Seventeen-year-old Jimmy is studying a supplementary subject in the UK. He decided to take A level Computer Science with Wolsey Hall so he could continue to pursue his choice of future career. Jimmy is also studying for three other A levels and discusses how he’s found the balance to juggle this.
“I have been studying for around a year now, I decided it was a good idea to be homeschooled with Wolsey Hall as I second guessed my GCSE success and did not attempt to go to other schools that I’d thought I would be overwhelmed with. I decided I really wanted to continue my Computer Science path in a way I thought I could manage more independently.”
“I chose Wolsey Hall as they had the most promising reviews and information about the curriculum. The staff were also the most supportive and were the most open about the course content etc.”
At Wolsey Hall, our flexible learning is ideal for those children who wish to supplement their studies while attending a traditional school.
“My experience of studying a supplementary subject has been mostly positive. I get to work on my A level whenever I want, wherever I want, and the schedule is purely up to me, which I really appreciate. It also means all the possible resources I could have are always there, and I can almost entirely rely on myself, and not the availability of a teacher. This also meant that I could dedicate more time to the A level, such as studying a little during my holidays, in a way I felt was genuinely enjoyable, rather than tiring or stressful. The main challenge I had to overcome was the juggling act I had imposed upon myself, as I study 3 A levels in another college, as well as enjoy reading and weight training. My time was strict and I always felt like I had to work. This meant that I would feel very sleepy whilst studying which was quite worrying. I have started to acclimatise with this and have created a healthier relationship with it. The other challenge I faced was mostly due to my anxiety I have been dealing with all my life. When it came to getting my grade back in the end-of-topic assignments I disliked always being unsure if I had fully understood the topic, no matter how confident I would be. Thankfully I could always rely on my tutor to be straight with me where I went wrong and give me great feedback that really helps me in revising my topics.”
“Homeschooling has really helped me to commit myself as much as I want to, with a schedule I could build myself. This is great as working different jobs and keeping up with my weightlifting could be easily complemented by revising my Computer Science work as well, as I didn’t have to plan around lessons. It also meant when I would play video games, I could work on my Computer Science during the downtime – like waiting for all my friends to join.”
“I will soon be working as a Code Sensei at a place called Code Ninja. It’s a ‘dojo’ that teaches ‘ninja’s’ anywhere, aged 5 to 14, different STEM concepts like Maths, Engineering and Programming – mostly focusing on game designing. I will be teaching these different aspects, with free training in many different fields like stop motion animation and different programming languages. Doing A level Computer Science that I was mostly self-teaching, gave me the confidence that I could teach others, the interviewer saw that, and I got the job. I’m super excited to be able to work in a job I genuinely love.”
“If you are committed to the A levels you want to take, are genuinely interested in the topic and are able to force yourself to work at it when you can choose not to, then I would 100% recommend homeschooling or studying a supplementary subject.”
If you’re thinking of enrolling your child at Wolsey Hall Oxford and you’d like to know more about what we do or how to enrol, please get in touch. We’re ready to enrol new students throughout the academic year.
