Finishing Year 13 / Exam Results support thread (number 6!)

Emmail the Uni admissions and ask them.

Thanks Littleham I have always assumed that is the case, but as results day gets closer have started to wonder whether it would count, as the offer doesn't specify anything about it being taken together, and I also can't find anything on the Universities' websites. I will ask the question on a new thread..

Depends on the Uni I think. Some specify what grades and in which subjects, others don't.

We're just back from holiday too, and starting to feel anxious about results day. DD has the same offer from both her firm and insurance, so if she misses her grades will be hoping that one of them will take her, or Clearing it is..

One thing she's not clear on, is whether the A level she took 2 years ago (alongside GCSEs), and for which she gained an A - is counted? Her offer just states the grades/subjects needed..

Does anyone know if all A levels have to have been taken in the same sitting please?

What a lovely thing to say Happy36

DD has made the decision to try to check Track before going to school. She is now sure that she wants the moment to be private if she doesn't get into her firm, it also gives us a little head start if she has to go the clearing route.

We spent an evening going through all the potential positive aspects of her insurance and there where more than she realised. She could have time to perhaps learn Russian which she has wanted to do for ages. If she wanted she could come home occasionally at the weekend to see me her friends or even get a part time job. DD had not even considered these things as she is so in love with her firm.

All in all DD is getting calmer the more plans we make while I am in full mum mode and desperately praying for her to get what she wants while smiling and making encouraging sounds.

Littleham
DS can cook (although if, fingers crossed, all goes well he will have catered accommodation). He is pretty mature and organised. What he will need is a thorough washing machine tutorial. And also training in what can go in the dryer or not. He just about manages here but I usually get a "can this go in with that" or "can this go in the dryer" during the process . A whole term of flying laundry solo might yield interesting results. .

Littleham The maturity question made me smile. Guessing lots of them not mature enough - but unconvinced that a further year at home will help.

At least DD can cook, but little else on the looking after herself score.

We are back from holiday and DD1 has been an absolute pain whilst we have been away. It has been like having a moody 13 year old again. I assume it's a combination of results anxiety, missing 2 very good friends' 18th birthday parties and missing her boyfriend. I am dreading the next 7 days!
DD1 can collect her results at 7am and (unless she has heard via track or email that she has a place) will collect them as soon as possible as she may need to go through clearing. I don't know whether she wants me to take her or not as she is not discussing it! I have booked the day off work. I then need to pick DD2 up from her work experience (starts at 8am) and take her to collect AS results at 10am.

Thought DD had it covered by having a decent insurance as well as a music college place that's virtually unconditional. Just never expected her to decide against everything but her firm.

DS's insurance is the same as his firm! He got 4 offers and his firm and insurance were the lowest of those.

One week today it'll be all happening... !!

Gypsy I'd almost forgotton about the gcse results the week after. Ds only needs 5 c's get to on his A level course and he will easily get them so it's not so much of a strain there, but still looking forward to making a fuss of him

It's been helpful for him seeing how important those A levels results are as his sister is finishing hers just as he starts his. He can see that this will be him in two years time so the more work he puts in now, the less stressful it will be waiting for results when it's his turn to apply to uni. In theory

Also I think another thing we've learned through this whole process is to pick a good insurance with lower entry requirement and big it up, be happy about it so that it's not so much of a let down if you have to have second choice. Second choice is better than no choice after all.

Hi all, I've been away for a bit so just trying to catch up with the thread. Lots of helpful links, thank you everyone who posted them

Nerves are setting in here too. This time next week we will at least know one way or the other. Dd desperately does not want to have to go through clearing as it sounds very stressful but she will do it if it comes to it.

The plan is to go online as early as possible for track update then, if rejected or no update, into school at 9.00am to collect results and start looking for a course that will accept her. Unless results are absolutely dire.

Not much of a plan but it will have to do. This whole fiasco is ridiculous, I really can't understand why they make it such hard work for everyone involved. System needs an overhaul if you ask me.

The waiting is killing me. We're on holidays and I can think about is next Thursday and then the following one too!

Dd's firm is English at Cambridge. I had the same thought as well last night, Littleham, that if she didn't get the grades then would she really be able to cope with the course, anyway.

Littleham When you say 'chance of success' do you mean of acceptance, or actually surviving the course?. Beginning to think there is that 2nd aspect too, as not managing 3 decent A level grades could be an indication of their ability to manage their studies.
Gosh, I am really overthinkng this.

It's Music BTW, but rather not say where publicly.

MrsB you can look at it two ways. It can be a bad sign that a course appears in clearing year upon year as it can be an indicator that the course is more likely to be pulled. If a course isn't there, then either the uni has filled their places with candidates who have met the grade or they are filling spaces with offer holders who have dropped a grade rather than opening it up to unknowns. With the quota going there are many more chances to get into a higher ranking unis especially for arts courses where you don't have to compete for lab space.

I had an interesting conversation with an admissions tutor at a recent open day. ds was looking at a couple of courses one of which (quite a specific option) asked for a lower grade requirement and had appeared in clearing a few times whereas the more generic course never appeared and wanted higher grades. When we had the talk about the courses, it became apparent that the specific option ds was interested in involved doing the generic course plus extra modules I asked why if it was more demanding, it had a lower grade requirement and appeared in clearing. The admissions tutor said it was simply a matter of supply and demand - nothing more. So the lesson is that just because it crops up in the lists fairly regularly, doesn't mean its always something to be avoided.

We just need to know now, really, don't we? Fingers-crossed for your dd circular.

MrsB Hopefully your DDs circumstances will get taken into consideration if she does miss her RS grade.
I think DD hitting the grade, especially in her 3rd subject, quite slim. Although she retook a failed AS unit, not confident in the A2 papers. We know the course does take dropped grades, but being an RG Uni, not sure whether a C/D in an unrelated subject would cut it. Especially as not much chance in exceeding in the other 2.

She should have a realistic chance circular but she had a lot of time off school and it became apparent when she was revising quite how much impact that had had. We are most concerned about her RS as one of the papers (which was 50% of her A2) was on a philosopher that had been taught whilst she was off, so she had largely taught herself about him.

How about your dd - what do you think her chances are of getting her firm?