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Original poster

Are A Levels impossible for dd now

77 replies

coffeelover3 · 29/09/2020 11:45

So we moved from another country. DD just turned 17. She hasn't done any GCSE's. I tried to get her into a school, but they wouldn't take her as she is too old to start the 3-year GCSE programme. So she's enrolled in a College, and she's doing Maths & English (language) GCSE and she's on a Diploma in Art. She's not that happy though as 'to put it politely' and with no intent to disrespect anyone, the others in her class are students who have failed GCSE, as well as some 'long term students' ages 19-22 with possible learning difficulties.
She really 'should' be doing A levels now, but no college or school seems to allow that without GCSE. I've tried to get advice from the College but obviously they don't know dd, and what she is capable of.

What I want to know is, Are A-levels not possible for her now?

Should she try and do some more GCSE's online?
TIA,

OP posts:
MillyMoo1113 · 29/09/2020 12:59

The site a PP referred to is UK NARIC. Google it, I thinks about £50 and they will give you the value of any overseas qualification in comparison to a gcse/a level/degree in the Uk. If that proves any qual she has is equivalent to a gcse then the college should let her do a levels. But bear in mind that many college required 6 or above at gcse to do an a level, so if the qual is only equivalent to a 4 or 5, they may not let her do it

TheKeatingFive · 29/09/2020 13:02

She doesn't have any quals from Ireland - she didn't do what they call the 'Junior Cert', for lots of reasons, also because it is lower than GCSE and not used for anything in Ireland. She would have been starting the 2-year Leaving Cert this year.

Why didn’t she do the Junior cert? And how would she have have been able to start her Leaving without the Junior?

Junior cert doesn’t have the same weight as GCSEs, but it functions in a similar way (I.e. as a ‘feeder’ to the next level) and I’ve never heard of an Irish child managing to swerve it.

IDSNeighbour · 29/09/2020 13:21

Was she home schooled in Ireland?

If not, it seems crazy that this can't be sorted with a call to and references from her previous school. An academically capable student (which I assume she is?) being placed in classes aimed at children with learning difficulties or very low English and Maths attainment purely due to lack of a piece of paper and an international move is outrageous. Have we become so exam obsessed that common sense has disappeared altogether?

Private schools take children from all around the world as late as 16. I'm sure most have some sort of exam qualifications but some won't. Some won't even be fluent in English.

It has to be possible.

TheKeatingFive · 29/09/2020 13:23

If not, it seems crazy that this can't be sorted with a call to and references from her previous school.

This is why I’m asking why she didn’t sit the junior cert.

UK schools would expect someone of her age, from the Irish system, to have this.

MyShinyWhiteTeeth · 29/09/2020 13:35

What does she want to do?

A friend's child did her qualifications online with exams in local assessment centres. It wasn't a success because the same issues that stopped her at school cropped up again.

She wouldn't just crack on and complete the work. She is an intelligent girl but needs extreme supervision to actually get her to do anything she doesn't want to do.

The daughter complains about everything else being wrong but she's not willing to make any compromises. She doesn't seem to want to do anything and it feels like everyone has had enough and now can't be bothered with her. There is a possible apprenticeship but she has no enthusiasm for it.

MrsAvocet · 29/09/2020 13:50

I would have thought it is worth sticking it out and getting at least maths and english GCSE even if she could find somewhere that would take her straight onto A level courses.
A lot of higher education courses and jobs have these as requirements. Of course there are people from lots of different backgrounds who don't have them and there are ways around it, but given that your daughter is still quite young I would think that it would be better to get them done.
Even though she didn't do the exams in Ireland, presumably she did the work and has something approaching GCSE knowledge, so it shouldn't be too difficult to get a few GCSEs done - I agree with the suggestion of looking for somewhere to do them in a year, as she shouldn't really need the full 2 year course to get up to speed. Then she would only be a year or so "behind" what is the norm for her age in England, which isn't so unusual really. I know of quite a few 6th formers who are a bit out of synch with their chronological year group for all kinds of reasons - illness, family issues, moving from another country, or simply a change of direction. And of course there are then loads of young people who defer University entry for a year or more after A levels for a plethora of reasons. I suspect that one of the effects of Covid-19 is that even more will be resitting things or taking years out than normal.
I know a year seems like a lifetime at that age, especially if the environment isn't great, but honestly, not being at University by age 18 isn't a disaster and I would imagine that if she can use this year to get the maths and english sorted, and maybe a few more GCSEs done online or something it will be worth it in the long term.
Could you get some tutoring? If she is at a decent standard in the subjects she is interested in, she may be able to sit the GCSEs as a private candidate without doing the full course, if you could get someone to "top up" her existing knowledge and do some exam practice with her. Home educated children can do GCSEs and A levels without belonging to a school or college so there must be a way around things.
Good luck to your DD. It must all be very frustrating for her, but with determination I am sure she can find a way through. There are many people who dont follow the standard route who do very well in life.

PlanDeRaccordement · 29/09/2020 13:57

What about the International Baccalaureate (IB) program?
U.K. Universities accept IB qualifications as well as A levels and you don’t need GCSEs coming from abroad to go to an IB college/sixth form.

PlanDeRaccordement · 29/09/2020 13:59

Here is a link about the IB program
www.ibo.org/uk/

GravityFalls · 29/09/2020 14:19

It’s odd that she’s on a level 1 course - I would ask if it’s a level 1/2 - some courses can be passed at a level 2 if they get high marks throughout and then at the end of the year she’d be on a similar footing to those leaving year 11.

akittyisyou · 29/09/2020 14:30

OP, she didn’t do her junior cert?

Surely you see that by setting her at the level they are, the school isn’t being malicious but rather doing her a favour by not throwing her into classes that she might be over her head for?

You’ve no provable measure for what level she’s at for anything (I know you said the junior cert is used for nothing in Ireland but it is literally the measure they use to decide levels for the leaving cert - I.e. to avoid situations just like this) so the school is just doing the right thing by her and getting her marked to national standards so she can progress.

bridgetreilly · 29/09/2020 14:49

Normally I would say you could just enrol her as a private candidate to take the exams in November and if you think she needs it, get some private tuition or see if the college would do that. But right now, a lot of places are not letting private candidates sit exams because of Covid, so it may be tricky. But she really really does need to do the English and Maths if she ever wants to get a job or go to university in the UK.

mostwomencanbetter · 29/09/2020 16:07

Is the Btec a BTec ND Level 3 equivalent to 2 a levels or is a Btec first I think entry level is 1 or and level 2 is equivalent to GCSE.

I think she just needs to get through the maths & English. If she is very capable it shouldn't be too hard and she can put lots of work into her art.

bigchris · 29/09/2020 16:11

Didnt you research all this before you moved or didnt you have any choice

Is it too late for her to go back to her old school or wasn't she at one ?

It sounds so hard and miserable for her especially at a time like this when everything is as far from normal as can be

Original poster
coffeelover3 · 29/09/2020 16:34

thanks for all your replies. I looked up international Bacc, but remembered then why it wasn't possible - there's only 1 school in the area that does it, and it's nearly 7000 a term. I did enquire with them today, but they are full and wouldn't accept dd without 8 GCSE's.

I did research it before we came, and she had actually been studying for GCSE's last year online, but then Covid happened. So she has covered a lot of the syllabus.

I suddenly started doubting myself, but I think what she's doing is the best option for the moment. I did find some other places doing more GCSE's but again they are looking for maths & English GCSE. I'll research that a bit more.

no she cant go to Ireland to do the leaving cert - where would she live?

Thanks everyone for taking the time to reply, I've a bit more research to do. And I contacted the college again, hopefully they will get back to me.

OP posts:
Original poster
coffeelover3 · 29/09/2020 16:36

PS Everyone advised me and said it was 'much easier' in the UK, that there were loads of different options and routes. I've found it very inflexible though - GCSE's are very much required aren't they.

OP posts:
LionLily · 29/09/2020 16:42

3 A levels with Interhigh is £345 a month, and they have loads of international students who must have the equivalent of GCSEs from their own country.

Porcupineinwaiting · 29/09/2020 16:43

@coffeelover3 as I said up thread that wasnt our experience.

LionLily · 29/09/2020 16:45

But if she really doesn't have GCSE equivalents, then she will be best off working towards those and taking them next summer. She will only be a year younger than her peers in the future, and to be honest in these times a year is of no consequence.

TW2013 · 29/09/2020 16:56

What does she want to do for A-levels/ career? I would take that as the starting point for your investigation. For example she could study at the OU with no formal qualifications (though I would recommend sticking it out with the Maths and English), so she could either take an access course or do level 1 there and then transfer to a brick university for her second and third year if she wished to. That would only work for some degrees though, if she wanted to do medicine then she would need to get A levels or IB. She should though try to dazzle the maths and English teachers. Demonstrate that she deserves a chance at a higher paper for maths for example. Be teacher's pet.

FieldOverFence · 29/09/2020 16:59

Would she have done the junior cert this year, and it was cancelled sue to Covid ? Agree with PPs that one year retaking the GCSEs in the grand scheme of things isn't too much

PlanDeRaccordement · 29/09/2020 17:25

Yes it sounds like doing GCSEs accelerated this year is her best option.
Being a year older should be ok in long run. I have known many successful adults that repeated a year or fell a year behind in secondary school due to serious illness/injury.

TwoBlueFish · 29/09/2020 17:54

My son is doing an online A level with Pembrokeshire college, they didn’t ask for any GCSE results. His is for an A level that his 6th form don’t offer but he really wants to do. We are having to pay for it though.

Bramshott · 30/09/2020 08:55

When you say she has "just turned 17", do you mean since 1 September? That makes the acceptance/funding situation much easier as she'd be expecting to be in Year 12 / College Year 1 this year, and you can have 3 funded years at College so no issue with getting the GCSEs in this year and then a 2 year A level course.

However, if she turned 17 before 31 Aug that could be more of a problem.

Fingers crossed you can have a meeting with the College and get it sorted out. Surely this year of all years they should be prepared to be flexible with kids moving from overseas at a time when the usual assessments may not have been possible.

Original poster
coffeelover3 · 30/09/2020 09:21

thanks again everyone. yes bramshot she only turned 17 last weekend, so that's good news about the funding thanks.

OP posts:
sashh · 30/09/2020 09:46

Stick with the course she is on for now. Level 1 is equivalent to GCSEs with poor grades, D-G on the old system so about 1-3 now.

Ask the college if she can enter some GCSEs as a private candidate, you will have to pay but it is cheaper than private school.

Find 3 subjects she should be able to pass eg I assume she has been learning Irish for most of her school life, have a look at GCSE Irish papers.

Be honest about just how well she was doing in school. If she was on track to be a scientist then the next stage will be very different o if she was heading for Art.

Does she want to go to uni? Does she know what for?

Think of it as being a detour on a journey, the straight route would have been her leaving certificate, this is just a route less travelled.