bournemouth, lincoln, nottingham trent, hertfordshire etc.
Narrowed down my preffered proffesion to producer or director.
I feared as much. I hate to tell you this, but:
1. Not ONE of those ex-polytechnics is worth bothering with for an film. Some ex-polys are great for certain (for instance UWE has one of best Real Time-Systems Engineering degrees in the country, and is very well regarded by industry), but those ones aren't known for film.
Film is a competitive subject, and any half-decent film school is going to demand AAB at a minimum.
2. Don't believe a word Universities tell you about job prospects. They will LIE to you about job prospects to get your money. How do I know this? I'm very close friends with a couple of university admissions tutors, and they've freely admitted to me (in private) that due to financial pressures, UK university departments will do whatever it takes to get their courses filled. Otherwise they'll be out of a job.
3. Even if you get into a decent film school, you'll find it very hard to get a job afterwards. I have a friend who went to Westminster, and a friend who went to Warwick to do film. Both got good degrees, neither got work as a result of it.
4. If you're serious about being producer or director, you should ALREADY have substantial work experience. Success in the entertainment industry is based on reputation, networking and luck, not paper qualifications. A reputation for being a reliable, hardworking person with a production team will get you much further than a media degree from bournemouth.
5. It's VERY unlikely that you will make a living in TV/Film quickly. That doesn't mean you shouldn't try, but it does mean you should have a backup plan. I think that's probably why your parents want you to change A-Levels.
6. How many short films have you made so far? Again, if you're serious about making films, you should already have gotten started. You can do it with about £200 quid's worth of kit these days, so there is no excuse.
I'm not trying discourage you from following your dream, if that's want to do, but you need to be a little smarter about how you do it. If you're going to stand a chance of making a career in that industry, you need to be OBSESSED with making it happen. Not "well, I sort of like the idea, but I might change a-levels".
So ask yourself - "am I totally obsessed with working in the film industry, or is it just a nice idea?".
If it's the former, I'd stop titting about asking how to make money online, go and get a part time job, and spend the rest of the time making films and hustling media companies for internships.
If it's the latter, I suggest you re-evaluate your priorities, because otherwise you'll end up aged 23 with a worthless 2:2 media studies degree from Nottingham Trent, £50k of debt, and a freshly pressed McDonald's uniform.