Year 11 parents evening - feel gutted for dd

She'll still be uni material - if that's what she wants. Physio has been a nightmare to get into for years - A's at A level & shed loads of work experience needed.

Agree just get her through the next stage then think about long term plans.

Gosh. Several things:

1. A nice healthy shock after the mocks is brilliant. We've actually 'doctored' our grades to make them worse than they should be this year (true story!). You don't want your Year 11 students to think that they can sit back and relax right now. That's a recipe for disaster. Panic them, however? That's what you want.
2. I'm always slightly suspicious of students who know what they want to do with the rest of their lives when they're 15. It's pretty rare, in my experience, that that dream is anything other than a random notion.

Just get her through the next five months. Do whatever you have to do in order to keep her sane and focussed. Then take the next stage based on her grades.

G'luck, OP. (and your DD)

If she's set on a level biology I'd recommend getting a tutor now to give her the best chance of doing well and being secure in the gcse material before starting a level. I wouldn't worry about doing physic with the tutor-concentrate on biology and chemistry. Good luck to her!

One of my students last year really struggled and totally failed her science as levels, but after a new start with new subjects she's on for great grades and has a new career plan (journalism). It isn't always a disaster when things don't follow the path you're expecting.

You might well find you have been worrying for nothing Briss!The school might be trying to shock her into working harder!

If you look back at my prevoius post I listed other routes which require lower grades. The grades listed by the universities at age 18, seem to come down considerably for a physiotherapy assistant with 2-3 years NHS experience. One of my staff this year got a place with two mid grade A levels in English and Applied science.
If she cannot get onto a physiotherapy course at 18, I would personally advise trying to get work as a physiotherapy assistant or similar NHS role whilst topping up level 3 qualifications and then applying age 20-21 with experience behind her and a healthier bank balance. This is financially much better than taking the wrong degree at 18 and having to do the MSc conversion. Especially as the government is planning to stop the subsidy of course fees. Paying for one degree is better than two.
It is also anticipated that the introduction of tuition fees for courses such as physio will lead to a decrease in the number of applicants and thus a lowering of the grades required. There is a shortage of new physiotherapy graduates at present so we are hoping for an increase in the number of training places as well.

suffolkgirl well yes obviously training as a chartered physio is better but the issue is she likely won't get the grades to get in for that!
Courses I have googled want at the very least a B in Bilogy plus 2 As

There does seem to be a shortage of good dance physios who understand the needs of dancers.
Dd goes to one at school, but we often hear of people looking for someone & most practices Seem to specialise in sport or general injuries.

Sure, plenty of people do A Level science with a B, though how well they do varies, but most of those people I'm willing to bet did all higher papers.

I agree-if she sits foundation papers she shouldn't do science a levels in those subjects. The syllabuses have just changed making it harder now, and often even students who sail through GCSE struggle to make the jump.

Balletgirlmum, I would not recommend sports therapy first, she should do general physiotherapy first and then specialise in musculoskeletal injuries before looking for a ballet related job which is extremely specialised and difficult to get into. Sports therapists are NOT qualified physiotherapists. If she does sports therapy at BSc she would then need to do the 2 year MSc to become a qualified physiotherapist.

Marnia'smum - it's dance physio dd wants to do but we guess she'd have to do sports first then specialise. Her inspration is Lisa Howell an Australian physiotherapist.

I went to uni and qualified as a teacher without going to college or getting any a levels. I did an nvq and cache diploma in child care and education. You don't have to get a levels to go to uni!

Short story my brother wanted to be a civil engineer. His academic grades were very low. He scraped a C in maths and that was it. He did a BTEC. Now he is qualified as a chartered civil engineer. He still hasn't past his O'level English. O btw he got a 2:1 at a RG University in civil engineering. He wasn't bright but he did persevere. So never let her give up. If she wants it hard enough. Work together to make it. It will bring you both closer than ever.

its a private school and you are PAYING them to fail your daughter?

There are currently three common routes into physiotherapy:
3 year full time BSc Physiotherapy - the traditional route, generally requires A level biology but I have known other qualifications get in. This summer places were available via clearing with less strict criteria.
4 year Part time BSc Physiotherapy - academic qualifications can be less strict, some experience working as a physio assistant is usually beneficial. I have several staff on this course at Essex Uni, they tend to spend three days at college and 2 working.
2 year MSc in Physiotherapy - this course attracts applicants with a first degree in a science or sport related subject. So if she is unlikely to get grades good enough for the first option, then Btec sport science, followed by BSc Sport science is a common route. It does take longer and costs more though!
Avoid courses that are not pure physiotherapy such as sports therapist as these will not lead to HCPC registration which is required to work in the NHS / most reputable private practices.
The following is a list of the current approved courses in the UK:

www.csp.org.uk/professional-union/careers-development/career-physiotherapy/physiotherapy-degrees

Ps. I did all three years, (have SEN - not diagnosed until 17) a BTEC first diploma which by the sounds of it your dd will not require and the BTEC national with is equivalent to 3 a-levels A-C

I did a BTEC H&S care and LOVED it.
Also found I had wayyyyyy more knowledge ahead of my peers when it came to do my degree

I think plenty of people go on to do biology a level with a B at gcse!

Well anybody can do an A level in Biology, but getting a good grade is a different matter!!
What grade would she need a A level to go on to a physio degree?
Also just a thought but is sports physio something she would be interested in? Friends DD is doing this at Preaston and it only requires 280 points

I would be wary of going down the btec health and social care route (and I teach it) as it seen by most (not completely wrongly) as second best to a levels. At our school you need a b at dual award science to do a level. I think 1to 1 tutoring is a good idea if you can afford it-more to boost her confidence than anything else.

briss There is a difference between a b which has just been scraped into, and a B which just missed an A. With the former I would be wary of doing the A level, but with the latter it would be OK.

I do think marnia does have a point. If she is in small classes (not sure what her current set is like) so getting focussed teaching, and if she is only borderline to get a B (not clear from your OP what her current grades are) then that could be a struggle.

But different schools have different standards, so it is unclear from info so far what papers the OP's DD is actually having difficulty with and what grades she is on for.

On the other hand, in my view she shouldn't do an A level in any subject she couldn't do higher tier at GCSE for.

If she is struggling to get a B at GCSE in a class of 12, I don't think taking science further is a good idea

Hi
Physio is ridiculously competative to get into these days. A level biology is hard. As is physics. Its worth checking out whether unit's accept btec science or health and social I am sure they do and it might be more doable. Also look at other allied to medicine courses. Eg OT ,sports therapy definatly easier to get into than physio. ODP, etc