Year 13 2026/2027: Support Thread 1

re driving tests, logged on , 3 times today,nothing. Then suddenly Got a December test date in our home town, so well pleased.

The cost of attending open days quickly ramps up, once you factor in trains/petrol, food, and possibly even hotels. I'm glad we've done the ones we've done; it totally changed DS's mind about some places and he's also changed his mind entirely about the course he wants to do as a result of some taster lectures. It does mean that we now need to look at a different set of universities in the autumn when I'd hoped to be done and dusted in the summer. Now we're going to be caught coordinating open days and my DD's crazy sports regime. But, DS seems to have strong preferences and it is not always what he thought he would like, so I feel that we do need to go and see the places just in case.

Really as I know DD1 and DS only got offer days for two uni they accepted not all five but I may being thrown by them accepting their first and second choices as soon as last offer came in.

That is something open days have helped with as DD2 is already ranking the uni she seen and intend to apply for - though obviously the offers may change her rankings.

DD1 and DS went to both offer days they were offered - DD1 had a interview sprung on her with her first choice and it led to a huge reduction in grades being asked for with her offer - DH said that wouldn't be done at his department/uni and it wasn't for either of DS offer days - so they do vary.

DH does seems to think his students have accepted - and the offer days he does are later in the year but he may be assuming based on our kids experiences and not going into detail. I've certainly suggest it past makes more sense to do offer days before final choices but he seems to think they've already accepted.

The main point I was making though was if you can't do open days - there are later chances to see campuses with offer days and of course there will be many students who first view of the campus is when they arrive to start course.

@CatHairEveryWhereNow not sure where your DH lectures but that seems a bit unusual. The offer holder days are not usually ‘post accepting first and second choices’. They are normally after you’ve submitted your 5 options and have received offers for them; so definitely before you have to state your firm & insurance. If I remember rightly DD2 attended hers around March April. She did attend another day for her firm only but that was after results day and only for students with disabilities. Both were incredibly worthwhile as she too missed the generic open days.

Ahh I’ve found the thread now! I kept thinking the other one was temporarily locked then realised it was on 1000. DD passed her driving test 2.5 weeks ago. She’s been using my car lots with friends and has already driven the entire M60! Need to switch insurance as the existing one I’m with put it up £300 a month to have her as a named driver. Crazy. She was pleased to pass before the changes make it stricter for new drivers. She may buy a cheapish car with savings for herself. She’s still waitressing in the pub and a new boyfriend is on scene and staying over quite often. House is in chaos as too many people around and it’s been too hot to do housework. Can’t believe they are going into the final year.

For test bookings now I think the actual driver has to book it themselves. I would get them to try at 5.30 on a Monday (I did 5.45 on a mon to join the queue and got a date 5 months away.) it’s also worth trying at random times as slots will suddenly appear sometimes. It’s a ridiculous system.

@CatHairEveryWhereNowyes my friends dc’s didn’t go to any open days. They chose their unis and just went!

I told Ds that we can go to offer holder day at Durham. If he gets an offer. But I have heard that Durham have often only given out about half of the offers by offer holder day.

I just want to get open days booked and sorted. I work Saturdays, so I need to book them off at least 6 weeks ahead. If we are going to Durham we need to stay over too.

DH a lecturer runs offer days now - post accepting first and second choices - and many of the students on those days have not done open days at all. Quite a few posters on here are the same.

DS said many of his mates weren't even looking till autumn term of Y13.

We found it useful to look early to help kids work out what there were looking for in a campus, spread the cost of getting to them and with both girls to focus minds and given them a kick in the arse and meant if there were clashes with DH running open days or clashes with open days there were further dates. Also mean the busy Autumn term we are trying to fit in one or two at most.

DD2 doing my head in - she has a lot of textile work to get on with and it's like pulling teeth endless excuses why she needs to delay. If she gets on now it's less to do when she'll have other demands but she can't see that. I'm hoping she may buck up when DD1 get back here - she has similar overlapping - or when AS results come out - and in mean time itspushing up hill trying to get her to do something.

@QueenMabbyi can see you tagged me but I didn’t get any notifications.

lots of you have been doing open days. We’ve not done any. We booked the Cambridge one and imperial. Then Ds decided he no longer wants to study maths or go to either of those unis. He’s now wanting to study physics. His top university choice is Durham. Dh and I are away the weekend of the open day. As he wanted Cambridge and Imperial open days I knew it was safe to book our weekend away. They do a discover Durham day that we could book, but Ds doesn’t seem keen. Both his older brothers have offered to drive him to the open day, but it’s about 5.5 hours drive, so they’d need to stay over, so Ds isn’t keen on that idea either. He’s also shown interest in Warwick and Birmingham. But again he hasn’t booked open days, all the July open days were during mocks.

Ds did well in the mocks. They don’t give them A* in year 12 though. So he got A in all 4 subjects. Maths he scored 100%
He reluctantly dropped chemistry. He’s been enjoying it, but now he’s not applying to Cambridge or Imperial the head of 6th form says there’s no point continuing with 4. Ds agreed. So…3 subjects for year 13.

There are 2 year 13 threads. I can see this is the correct one. Though I think sons are on the other one too.

Just found this thread! Thanks @QueenMabby

DD only broke up on 22 July I think and went straight on holiday with her friends. She is an autumn birthday. They went dancing every night until early morning hours South European style.
Now she is back and straight back to reality with a thump! Had to try and book LNAT this morning, we had no idea when it exactly opens. Got in an hour later and all that was available was eg Kent and Essex already. London slots gone, all of them to meet the Oxbridge deadlines.
I am so fed up of the constant rat race for bookings/deadlines etc whether it’s uni or results or driving tests or even concert tickets! DD now catching a train to go see a friend. Then she has 2 weeks work experience. She only gets 5 1/2 weeks off in total. There is no time for A level revision as LNAT and personal statement first. Hopefully she will at least read her set test for her language.

Good Luck to those booking tests , my good friend tried at 5.30 on a Monday and was 5000 in queue .

Just parking the info here if anyone is trying to insure a little first car soon - the most competitive comparison site I found was Insure247 - aimed at young drivers . DS1 now has an Admiral Littlebox thingie - the quote was significantly cheaper than direct or on gocompare and equivalents. Also I did much better getting a quote for 3 weeks time

@Oblomov26 and others. We booked DD3’s mid June. 6am they’d all gone as you’re at the back of a 20,000 queue which took well over an hour to reach the front,. Worse than Glastonbury tickets. Following week we logged on at 530 and although not open it must somehow save your space bc at 6am when it opened & we joined the queue we were around 2000 and 10 mins. There were 3 dates in November (the earliest and 6 months wait from booking) for our area with a few times per day. Good luck all!

Thanks @QueenMabby
I lost you all and couldn't find you!!

Please can anyone advise on getting a driving test. Any recent experience?

I know from the last thread that NotDonna and a few others were doing tests recently. But with the new rules since May 26 of cutting out all those old apps that used to take the slots. (which I used one of those more legit ones for ds1 a few years ago), I'm left searching for none in 2027 at all. None. even 2 hours from our house, and we'd go further obviously if we had to. Is it still the tip to take nay when you see it, even Lands end, and then try and swap?

But any other tips? Someone said they now aren't even released on Mondays at 6am, anymore?

We are just back from holiday , DS1 is relaxed and has had a proper break . I’ve told him not to start anything till August - though he seems to be willing to start his personal statement next week ( a month late ) - he gets grumpy if I mention actual revision for mocks .

Any advice and pointers for a gap year from those who have older siblings or have researched would be appreciated… I think there’s a real chance we will end up there . Instinct is telling me it would be a good idea anyway . He is so grumpy about all things education I am not sure that Engjnerring and Uni is the right path .

i wondered where everyone was! Keen reader but not posted much this year.
DD1 finishing up her gap year, it was unexpected but she has had a ball.
DD2 a bit in a rut, her prediction exams led to a lower grade than expected in one subject so she is struggling a bit to motivate herself to get the work done for the regrading exam in September. She’s a bit burnt out after another busy term and a forces 6th form scholarship assessment.

I'll join.

My youngest child has just finished Yr 12 and is doing a revision (Maths and Physics, Computer Science) and his Computer Science main project everyday to get ready for Yr 13 to stay on target for his predicted grades. And looking for Apprenticeships / Universities for Computer based courses.

I also have middle child waiting for A Level results and is hoping to go to UCL for archaeology in September, and Oldest just graduated for University in Psychology and now looking for work within schools.

@CreamBeforeJamOnScones maybe because the ESAT is new, someone told me it is only a couple of tears old.
i can see the ESAt is bringing stress and tensions in familly… same here!!! My DS also likes to party and is coning back home around 1-2am every night. My DH is furious our DS is not waking up at 8am to work all day on the TMUA!! As always i find myself trying to balance the situation…

DS has declared he’s not sitting the ESAT until January 🤷🏼‍♀️ He’s not an early Oxbridge application, but looking at Imperial engineering. Apparently that means January is fine and he’s not willing to start prep until he’s back at school - they’ve given them a 3 months prep timetable. In reality, he’s lazy and can’t be arsed to start now for October!

Many thanks for the add, I would have missed this. I think ESAT is about speed so your DD should be just fine @QueenMabby from what I recall from previous posts. There seems to be more info about TMUA out there than ESAT.

DD2 is arguing with me about booking the ESAT now 🤦🏻‍♀️

Apparently "I don't know which day to book" and "What if my school want us to book a specific day" - I pointed out that if her school wanted a specific day, they would have told her before term ended. Did not go down well.

Glad she got it sorted ok! We’re West Midlands rather than London, I don’t know whether he was too prompt and not everything had loaded, but he didn’t want to risk waiting and not getting anything. His is the Tuesday morning. His friend has apparently managed to sort his now too at a different test centre.