How Do You Cope with A Level Results Day 2024?

For many people, A-Levels represent a doorway to the next part of their lives. After GCSEs, the next two years are filled with UCAS, personal statements, interviews, offers, and sometimes rejections. It can be a very intense period in a young person’s life.

It’s not surprising then that many (if not all) young people suffer from waiting-for-exam-results anxiety. It’s completely normal, but it can be overwhelming. So here is our guide to help you reduce that A-Level results day anxiety, and start to think more clearly about those important next steps.

1. Ground yourself in the present

Focusing too much on a future that you can’t control will only make you more anxious. So instead of fixating on ‘what if?’ questions about the future, try to focus on the present, the here and now. To bring yourself back into the present, focus on 3 things you can see, 2 things you can hear, and 1 thing that you can smell (or feel).

2. Breathe away your fears

Your breath is a powerful tool to ease stress. stem4’s Take5 Breathing Exercise is a simple exercise to help you manage anxiety, and all you need is your fingers. Watch the simple instruction video for a powerful way of achieving calm whenever you need it.

3. Practise worry management

Try stem4’s (free) clinically-developed app Clear Fear to manage and overcome your worries. You can personalise the app and track your progress to notice changes (and improvements!).

Clear Fear is an app developed for teenage mental health charity stem4 by Dr. Nihara Krause, Consultant Clinical Psychologist, and uses the evidence-based treatment CBT to focus on learning to reduce the physical responses to threat by learning to breathe, relax, and be mindful. The app also encourages and supports you in changing thoughts and behaviours and releasing emotions.

4. Practise positive thinking

What if you fail your A-Levels? Getting disappointing grades is very common, and you will not be alone. Exams are a measure of your school work and ability to sit tests, they are not a statement about who you are. So, make an effort to ditch negative thoughts about yourself. Each time you think something negative, try and replace it with a positive statement about yourself. If your results are disappointing, it doesn’t mean you are too.

Try Dr. Nihara’s Toothbrush Thought to give yourself a chance to think positively about yourself.

5. Research your options before results days

Whether your A-Level results end up being better or worse than expected, or even just right for your firm offer, it’s still a good idea to know your options before results day itself. Have a look at the UCAS website to learn about clearing and what your options might look like. This will help alleviate any extra stress on the day in case it doesn’t go as planned.

6. Know that your results don’t define you

Whatever your results, there will always be new opportunities for you to move forward in your life. Often, something unexpected will help you make better decisions and may even lead you down a better path (that you might not have otherwise considered!).