in thinking that DD will get nowhere with these GCSE options...

[PosyPanther]

DD is 13, so, in my opinion still a child, she changes her mind about pretty much everything daily, school shoes, whose her best friend, her favourite colour, you get the picture...

She has just had the first leaflet from school about GCSE option next year and want to pick health and social care (double award)human health and physiology instead of additional science, child development, psychology and sociology. She says she wants to do social work or primary teaching (or win the X factor )

I think she's mad. She's in the top set at school, level 5 across the board at primary school and is working at solid level 7s now. I would much prefer her to take at least two science GCSEs, history and geography instead of psych and sociology and a language with one choice left for whatever she fancies (but I'd prefer a second language or triple science.)

I can't see that having History, geography, french, german, separate science would disadvantage her in applying for ANY degree/career pathway? How do I convince her that some subjects actually are better than others? Her teachers are insisting all GCSEs are equal but I can't see that sociology is as hard as German or Physics? I'm worried she's going to close doors at 13...

scaryteacher - a 2.2 might hold you back when you are starting out though, certainly by the time you've been working 3-4 years your degree is far from the most important factor but when you are up against 30 other grads all with equal experience, ie very little, why wouldn't you want the ones you interview to have firsts, just because you can.

NB that was an RG uni I went to, though. My OH went to a former poly, after dropping out of Edinburgh for health reasons - but he's at the stage now where his alma mater is less relevant than it was. He's also one of the most intelligent people I know, which suggests blanket judgement of all former poly students is inaccurate (though when I was at uni, we did look down a bit at the poly down the road, and one of the English students I knew who went there was somewhat thick.)

Is it not dubious to expect applications to come with a photo, unless appearance is fundamental to the job (ie. acting, modelling)?

I hadn't actually noticed your industry until after I posted that! I can see why in your industry that would be extremely relevant!

I suppose I'm somewhere in the middle on this. I started out doing a law degree and was getting good grades, but I was miserable. So, I transferred to accounting which I had won an award for at school, but I couldn't do it without combining with B/S. However, I have always worked F/T in finance throughout my degree which I think has helped a HUGE amount and is probably what has given me the edge when it has come to job applications. It also gave me experience which has helped me understand what I actually like doing day to day, and as a result I've applied to primarily actuarial graduate schemes, and already have offers, despite my slightly unusual degree for that profession as almost everyone does maths.

However, on the flip side - sorry Snowy - I have a family member who did almost the same course as you, got a good result, couldn't get a job so did a postgrad, good result ....she's been job hunting for 18 months so far.

I also find it bloody frustrating when people complain that students might have to work alongside uni, as whilst it has been damn hard work (I'm at a Russell Group Uni) it has been the best thing I could have done.

I think it is unusual Mippy but the organisation in question saw an understanding of what dress is appropriate for a management application as an important part of judging candidates common sense and aptitude.

Scary - I used to work for a division of Thales Underwater Systems.

As far as i know Thales bought out Thomson Marconi years ago.

Thales are all right. But I buggered off into aerospace in the end, which I enjoyed far more.

Worked with BAE on the Astute programme for a time, they were better than Thales imo, and i would have applied to work there (but then I looked on the map and saw how far away Barrow in Furness was!)

Scots - to be honest I think (in my limited working relationship with accounts people) that degrees with accountancy as part of them are well regarded, so think prob business studies with accountancy will stand you in good stead, especially as you have a lot of finance work experience.

(I am terrified of finance people - they tell me to reign in my spending - so it will help to develop a formidable persona, like all finance professionals I know)

Fair point notyummy, but unless that was made explicit it would seriously put me off applying for a role. Don't most people applying for such roles know these things? (Mind, I've worked in a casual office for most of my working life and am not designed for tailoring...I'd have to ask what constitutes business wear these days!)

Mamtomany - the question was about my 49 yo dh's degree - how much would a 2:2 gained in 1980 something count versus his MA, CEng and 31 years experience in engineering and international defence organisations?

Getorf - Barrow and Fas Lane don't appeal - I eventually want to get back to Cornwall, so I expect he'll be job hunting in Brussels so we stay here longer, then go back to UK once he really retires at 65, as opposed to the age he has to leave the RN.

I would not use a photo as a criteria to select CVs.

As far as I am concerned, they are only useful to laugh at see what apprentice-style haircuts people think are bang on trend nowadays.

I wouldn't bet on it Mippy - I was at an interview the other day for an actuarial consulting job, where you spend time out with clients and it is expected to be smart. One of the other candidates turned up in a grey silk sleeveless mini dress, pastel pink opaque tights and black suede, stupped ankle boots. The dress was so short that when she moved away from the table I actually saw the pattern on her pants.

Getorf - People used to send pics of themselves on the beach, with an arrow written in ballpoint pen and saying 'This Is Me.' Still think you want them as a potential Divisional Manager? They could be a genius, but they obviously have no common sense or at least an inappropriate sense of timing with their humour. It wasn't used to judge on looks, just appropriateness, and I guess cultural 'fit'.

I don't think, TBH, a 2:2 30 years ago is going to affect things much. Employers will look at his most recent experience/qualifications, and also if you get a 2:2, but then go on to get a first in a masters or something like that, it does kind of mitigate it.

As someone else said further up in the thread, for large private sector firms (if this is what you're wanting to go into), you're not just competing against British candidates, but candidates from all over the world. Where both DP and I work, "local" employees are in the minority - about 2/3 are foreign (including us two).

When I was a temp - on £5 per hour - doing CVs for a bank, one had written on their application form 'Marital Status - Very Single'. Galling when you would actually rather be doing a £13k job with your own desk than earning naff all with 0 job security. My OH worked in recruitment and people would send CVs in with holiday snaps or pictures of themselves as South Park characters.

I don't deal with external people very often, but when I do I prefer to dress up a bit. When I worked in news I was advised to 'dress as if you might be called out to see the Mayor at any moment', which seemed good advice. What I did hate was working as a temp, in offices where I'd never see anyone but my colleagues, and having to dress smartly (ie. Next shirts and polyester) on a temp's wages.

You're right abs - I would say that about a third of all applicants I get are from overseas. And some of them are ridiculously well qualified. One of the engineers who works for me (Indian bloke) has a degree in engineering, a masters and an MBA from a very well regarded UK provider. He is better qualified than I am!

Some incredibly well qualified candidates from India, China, Taiwan and South America. How can BTEC Business compete with that?

I just had some random person (no idea who it was) send me an email asking about salaries as they needed help deciding on which offer to respond to . Allegedly, they have a Masters in Finance and Investment, but had typos, grammatical and punctuation errors all over the place. They clearly had no idea when to capitalise and when to not. I could just see the PAIN and constant monitoring you would have to do as their manager, to make sure any work that went further than the department was written correctly.

And what I mean, is if I was in the position of hiring them, I wouldn't. Unless they were some kind of genius, as the constant toing and froing to make their writing presentable to an outside audience would be too much.

With my step-daughter (now getting As and Bs at AS level and doing her A levels final year - psychology, sociology and IT)

we took the approach that the most important thing was to take subjects that she was good at and enjoyed.

She has veered between wanting to do checkout, become an educational psychologist and a hairdressers, a dog groomer etc - they do change their minds often as they grow up and get to know themselves.

I think way too much pressure can be put on young people at such young ages.

I didn't necessarily agree with some of her choices, and she hated school, but actually she's done quite well.

If your DD is bright, she will go far.

Don't ever label a child with the 'you will get nowhere' card - it's very unfair and sets them up to fail.

Totally agree with GOML and LeQ.

My exH is at "Uni" doing a course on criminal / forensic psychology. Ex MIL is beyond proud, the silly woman. Quite why she is happy that her son is yet again wasting his time I don't know. I suspect because of what LeQ posted about people who haven't been to University themselves.

He is in his mid forties and has never had a job for more than six months. Three children, my DD is one.

She knows that he is doing it because he has been on JSA too long and on the sick too long and has been given a lot of financial help from the government.

She isn't daft and also knows that because he is now a student he no longer needs to pay the £1.35 per week which the CSA deemed him liable for.

He won't be getting a job helping the nation's police force to catch criminals if or when he graduates. He has a police record for a start and would never in a million years pass a basic CRB check.

Well he might be able to help Scotland Yard occasionally but only if they want to know where his mates are, not in a professional capacity.

Yet the taxpayer is funding his degree and his living expenses.

He is able to earn very good money labouring and always has been, but for the last ten years but just he didn't fancy it.

He could have taken steps to ensure that our academic DD could have had the chance at a degree and a career but no.

It really is all wrong.

Oh mists - poor you.

It is a disgrace isn't it.

I am so sorry but I did laugh at "He won't be getting a job helping the nation's police force to catch criminals if or when he graduates. He has a police record for a start and would never in a million years pass a basic CRB check.

Well he might be able to help Scotland Yard occasionally but only if they want to know where his mates are, not in a professional capacity."

Evidently the daft tosser has spent too much time watching CSI etc.

Your poor DD. She deserves better (I know how you feel, as the mother of a daughter whose father hasn't paid a penny towards her existence since the days when the spice girls were the next big thing)

Absolutely right GOML these kids that are scoffing in their Business Studies lesson had better learn how to say "do you want fries with that" in Mandarin.
FWIW I would hit the roof if I found out a teacher had wasted any time in a lesson on that rubbish. The more I think about it, how unprofessional

MistsAndMellow - i am quite surprised the university haven't crb checked him before he started the course, what idiots.