care of

your yourself you should be getting

exercise you should be getting enough

sleep on the side you should be doing

some light reading also you know just to

take your mind off academics it's

important but just make sure that you

are in the best shape possible or maybe

if not in the best shape just make sure

that you are sleeping on time and you're

at least keeping track of your health

now the last mistake that I want to talk

about is that a lot of a level students

not just during a levels but after even

getting into University don't really

learn any skills on the side that they

can monetized now let's be honest

education is getting expensive day by

day and parents are obviously finding it

difficult to fund especially if they

have like two three kids to fund their

child's Education Without compromising

it so you got to make sure that you are

able to not afford your education

entirely by yourself but maybe you know

be able to take care of the other

expenses that you have on the side like

maybe you can buy your own clothes or

maybe you can pay for all the travel

that you have to do so for that it's

important that you learn skills that you

can monetize okay now there are so many

skills that you can learn as a level

students I mean look around you I'm sure

there are already students who are doing

so but just make sure that these are

skills which can be learned remotely and

can also be offered remotely so for

example my team members although it's

all academic most of the work that I do

but my team members some of them are in

laor some of them are in Hyderabad and

uh it's all remote work so nobody has to

like show up a lot of my team members

are University students all the work

that I assigned to them they can do

whatever they have the time and there's

no formal reporting the work hours are

not fixed but yes they have a skill

which I appreciate and that is what I

pay them for so just like that look

around you ask people who are working

what are the skills that they've learned

how they've learned and how they're

offering them some of the skills I think

that you can learn or video editing

video editing I think is a great skill

to have especially in this day and age

along with that you can be a Content

writer you can be a social media manager

you can learn web development now I'm

not saying that you learn these skills

and become like a pro at it but at least

start learning these skills so that you

can gradually polish them and reach a

point where somebody can pay you for

your services so the sooner you realize

this the sooner you start doing this the

better it is I mean gone are the days

where parents would wait for their

children to graduate so that they can

then get a good job and then start

earning you know those days are gone

that's in the past now as soon as I

think you start a levels you should also

think about earning money while at the

same time not compromising your grades

okay so your top priority are your

grades and if at any point you feel like

because of so and so thing your grades

are getting compromised and just let go

of it and focus on your academics so

yeah that's it I hope this video helped

let me know what your thoughts are let

me know if you'd like to add something

in the comment section that's it for

this one fellas I'll see you in the next

one take care bye-bye

[Music]