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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To wish universities wouldn’t give out so many unconditional offers?

201 replies

LevelUp · 11/01/2019 17:35

Dd is in Year 13 and applying to university.

She’s reasonably bright but has never been super-academic or interested in school. She has decent but not stellar predicted grades and ok GCSEs. She probably could have done better if she’d worked harder.

She struggled to decide what course to apply for at university (she’s never been particularly devoted to any of her subjects - she’s not someone who would go away and do extra reading) but eventually settled on modern languages.

She sent off her application at the end of October - to unis along the lines of Birmingham, Nottingham, Sheffield etc.

Within a month she had heard back from all 5, with four making her unconditional-if-firm offers and one (probably the highest scoring in league tables of the 5) offering her a place for AAA or BBB if firmed.

I’m quite concerned that without the pressure of needing to get the grades to get her place, she isn’t going to have any great motivation to try in her A-levels this summer. She already didn’t do much work over the Christmas holiday.

AIBU for wishing universities would get rid of these bribing ‘unconditional-if-firm’ offers? If they need to get bums on seats, could they not just be lenient on Results Day and let in students who miss their offers?

I also don’t really understand why they’d be happy to take her even if she bombed in her A-levels - as long as they were her firm choice - but they might end up refusing to take her if it was her insurance choice and she only missed the offer by one grade. If they’re so keen on her application that they want her whatever her A-levels then why doesn’t that hold true if they’re her insurance?

OP posts:
MojoMoon · 11/01/2019 17:43

You are completely correct.

But there is a demographic blip where there will be fewer 18 year olds for the next few years (why was no one shagging in the millennium?)

So they are competing for students rather than students competing for places

Owwlie · 11/01/2019 17:47

I said exactly this about our current year 13 students today! So many unconditionals (one for biomed at Birmingham!) and they're all telling me how 'pointless' revision now is.

NicoAndTheNiners · 11/01/2019 17:47

There is an element of bums on seats to make sure the unis get tuition fees. Unis are quite twitched about income at present.

Personally I'm happy that dd has got an unconditional (she doesn't even have to firm it) as she's been so poorly and spent so much time in hospital that I'm a bit worried about her results.

ShalomJackie · 11/01/2019 17:47

Remind your DD that as more and more students are getting at least a 2.1 then most employers will differentiate by looking back to A level grades and therefore even if she takes a UIF offer that her A level grades remain important.

UsedtobeFeckless · 11/01/2019 17:49

I wish DS2 would get one! He's got two interviews ( not offers, just interviews ... ) an ABB from one and nothing at all yet from the two he really liked. All his mates have unconditionals. He's having kittens about it, poor soul ... Sad

NicoAndTheNiners · 11/01/2019 17:50

I think also remind her that if she slacks off now she may find the jump between her a-level and degree work quite hard. Guess this will depend on the subject but should be true for modern languages I'd have thought?

She doesn't want to be struggling at uni and find the rest of her cohort got better results/have a higher level of knowledge and end up dropping out.

Propertywoe · 11/01/2019 17:51

I have to say I am worried, DS1 still seems to be doing good with tests. I am hoping that not having the pressure might have a positive effect.

loubluee · 11/01/2019 17:55

Agree. Ds had an unconditional for his first choice so he just sort of sailed through his A-Levels, not sailed academically but sailed through doing the bare minimum!! That said he’s enjoying his course and getting some of the top marks in his class so far. So his attitude towards work has changed now he at university (Thank God!!).

LosingNemo · 11/01/2019 17:55

As a teacher I agree. I think it’s bad of the unis as they just want bums on seats but it’s not good for the students. Sometimes they select lesser units than they are capable of due to the security of an unconditional. Other times they slack off and do poorly, so they might get into uni but they have the long term disadvantage of dodgy a level grades to stick on their CVs.

HalloumiGus · 11/01/2019 17:55

I saw an article about this and I think the regulator (whatever it is) is warning unis that this isn't good practice. They're planning to crack down if the unis don't self regulate.

user1486250399 · 11/01/2019 18:02

YANBU
I am a secondary school teacher and unconditional offers are a nightmare.

UrsulaPandress · 11/01/2019 18:03

I know someone who got an unconditional, didn’t work and then struggled so much in his first year he ended up going back to school to resit. I’m glad dd had to work hard for her place.

UsedtobeFeckless · 11/01/2019 18:03

Bit off topic, sorry, but is not having heard back from some of your choices at this stage a bad sign? He sent off his final five just before Christmas ...

thereallifesaffy · 11/01/2019 18:05

Agree! And not just bc my two missed the bonanza. The unis they applied to didn't seem to want to hand out unconditionals. But some unis are shameless.

Jimdandy · 11/01/2019 18:05

If she’s not acedemic and doesn’t want to study really why bother going to uni? Get a job and work hard and earn money instead

UsedtobeFeckless · 11/01/2019 18:06

Also what's with the interviews? This is Anglia Ruskin and Oxford Brookes, not ancient heavy hitters who have to weed out loads of applicants ... Anyone know?

ForalltheSaints · 11/01/2019 18:07

The only person in my year at school with one did not try hard. A work colleague whose son had one last year became exasperated at his son's lack of work.

I would be happy to see them banned, extreme as it may seem.

YourDaughter · 11/01/2019 18:13

1 in 10 students drop out of university before the end of their second year. If you don’t have good A level grades to fall back on/reapply with you’re often screwed.
The ‘lower’ the university (and these are the ones who most typically offer unconditional as they want bums on seats and see it as a way to get better quality candidates to firm with them) have a much higher drop out rate.
I wish we’d go to an American system and scrap they application before results day. Students should only apply once they know what grades they have. Universities will never do it though as it would delay start dates and therefore fee payments.

RedPanda2 · 11/01/2019 18:24

Does she know she doesn't have to go to university? If she does she'll really have to put the work in

Jiggeriepokerie · 11/01/2019 18:29

Littering students with unconditionals will backfire spectacularly in the next 5 years or so at this rate.

Students slack off during the final year of their A Levels producing poorer results. Employers will be wary of taking graduates from the universities who have overdone the unconditional offers and start to look backwards to A level results as a better indicator of academic achievement. Not good if the student has missed their predicted grades because they've relied on an unconditional

It's a terrible way to allocate university places and is doing our children absolutely no favours. My son's college are considering excluding the worst offending universities from attending their open days and I back their stance 100%.

Original poster
LevelUp · 11/01/2019 18:35

If she’s not academic and doesn’t want to study really why bother going to uni? Get a job and work hard and earn money instead

She’s not not academic - she has predicted grades of AAA, and got mostly A/A* at GCSE. She’s just never been interested in doing more than the bare minimum or going beyond the curriculum like my older dc were.

I think she does see the advantage in learning 3 languages fluently and she likes the idea of a year abroad (and she really likes the idea of student life and partying all the time).

However, I do think the school are being rather overly optimistic giving her AAA predictions, given that her end of year exam results last year we’re BCC. I almost feel like the school know that giving the students higher predicted grades will mean they get unconditional offers to Russell Group universities, and a higher number of pupils going on to RG unis will look good on the school website.

OP posts:
RavenLG · 11/01/2019 18:37

I work in a university and I completely agree. Even in a few years working there the standards of students have slipped, and like you say unconditional offers means students stop trying, aren't working hard for a place, and that mentality continues. They've not had to work so don't understand that they can't just coast through.

Propertywoe · 12/01/2019 08:58

I am more in shock that her sixth form have given the predicted grades, they have really not helped. DS1 sixth form at the beginning of year 12 make it clear that for UCAS predicted grades will not increase above 10% from end of Year 12 exams unless exceptional circumstances.

avenueq · 12/01/2019 09:05

Which unis have given her unconditionals? My dd is also applying for MFL with the same predicted grades for similar universities but has only had one unconditional offer - surprised that it's so inconsistent?