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GCSEs 2018 (15) The Reckoning

992 replies

mmzz · 12/07/2018 22:58

thread 14
The next step of the all new GCSE journey.

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12
mmzz · 18/07/2018 06:23

Have you seen this, TheThird? help.instagram.com/446663175382270

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mmzz · 18/07/2018 06:18

That's horrible, TheThird. Very hurtful that those people from school are following it, too.
Do you know, or have an idea, who is behind it?

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Bimkom · 17/07/2018 22:37

Thanks for the medicine advice - i will try and find some threads regarding higher education and medicine.

Chemistry was always a bit of a given, anyway, whether it is architecture or medicine, as is maths. The question has been biology or physics or possibly geography. One of the things that he found very interesting was that of all his subjects, geography was the one he used most during his work experience in architecture. It is nowhere required as an a level subject, but he felt it was directly relevant to what was being done.

Wonder if being a registered young carer would help? DS1 has complex special needs (this is DS2 we are talking about), and while my husband and i do most of the caring, it has been useful at time to have him registered as a young carer.

He has done every first aid course he can find that will teach his age.

PandaG · 17/07/2018 21:27

Rubbish about the IG mocking the third. Hope your DH's message has the desired effect. X

TheThirdOfHerName · 17/07/2018 21:26

Thank you sandybayley

The bio has been changed to remove town/school name. (I have a screenshot of the original) so the account owner must have logged in, and has therefore seen DH's message.
We'll give them 24 hours to remove the account.

EllenJanethickerknickers · 17/07/2018 21:23

That would really upset me, TheThird. I hope you can keep it away from your DS.

DS3 got his NI number a month or so ago, a few weeks before his birthday similarly to his DBs. In fact DS2 has had the same number since he got DLA when he was 5, but he still got a notification letter just before he turned 16.

sandybayley · 17/07/2018 20:42

@TheThirdOfHerName that's rubbish. Sometimes I just hate social media. All three DC get a lot of pleasure from it but now and again I get a hint of unpleasant stuff. The three DC do watch out for each other though.

Hopefully your DH's message will put the nasty little bleep off.

TheThirdOfHerName · 17/07/2018 20:06

DH has sent the account owner a direct message, saying please delete it and don't set up any more, or he will report it.

Thankfully DS2 is oblivious. It does make me a bit cross though. Mocking the autistic kid? I would have hoped they were better than that.

AlexanderHamilton · 17/07/2018 20:01

Can you report it as impersonating your Ds?

TheThirdOfHerName · 17/07/2018 20:00

Sorry, that should say:
The account is followed by about three dozen people, half of whom are boys in DS2's year group.

AlexanderHamilton · 17/07/2018 19:52

Dd (was 16 last October) doesn’t have a NI number yet either. She’s got a job for September but isn’t looking over the summer due to holiday & other commitments.

I do payroll at work & there is a way employers can get someone’s NI number.

TheThirdOfHerName · 17/07/2018 19:47

The purpose of the account seems to be to mock the fact that DS2 likes animals; when he does post on Instagram it's often a photo of our cat, whereas many of his peers mostly post selfies with their girlfriends or photos of themselves drinking at parties.

TheThirdOfHerName · 17/07/2018 19:45

DS2 has an Instagram account but doesn't use it much. I was on Instagram today and saw that someone has set up a spoof account pretending to be DS2.

-The account was set up the day of their last GCSE exam.

  • The account name uses DS2's first name and surname (unlike his real Instagram account).
  • The bio names the town and implies the name of the school.
  • The account follows Instagram accounts of some of DS2's interests, but only those interests shown in the pictures he has posted on his actual Instagram account.
  • The account is followed by about half a dozen people, half of whom are boys in DS2's year group.

I initially wondered if DS2 had set up a second Instagram account, but when I asked him, he didn't know about it.

Cblue · 17/07/2018 17:19

She is 17 at the start of sept and she applied a few months before her 16th birthday so perhaps they gave her an adult one.
We went to the passport office in person - it was last minute due to a family emergency, we were traveling outside Europe and she didn't have 6months left on her current passport Perhaps it's 2027 but she was def under 16 at the time. I used it to apply for the ESTA a few days ago but my brain is like a sieve at the moment!!!

I can't wait to go on holiday....

mmzz · 17/07/2018 16:19

Cblue child ones are for 5 years and adult ones are for 10 years. Your parent applies for the child one, but you apply personally for the adult one.
Those are the only differences I know about.

If your DD's expires in 2026, then it must be a 10 year one, so it must be an adult one that she got in 2016. So, that means she must be at least 18 now??

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Cblue · 17/07/2018 16:13

Is there a difference in passport types. DDs passport runs out in 2026 so I assumed it was OK (tbh she still looks exactly the same as she did at 11!!)

Going to USA next week so I hope it is!!!

As for NI number - hers arrived 2 weeks before she turned 16 without us asking for one.

LooseAtTheSeams · 17/07/2018 15:17

That's interesting mmzz - I'm going to need to renew DS's passport this year anyway so good to know he can get the adult one!

mmzz · 17/07/2018 14:48

I just checked and the webchat is open now, @JufusMum

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mmzz · 17/07/2018 14:32

Also, off topic, but if anyone is interested, DS (with my help) applied for his first adult passport using a photo taken on a mobile phone. The application has been approved so the photo must have been accepted.

It took a bit of fiddling to get the photo right. Getting a plain wall with good natural light on it and no shadow was not easy, but it was less hassle than going to one of those photo places in town. It meant DS got a nice photo too, which is handy since the driving licence etc will use it too.

Next, after the passport arrives, I'm going to order his provisional driving licence so that he's got ID that he can take out with him that is not his passport.

I'm finding it a bit weird that DS is grown up enough to have a NI number, adult passport and driving licence!

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mmzz · 17/07/2018 14:05

DS applied for his NI number yesterday as it happens. He did it via the Webchat function on the website (linked from this page www.gov.uk/government/organisations/hm-revenue-customs/contact/national-insurance-numbers)

It took about 5 mins.

First, the lady on the webchat said that he had to go to a different page and enter his passport details. DS told her that he doesn't currently have a passport (he's waiting for the first adult one and it takes six weeks). Then she suggested he use an old P60 (obviously she wasn't thinking as he'd already said that he wasn't quite 16 yet). Finally, when she understood that there is no P60 or passport, she just asked his full name, DOB and home address plus the name of someone else in the house - DS gave DH's name- and then she said she'd post it but it could take 15 working days to arrive.

HTH

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JufusMum · 17/07/2018 13:34

A bit off topic but do all DC have their national insurance numbers? DD is 16 on 31st July and so far we have had nothing. Even her friend who is born on 25yh August has hers. Every time I call the helpline it just says they are too busy to deal with my call and I get cut off! DD wants to start applying for summer jobs but she can't without the NI number.

adrinkofwater · 16/07/2018 21:38

DD just done A levels has a place for medicine - just hoping for the grades now!
You definitely need chemistry, for most places biology and generally the 3rd doesn't matter. Most places like some kind of volunteering over several months in a caring environment (eg care home) even if you can't get actually medical work experience. My DD also volunteered in a localish hospital doing patient surveys once she was 17.

Oratory1 · 16/07/2018 18:20

There was some advice on here but lots of medicine threads on higher education which may have more detail.

For a levels yes chemistry is the key with maths and biology useful but not necessarily essential. Work experience key too though different med schools prioritise different entry requirements so need to do research as to which suits your dc strengths - does mean though that if you don’t have stellar everything you still have a chance if you pick uni s that suit your strengths (eg some look at gcse s some focus more in bmT, interview or ps)

EllenJanethickerknickers · 16/07/2018 18:03

Oddsocks, you really need physics tbh. Or a Btec in engineering. But look at uni websites just in case.

EllenJanethickerknickers · 16/07/2018 18:01

There are lots heading towards medicine in my school. A level choices must have chemistry, other subjects often biology and maths, sometimes physics, psychology. They have BMAT 'lessons' at the start of y13. Any medical wex is useful, but often need to be 17. My DC aren't medics or heading that way so hopefully others will have better info. You could start your own thread as well.

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