I know that you can get UCAS points for AB practical and theory from Grade 6 upwards, but does this count for other exam boards such as Guildhall? I'll be doing Gr 8 with AB but did 6 and 7 with Guildhall. Also, how do the points relate if it is for other exam boards too as the examination tiers are different. E.g Guildhall has 4 "stages" - pass, merit, honours, high honours

I've just been asking an almost identical question in the topic below!

This is what the Guildhall strings syllabus booklet says:

National Qualifications Framework

Graded Exam-----------NQF Level-----------General Qualifications

6-8------------------------------3--------------------------A and AS Level

4-5------------------------------2---------------------------GCSE A*-C

1-3------------------------------1----------------------------GCSE D-G


So what does this actually mean?

Violinia

You can only count points for your highest theory and practical grade.
Grade 8 practical - distinction 75 points , merit 70, pass 55
Grade 7 practical - distinction 60 points, merit 55 points, pass 40 points
Grade 6 practical - distinction 45 points, merit 40 points, pass 25 points.

This is from Trinity's current syllabus, I'm almost certain it's the same for ABRSM and Guildhall too. Email on it's way Nicki!

Those grades are equal in level of demand and not volume of study as those parts of the national curriculum. Grade 6-8 practical is in theory equivalent to part of A level music, but not a full A level if you see.

I know Trinity and LCM have the same UCAS points, don't know about the old Guildhall exams. If however you do grade 8 practical I think that overrides a pass at a lower level.

I'd check though.

Basically, it just shows that it's as hard to get a high pass at GCSE as it is to get grade 4-5 in a practical music exam. They are not substitutions. They are equivalent levels.
The same is true for UCAS points - apparently a grade 7 distinction is worth the same as grade A at AS level. You can find all the levels on their site.

Sorry to sound thick, but how many points are an A level worth then?? If you are wanting to gain entry to uni, how many points are usually required to get on courses??

Daughter is only 14, so not at this stage yet, but am v interested for 3 years time, when she will be applying. Also she has Gr7 with merit, so does that mean she already has 55 points?? and haow long do they last for??
Sorry so many questions, I dont understand all this ucas stuff, but want to be prepared!!!

An A-grade at A-level is worth 120 points, a B-grade 100, etc.

If you have a G7 with merit that will be 55 points; if, by the time she applies, she has a Grade 8, she will get more points for that. However, only the top grade reached is counted, i.e. you don't get 55 points for Grade 7 as well as 60 points for Grade 8.

As an aside, while UCAS points are used for entry at some Universities, the top ones tend to ask for grades. This isn't to say they'll discount musical qualifications, but the points system won't be used.

Thanks!!

But for Guildhall it isn't marked as pass/merit/distinction, rather pass/merit/honours/high honours. Would they merge the 2 honours for the "distinction" category?!

Probably. Why not email Guildhall and UCAS to see if you can get a firm answer.

On a related topic, what happens if you have grade 7 in one instrument and grade 8 in another? Do you get the grade 8 points only, even if they are different instruments?

Weird, back in my day an A level A grade was worth 10 points

Yes, someone I know was looking at a prospectus after doing A levels about 6 years ago, and asked me how one is supposed to get about 300 points from 4 A levels with points from the old system!