A-Levels: London students map out exciting future plans as they digest exam results

Tens of thousands of students across London have been learning their first A-Level exam results for three years.

Despite facing more disruption to their schooling than any other generation since the Second World War, many have battled the odds to secure a place at university.

There has been an overall drop in results, which was designed to reduce the unprecedented grade inflation seen during the pandemic when grades were decided on by teachers.

But London’s results are the second best in the country, with 39 per cent of exams given an A or A*. This is narrowly behing the South East where 39.5 per cent of exams scored the top grade.

Here are some of their stories:

Star player scores football scholarship in US

Footballer Jemma Freestone has secured a scholarship to Oberlin College in Ohio after passing A-levels in biology, chemistry and history with AAB grades.

The 18-year-old Reigate Grammar School pupil from Redhill has played for Chelsea Regional Talent Club and Charlton Athletic Development team. She impressed the US university with her footballing skills and was given an offer despite the challenges of applying during a pandemic.

Jemma, who is a defender, was unable to travel to the US for her interview because of Covid, and had to rely on videos of her games to convince the coaches to consider her for a place.

Jemma said: “Oberlin was the first college in America to admit women students and celebrates diversity among its college athletes and wider student population.”

Student who only learned English in Year 12 ‘will thrive at medical school’

Tess Mathew overcame “huge adversity” to achieve two As and a B in Chemistry, Psychology and Biology, her school Harris Academy Battersea said.

The 18-year-old moved to London from Sweden in 2020, halfway through Year 12, during the first Covid lockdown.

She is no longer in contact with her parents and will be the first in her family to go to university. She could not speak or write English when she arrived in the UK and lived by herself while studying for exams. She now plans to study medicine at St Andrews.

Her school said: “She has a determination and likeability that have enabled her to be extremely successful, despite overwhelming odds.

“Due to the Swedish education system lacking any formal checkpoint for students at age 16, she did not have any formal qualifications when she moved to the UK.

“We are very proud of her achievements and know that she will thrive on her medical course and as a doctor in the future.”

‘I’m first in my family to go to university’

Louise Aarons, 17, will be the first in her family to go to university. She took A-levels in biology, maths, chemistry and art - and scored A*s across the board. She will go on to study biomedicine at Oxford.

She said: “I blocked out thinking about A-levels during the summer but results are finally here and I realise how high stakes it is. It is my future for the next three years and my family members were already celebrating after I received a university offer so I did feel pressure.

“I still felt physically sick taking exams, especially because we did not take GCSEs. I know we were told results will drop this year but I don’t think people were really prepared.

Some of the things that were supposed to help us, like knowing in advance some topics that would come up, did not really help.”

‘Having a lot of family in war-torn Ukraine has made my exam year more stressful’

Andria Kamil was made homeless in 2019 and, when she was rehoused, she travelled from Walthamstow to her school in Wandsworth every day. She has a lot of immediate family living in war-torn Ukraine which her school said made her A-level year even more stressful.

The Ark Putney Academy student took A-levels in history, psychology and sociology - scoring an A and two Bs. She now plans to study law at City University.

Andria, who will be helped by a £9,000 bursary when she goes to university, said: “I experienced extreme economic struggles during my GCSEs having already joined the school as a student with English as another language.

“My head of year really navigated me through this and staff have continued to support me into sixth form, making me feel comfortable, safe and valued.

“I have built relationships here with people I won’t ever forget.”

‘I’m very excited for the future and the chance to become an inventor’

Filipina Marucha-Hodge, a bursary student at Latymer Upper School in Hammersmith, is the first person from the school to win a place on the degree apprenticeship course at the Dyson Institute of Engineering and Technolgoy.

The 18-year-old scored two A*s and two As in her Maths, Art, Further Maths and Physics.

She said: “I’m really proud to be a female in the engineering field and to have this incredible opportunity. I’m very excited for the future and the chance to become an inventor.”

“I was initially apprehensive about not taking the standard university experience, but this kind of practical, global-brand work experience is such an invaluable way to learn.”

Fila, an art and music scholar, played clarinet and cello in school orchestras, spearheaded the set design fo the school’s production of Legally Blonde

Speaking about the mix of A-Level subjects she took, Fila said: “I think combining sciences with something creative gives you really good perspective and they link so well together and help you realise your whole self. In every interview they brought up art and music and the fact I combined them, with STEM subjects and the benefits that combination had given me.”