No GCSEs: what did your DC (or you) end up doing for employment?

[TheCentreCannotHold]

Brainstorming future employment options for DC1 who looks set to leave statutory education without any GCSEs, at least not Maths or English.

Do you have a child, or are you someone who left school without these very basic qualifications? What kind of employment have your DC/ you pursued? I'm hoping to show her that there are good alternatives, and that struggling with Maths doesn't make her 'a waste of space'.

DC1 is smart, practical and creative but with learning differences which make learning in Maths particularly tricky, and autistic which means she thrives on routine and structure, and doesn't cope well in very busy environments.

It certainly doesn’t make her a ‘waste of space’ if she doesn’t get her maths and English, but I would do everything that you can to at least make sure that she gets a pass grade in both - it will make her life so much easier. Private tutoring for example if she doesn’t cope well in school or with the busy environment. It’s only the start of the school year, she has lots of time to get to grips with things. It’s too early to just accept failure

Can she do the functional skills in maths and English if the GCSEs don't work out? It would give her so many more options.

My cousin is in the same boat—went to a college for one year to resit the exams, but actually ended up with worse results the second time around. Has worked behind the counter at a bank (although in light of record numbers of branches closing down, I’m not sure how viable this option is in 2024) and has worked in retail.

My DP only has English, and has worked in construction for nearly 30 years, he drives a forklift so on a decent wage. But I'm not sure what other areas you can get into without E and M or functional skills. Unless she is freelance as a creative, but maths is super useful for that as you have to budget do tax etc, but again that's functional not trigonometry. More of that should be taught in schools.

As said above it's early days in the cycle, good luck.

I know someone who left school without maths & English GCSEs, resat the maths a couple of times but didn't manage to pass.
They had a Saturday job in a shop and ended up getting full time hours there, still work there 10 years later. They are happy and enjoy it which is the main thing I guess but money is a struggle and don't have many other options open to them. Also not sure if they'd have got that job without already being there as a Saturday person.
There must be college courses available for young people without GCSEs? More practical/vocational courses?

Not my DCs but I know two young people that left school with no GCSEs. One works for the Royal Mail (sorting post rather than being a postman) and the other works at an animal rescue shelter. Both are very happy.

I didn't get either , I went to Art college at 16, I still went to uni, albeit at 20
( I found out while at uni I was dyslexic which is why I struggled)

& I now work in software development within the Tech industry at a senior level

She can probably still do whatever she wanted to do, it will just be a different route and might take a little longer , but I don't think E&M at GCSE Level make a difference if she can still access education , a collage or 6th form might just ask she try resit them

Friends DS left with zero results. He ended up in the army and did manage to get Maths and English qualifications, sorry unsure what level. He has done really well in the services and is a very personable lad.

Thank you, Cherry, murasaki and U53r.
It is early on, you're right, and school is encouraging a functional skills pathway with support to catch up (currently working at Y4/5 level in Maths), but DC1 is utterly locked in a loop of anxiety around everything 'school', and has been through the SEND / CAMHS mill for years, most recently missing a lot of school due to anxiety.

We've tried tutoring and online learning to bridge learning gaps over the years, but it's not really sticking (issues with working memory and processing) and she is starting to panic that her options for future employment will be very slim. This is probably true, but I'm hoping to inject a little bit of optimism that she will be able to find something to do, and that there are many who work who do not have Maths and English GCSEs.

Yes, there needs to be a balance between reassuring her that there are things she can do (and there are) while still trying gently to get her the basic level qualifications if possible. While at the same time prioritising her well being. Tough one, but I wish you all the best.

Thanks, Rory, Jones, Pink and Vicious.
Great to hear that there are opportunities in fields which seem to appeal to specialist interests. And as for the Saturday job, I think that is really worth nothing ‐experience and commitment count for something.

Rory, you'd think colleges would offer a variety of vocational courses for children who struggle to attain the basic qualifications, but many still require GCSEs in Maths and English as a baseline requirement for enrolment.

I'm trying to remain upbeat and reflect some sort of bigger picture for her, so these replies are really interesting! And good for you and your relations and acquaintances who have found satisfying employment despite not gaining GCSE passed!

She can take them later than usual through resits up to age 19.

Job that doesn’t require them would be professional gardener/working at a garden centre, - so RHS apprenticeship says if don’t have GCSE grades in English and maths then you do functional skills as part of apprenticeship.
https://www.rhs.org.uk/education-learning/qualifications-and-training/work-based-training/rhs-apprenticeships

What is she interested in creatively?

Dd has no GCSE passes yet. She is studying Animal Care with a view to working in a kennels / rescue. She has had paid casual work in a kennels.

My son isn't academic didn't get pass grades in year 11 last year not helped by having a,serious illness during year 11 and missing a lot of school ,he re sat his maths and English this summer and didn't pass again, his college have agreed he can do functional skills alongside another course I hopeful he's more suited to this once hes got them hopefully he can look at apprenticeship, s

My DS has no GCSEs and is at college doing bricklaying. Loads of the kids there are in the same boat. They resit maths and English alongside doing their vocational course. I admit the college is quite male dominated as it teaches all the trades (plumbing, electrics etc) but there are a few girls on the painting and decorating course who seem to enjoy it. I think they will do well as there are probably quite a few women out there who would happily employ female decorators.

Good point, i think in London there's a female only plumbing company too, a friend used them.

My DP failed maths. Failed all his GCSEs except English, French and Latin. Left school at 16 and taught himself to code. Has his own software company now and is very successful. He was always very bright though, just preferred getting stoned rather than doing GCSE coursework and revision.

I never got any qualifications, I did go to eve classes and get my typing and word processing skills. I did temping back then many moons ago, temped with a company where my face fitted, am still here as a Senior Analyst, paid quite nicely. DD is resitting maths, having not got many passes other than English, she’s on a L2 Business course, then will do L3, bit concerned entry level jobs as in office junior no longer seem to be a thing, certainly at my company, she’s a worker though, already proved with jobs she’s had in hospitality, just need the right fit.

One of my nephews got other GCSEs but failed maths. While deciding what to do he worked at McDonalds and they have a scheme for getting your functional maths and English qualifications, which he did. It really boosted his confidence after a tricky time at school

I have a few friends who left school with no gcses. They continued in the jobs they had at 16 and worked their way up (various roles, nursery nurse, admin, sales etc). Some of them are high up within their company and doing really well. One of my friends with no gcses now owns her own hair salon and another his own building company.
However, we left school a long time ago and these days most jobs, even retail, hairdressing etc, seem to have maths and English gcses as a requirement.
gcses don’t have to be sat and passed in year 11 though. A lot of sixth form colleges offer them. One of my dc actually did their maths gcse at college alongside their a levels as she failed it at school. She said it was a lot easier to study at school as there was a smaller class and the tutor was slower and more patient as they knew this was a class who’d already failed and needed extra help. You can also study gcses as an adult. So tell them that they really don’t need to worry about having passed it by the time they leave school, they have all the time in the world. Maybe once the pressure of school and exams is over you could get a tutor to come to the house to help them?
Failing that, they could think about being self employed. What are their interests? A couple of my friends run their own businesses and do very well - a cleaning company and a dog walking/pet sitting business, both employing other people. You don’t need gcses to set up your own business.

Sorry that should say she found it easier in college.

Wow, thank you for all these responses! I'm busy jotting things down. I wish there were really clear, streamlined pathways that looked pretty similar across local authorities. In our area, there are a few options for college courses such as the trades, animal care, hair and beauty and digital / tech options etc, and entry requirements seem discretionary in some cases, which may work in DC's favour.

murasaki, she's good at drawing, painting and all sorts of free-form 3D arts such as textiles and sculpting once she's learnt a technique. Bearing this in mind, we've discussed everything from puppet-maker to glass-blower to tattoo-artist (!) but she's a bit scared of the idea of being a freelance creative due to the fluctuating nature of demand.

I have no qualifications at all.

Started in retail on a till, worked my way up. Lots of people in retail and logistics management come from a background of No or bad results!

I leveraged my way across to an operations role in tech, and now am Head of Ops for the company. It's different for everyone but when I joined the company I was at the same level as those my age who had gone to Uni, if not slightly ahead.

Obviously lots of this is on your DC and what she wants to do/where she wants to go. But as long as she works hard and keeps aware of what her options are, pathways will open up to her. It's not the end of the world and doesn't mean she's consigned to service jobs her whole life (unless she wants to be).

Yes, i get that re demand, my sister's a freelance musician, she does very well but my lord she has to hustle and puts in at least as many hours per week as in a full time paye job. So it needs a certain character, but if you love what you do it can be worth it. So in that case she would be fine if she finds her passion. Either way, she sounds like she needs a bit of confidence right now and you sound a lovely supportive mum.