Ds Leaving application to last minute!

[Stopyourhavering]

Anybody else's dcs not yet submitted UCAS form?
My ds is still trying to decide what course he wants to do, and consequently has not even finished his personal statement yet!
He really likes the sound of 3 courses ( but 2 of them are in completely different subject areas!.... Forensic Anthropology /Anatomical sciences v Ocean science!!...)there's only 1 place he'd really want to do Forensic Anthropology as he went to open day and loved the course offered. ... But how to word a PS to cover all bases...I don't think it's possible!
he's doing Biology, Physics and Geography A levels and hoping to get A in Geography and B in Biology and ?C in Physics . He's speaking to biology teacher again today if she can give him some guidance in writing his personal statement....I really don't know what to advise as my 2 dds had clear ideas of what they wanted to do....part of me is wondering if he should take a gap year .....any wise words welcome!

[titchy]

They're not that dissimilar - they're all variations of the physiological effects of humans interacting with their environment. A broad PS could cover that reasonably well.

Deadline isn't till 15 Jan so he has time...

[DailyCRAPMail]

He doesn't have to apply for five Unis, maybe he could apply for the three courses before the Jan deadline and then wait and see if anything else crops up. He can add 4th and 5th choices afterwards.

The other thing to remember is that he might be able switch courses very late on and even on results day depending on the course and Uni. It's not the best plan and can make securing accommodation awkward but it's not impossible.

Alternatively, if he applies and is still not sure by results day he could cancel his application even if he has a unconditional firm place and take a gap year. Officially you have a contract with the Uni and they prefer you not to cancel but, in practice they don't won't students coming when they don't want to.

(Sorry for English and typos...I'm on my phone 🙃)

[DailyCRAPMail]

Sorry, just re read your OP and I didn't really answer your question. 🤔

[MrsPigling]

dd1 hasn't submitted her application yet, she knows what she wants to apply for and where. I finally pinned her down to write the personal statement last Thursday, and watched her email it to her tutor. School say applications must be in by Friday as it needs tutor's reference and multiple checks etc before submitting.

[Chickydoo]

DS not submitted his form yet.
He's lazy & hasn't done his ps. He's not even sure where he wants to go......sigh.......

[Everytimeref]

My daughter finally completed hers last Friday. She knew what course and where she wanted to go but was really nervous about the whole process.

[Claudtheragdollcat]

My DS has only just submitted his UCAS form despite me encouraging him for last three months. He's currently on a gap year abroad so Ive been communicating via WhatsApp so is applying with his grades. Last year he really didn't know what he wanted to study and in fact didn't really want to go to university. He was sort of flailing around in terms of what to do, he felt under pressure from school to apply for something and had no intention of studying anything to do with one of his A levels (maths) despite being brilliant at it. He repeatedly said he wanted to apply with his grades rather than apply in yr 13 and defer and take a gap year but I think this was an excuse he didn't want to apply full stop.
He got three very good grades and then miracles of miracles started looking at university websites of his own back, he organised a trip to Glasgow to talk through his options as he was convinced he had the "wrong A levels" (three very good academic subjects but none at the time he thought he wanted to study at uni) and came away much more positive and started contacting other universities to see what they thought about his A levels and found they too were very positive.
The UCAS form has gone in and he's started to get offers and he seems very pleased dare I say even excited, (well thats what he says on WhatsApp).
I always supported the idea of him taking a gap year (DH was less keen) and I think its doing him good, he has a job abroad at the moment, and works for nothing at our local stables when he's in the UK. The year out from academia has enabled him to think things through, he's stepped off the inevitable school expectation conveyor belt of you must get good grades and go off to university and he has made the decision for himself that this is actually what he would like to do.
Good luck to your DS.

[user1471531877]

My child applied to 2 biology related courses then another unrelated course . He made his ps biology related and put only a small bit regarding the unrelated course ( demonstarating research skills ) that was one of his a levels.
He emailed the uni first before submitting this choice to check they would consider him, or if they wanted him to email another ps.

It all worked well and he was offered all his places .
It is sometimes sensible to add one or two choices later if he is not sure ( but get all added before jan 15 th)
Universities give good advice if you email them.

[hellsbells99]

My DD submitted a very late application last year (around Easter time) for a STEM course. She only applied for 3 universities - all 'good' RG ones but obviously not the 'top' ones and got all 3 offers. So don't panic!

[DailyCRAPMail]

It can be ok to add choices after the Jan 15th deadline. Depends on the Uni and course. If you are thinking of doing this then you can always check with the Uni beforehand.

[bojorojo]

How competitive are these courses? Do they fill up or do they go into clearing? It may not be too difficult to get in! The Ocean science is a bit niche! I would have thought a passion for the oceans of the world would be required for this but not the others. Sounds a bit pick and mix to me!

[Stopyourhavering]

Bojorojo the forensic anthropology course he's interested in is number 1 in the country 😳, so competition is fierce. He's also thinking of applying to do anatomy at this uni as he was told he can then transfer to FA in his 3rd year (Scottish Uni so 4 yr course)..I think.he likes the pure facts/science and the element of practical work in all these courses( he's never been one for imagination/artistic based essays!)

[EnormousTiger]

I would get them in before Christmas and with the suggestion re. personal statement someone gave above. The reason I say that is the school will probably need at least two teachers to check it fitting that amongst all their other many duties so they need a bit of time to be fair on the teachers, before the January deadline.

[Kr1stina]

Havering - does he know that the FA course he's interested in typically want BBB?

[Stopyourhavering]

Yes , spoke to lecturer in FA dept at open day, hence why he's applying to do anatomical sciences as well which has a slightly lower offer ....exactly same course for first 2 years,mother specialise 3rd/4th yr ( he's also doing Welsh Bac and EPQ in Geography) ....however he seems to have upped his game lately and got As in recent module tests in all subjects!
Dd went to same uni and had lower grades than asked on UCAS but Welsh student going to Scottish Uni seemed to help

[Kr1stina]

Well of course the Scots like the Welsh

[Ohtobeskiing]

DDs application has just gone. She took A levels this year so is applying with results. She has been very clear about what she wants to do and where she wants to go but just seemed paralysed by anxiety . Anyway, the application is now in, I just hope she gets an invitation to interview.