What are Good GCSE Grades for Engineering?

If you want to pursue a career in the field of engineering, you must attain good GCSE scores. Solid GCSE grades lay the foundation for Further Education in A-levels, BTECS, and other vocational courses. Your GCSE grades determine which universities you can apply to, and the university you are admitted to determines your future career and income. 

Ultimately, getting high GCSE grades makes your life easier. However, you need to put a lot of effort and time into revising for the GCSE exams. This article aims to put engineering under the spotlight and shed light on the prerequisite GCSE grades for pursuing a career path in engineering degree.

Grading Systems in the UK

Before I get to the required grades for pursuing your education and profession in engineering, let us have a quick review of the grading system in the UK.

The GCSE grading system used to be from A* to F, but since 2017, it has changed to numerical values from 9 to 1, 9 being the highest grade. The new grading system is more accurate and offers more differentiation, especially for top grades. In the old system, A* could be 8 or 9, and C could be 4 (standard pass) or 5 (strong pass). 

What GCSE Grades Do I Need to Become an Engineer?

If you want to become an engineer in the future, you should take the first steps by achieving good grades in GCSE exams. In the maths section, students will demonstrate their ability in problem-solving, analytical thinking, and numerical analysis, all of which are key engineering skills.

The most important GCSE grades are in the subjects of Maths, Science (focusing on Physics), and English. For Maths and Physics, you need a GCSE grade of 6 or higher, and for English, you need at least 4 GCSE grades.

Additionally, you should take other GCSEs, namely Design and Technology, Computer Science, and Further Maths, to attain better academic qualifications for your future career in engineering. For Design Technology and Computer Science, you need a GCSE grade of 5 or higher, and for Further Maths, you need at least a GCSE grade of 6. You can see the summary of the required GCSE subjects and grades to find an engineering career.

The Significance of Engineering Careers

Basically, an engineer’s job is to make life easier. We owe much of our welfare to engineers. They build roads and bridges, design computers, develop modern means of transportation, and preserve the environment, to name a few. Without engineers, we would still be eating dirty food and wearing unprocessed animal fur.

Engineering covers a wide array of career choices in various industries, such as technology, automotive, aerospace, energy, etc. You can work as a computer engineer, electrical engineer, mechanical engineer, civil engineer, and chemical engineer.

These positions are highly in demand, and engineers enjoy higher-than-average incomes. In fact, engineering positions are among the 50 high-paying jobs in the UK. The average annual income of an engineer is about £48,000 per year, and senior engineers can earn as much as £150,000 annually. Click here to learn more about the “Engineer salary in the UK.”

How to Get Good GCSE Grades for Engineering

There is an ingenious plan behind every achievement, and getting good GCSE grades is no exception. An ingenious study plan is one that is designed based on your strengths and weaknesses, resources (especially time), and targets.

Knowing your strengths and weaknesses lets you decide how much time to spend on each subject, and your targets indicate how to spend this time. In other words, there are several interconnected factors in designing a practical plan, but above all, the revision plan should be personalised and realistic.

1. Plan a Practical Revision Schedule

Let me explain this with an example. Imagine a student who wants to pursue Further Education in engineering. This student needs to get a GCSE grade 6 in maths.

So, most of their revision schedule should be focused on mathematics. Based on their experience or teacher feedback, they realise they struggle with algebra more than other mathematical concepts. Once they find these areas of improvement, they can dedicate a time slot in their schedule to those topics during which they have the best performance.

We have gathered the GCSE Maths Checklist and Schedule. Click on the link to see all GCSE maths topics in one glance.

Interesting fact:

Research shows that the brain is more active and teachable from 10:00 AM to 02:00 PM and from 04:00 PM to 10:00 PM. But the best time to study is from 04:00 PM to 07:00 PM. Click on “What is the best time for studying—day or night?” to find further information.

In order to make your revision schedule more productive, you should break down your study aims and learning outcomes and set deadlines. For instance, you can dedicate a week to algebra and cover certain algebraic topics daily. Of course, the time should be set based on your knowledge and understanding of the topic you are revising.

“As you know, students’ success in GCSE maths can have a great impact on their academic journey and future job opportunities. Achieving success in this process requires proper preparation for the exam and having an effective study and revision plan. You might be wondering what is the best way to revise for GCSE maths to guarantee your scores and knowledge foundation. This guide will provide six essential tips to consider when revising for GCSE maths. Stay tuned!“

Click on “The Best Way to Revise for GCSE Maths” to learn more.

2. Familiarise Yourself With Exam Boards

AQA, OCR, and Edexcel are the prominent exam boards in the UK. There is no major difference between them regarding the content of the exam. All questions are designed based on the National Curriculum. However, different exam boards have different exam specifications or question styles.

Edexcel vs AQA vs OCR? Which one is better? Knowing about the exam boards helps you understand the syllabus, the scheme of assessment, and how to answer the questions to get the highest mark. Furthermore, if your course requires coursework, you can learn about the submission procedure and other requirements.

3. Use Past Papers

Practising past papers and specimens allows you to know what to expect in the real exam. You can also learn about the question styles of different exam boards and how they grade the exam papers. You can access past papers of each exam board on their websites.

My friend and colleague Fatemeh has listed some of the best websites you can use to revise for GCSE maths.

1. BBC Bitesize
2. Physics and Maths Tutor
3. Corbett Maths
4. Dr. Austin Maths
5. MME GCSE Maths Revision website

Click on “Top 5 Bets GCSE Maths Revision Websites” to learn more.

4. Get Help from a Maths Tutor

Getting good grades for the GCSE exams, particularly maths and physics, which are the main subjects for an education in engineering, takes a lot of effort. The hard work you have to put into preparing for the exams might overwhelm you, especially if you are close to the GCSE exam season. A professional maths tutor can help you with a practical study plan, oversee your revision process, provide constructive feedback, and keep you motivated to achieve the GCSE award.

Ostado is one of the leading online tutoring platforms in the UK with tutors and clients from all around the world. Ostado has gathered the best maths tutors and made tutoring available and affordable for all students aiming to be engineers in the future. You can choose your preferred GCSE maths tutor to get the most out of your revision process and realise your full potential.

5. Employ Different Revision Techniques

There are many things to do when studying to get good GCSE grades for engineering. I list some of them here, and you can whichever fits your learning style the best.

• Mind maps: These are great visual aids to represent the connections between different concepts and topics.
• Flashcards: Flashcards can improve the retention of lessons you have studied easier. When you look at the question side of a flashcard and try to answer it, you activate a mental capacity known as active recall. Additionally, when you check the answer on the other side, you automatically assess your answer and compare it with the correct answer, which improves another mental faculty called metacognition. Active recall and metacognition can significantly contribute to the productivity of your revision process.
• Explaining to others: The best way to learn something is to teach it. Once you finish studying a concept, you can try and explain it to a classmate or sibling. This revision strategy results in deep learning as the person you are explaining to might ask questions and make you rearrange your explanations. For this strategy to work well, you can join a study group.
• Active reading: As opposed to passive reading, active reading involves engaging in the reading process through different strategies, such as highlighting, annotating, and summarising. It also involves pre- and post-reading activities. Click on “Critical reading skills” to read more about active reading.

6. Give Yourself a Break

“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy!” An essential feature of a comprehensive and practical revision plan is dedicating enough time to breaks. Normally, you can study for 50 to 90 minutes and then have a break for 10 to 25 minutes based on your mood or energy level. After a cycle of study and break times, you can have longer breaks. There is actually a technique called the “Pomodoro technique” that you can use to make your revision schedule more effective.

The convenience of life depends strongly on engineering science and engineers. So, if you are interested in the engineering discipline, an interesting world full of innovations awaits you. Plus, as an engineer, you are well compensated, and you can make good money from your profession.

However, to be an engineer, you should pursue higher education, which means you need to get good GCSE grades, especially in maths and physics. I explained the grading system and the GCSE grades for engineering above. Good luck, engineers to be