SIXTH FORM OR COLLEGE?

You can see my failed attempts through the paper...Oops!

For pretty much the entire time I was in secondary school I was always excited about starting sixth-form. I don't know what it was- maybe the new, fancy uniform, being superior to everyone else, the small perks like using your phone anywhere... However, it wasn't until I actually joined sixth-form last September that I realised how different it was to my expectations. I thought I would write this post now as I know there will be some people who are deciding what A-Levels to take and whether or not to go to college or sixth-form (the same position I was in this time last year). I've split the post up into a few sections to make it a little less daunting! Grab a cup of tea, it's a long one! 

*(I also appreciate that each sixth-form/ sixth-form experience is different but these are just my experiences)*

1. Choosing your subjects

I originally took four subjects (with Welsh Baccalaureate as it is compulsory in my school). These were, Spanish, geography, chemistry and biology however I ended up dropping Spanish within the first half-term as, well, my teacher was a bit of a bitch to be honest (there is no other way to put it) and it was clear that she wanted some of the 'less capable' students to drop the subject. I'm really happy with geography,  I like one of my teachers, I understand and enjoy the work and overall it is my best subject. We started off the first term of biology looking at biological compounds, cells, transport across membranes etc which wasn't the most exciting stuff and I wasn't enjoying it. This also reflected in my grades, if you're falling asleep in the lessons how are you going to cope when you need to regurgitate the information?! However this term we are doing human biology which I find much more interesting and hopefully I'll do better in this module. Finally, chemistry. I didn't enjoy chemistry at GCSE but I battled through and came out with an A. It wasn't until I was researching what subjects to choose it was reinforced multiple times that two sciences are better than one. I am awful at physics (I enjoyed it during my GCSEs but I knew I wouldn't get a good grade at A-Level) so that was out of the question, leaving chemistry. I don't enjoy chemistry, I find it extremely difficult and have cried over many past papers and to be totally honest, I wish I never chose it. However, I have already dropped one subject and cannot drop another. Learn from my mistakes- CHOOSE SUBJECTS YOU ENJOY!

2. Workload

One of the biggest things that was sort of a bit of a slap in the face was the workload. It is now that I realise how much of a walk in the park GCSEs were! We have at least one test each week in different subjects, homework tasks to complete, sometimes research (this is just in geography though so doesn't apply to all subjects), revision for mock examinations-basically my life is just revision! Geography and biology are mainly just learning and revising the work but there's a lot more understanding in chemistry, which brings me on to my next point... The work in biology and geography hasn't increased in difficulty from GCSE (in my opinion) however most of the time I find myself sitting in some sort of alien classroom in chemistry. I guess this increased difficulty is to be expected with more complex subjects such as chemistry, physics, maths etc where understanding plays a big part in your learning. I spend double the time trying to understand my chemistry work than I do with geography or biology. Then finally there's Welsh Baccalaureate which doesn't really bring much work to the party and will allow me to gain some UCAS points which are important for when you are applying for university! *shudders*

3. Teachers
One of the biggest aspects of sixth-form are the teachers. Do you like these people? They will affect your learning. If you don't like your teacher it will be easy to think "oh I'll just skip class" or end up dreading every lesson. I know I dread every chemistry lesson because my teacher and I have a mutual dislike for each other haha! Also, your head of sixth-form will play an important role in the quality of your experience. This year they changed the head of sixth-form in my school and along with that change came a lot of changes to the rules. You were no longer allowed to wear 'skinny fit' trousers (don't get me started, that's a whole other post), you were no longer allowed to use mobile phones around the school, we also aren't allowed to wear nail varnish or 'excessive' make up anymore (my nail polish collection has never looked so dusty, but on the other hand, I still get away with winged liner), in our school you now have to queue for lunch which is ridiculous if you have places to be during your lunch hour. If I had known they were going to change these rules, it would have influenced my choice between college and sixth-form. College seems like a lot more relaxed, comfortable learning environment looking back at this last paragraph... However, your sixth-form may not be the same, they're just some points you should probably consider.

4. Friends
"Things change, people change" will forever be one of the most applicable quotes to my teenage years. A few of my friends left school to go to college or other sixth-forms which has lead to many of my previous friendships falling apart. One of my closest friends left for college and the first couple of months were fine, we kept in contact and went out for coffee but then as the weeks went by our communication fizzled out. It really upsets me to think about how different things would have been if I had gone with them to college or if they had stayed in sixth-form. I thought it would be one big happy family in sixth-form but that's the thing, people change. That quiet girl you've been friends with for a couple of years and who you hung out with in the summer? She doesn't want to know you anymore. Those girls who used to talk to you in the mornings? They've moved on to a different group of people. Of course it's not all bad, there's people I've talked to these past couple of months that I haven't spoken to in years! But a major plus side to college is that there is an abundance of new people! You get to meet new people and move on from the people you've had to put up with for five years or so. Even though choosing between sixth-form and college is based mainly around the education side of things, it is also worthwhile considering friends and the people that will be surrounding you.

That's pretty much all of the main points I can think of that surround the decision making process of whether to go to college or sixth-form. I'm really torn as to whether to go to college for my final year. The college I want to go to is in Cardiff which is one of my favourite places since I visited it a lot when I was growing up and I still do now. They offer transport passes so that isn't a problem, I could potentially completely re-start A-Levels and choose new subjects (I think?) if I wanted to, I could meet new people (I love meeting new people if you can't already tell!) and I could maybe have a better experience than staying in sixth-form. But I have gone to this school for six years now and it would feel strange to leave it behind. Anyway, that's my dilemma. I know this post has been a bit of a ramble, but I could have done with reading something like this when I was making my choice. I hope this helped someone!

Congratulations if you survived this far haha! I was going to do a Q&A but I didn't think anyone would ask any questions... maybe another day!
Are you in sixth-form or college? Are you happy with your choices?