Top Unis - am I missing something?

[OnTheRoll]

DD is in Year 13, predicted 3 A, already has an A from a language A Level she did last year, and 11 GCSEs all 8/9. Got a great work experience in her chosen field, lots of academic reading, etc., etc. Has been working very hard and aiming for a top uni.

The problem is, it seems that unless she gets into Oxbridge, there isn't a suitable option for her?

We are in SE so decided not to go for Durham/Edinburg as the travel is just too much, 5+ hours, and she would not be able to come home more than once a term. She would very much prefer a campus experience rather than a city uni which rules out LSE/UCL in London.

There are of course great options like Warwick, Bristol, Bath, Exeter. We visited and DD loved them and so did I.

But I cannot help thinking that if she were to go to one of those unis she didn't really need to spend that much time working, studying and sacrificing her free time. Does it make sense? Entry requirements in those unis in her subject are all quite lower than her current and predicted grades.

Would appreciate some perspective.

Is your DD eligible for a contextual offer? You need 3 As for Politics at Bristol for eg if not (my dd's bf, 3A stars at A level just graduated from there with a first!)
My dd also had 3 A stars at A level and went there. She really didn't like the vibe or the 3 short term structure of Oxford or Cambridge, it isn't for everyone!

Don't forget there isn't any guarantee your dd will achieve all A stars as* things do go wrong on the day! Oxbridge don't generally ask for all A *stars in any event.

I think what may be shocking to you and your DD is that she goes to one of these 'mediocre' universities and is distinctively average.

None of the universities you have listed are mediocre by the way. A friend of mine was given a 3 C offer to study medicine at UCL. He got his 4 As but they clearly wanted to train him and he accepted their offer.

He and the rest of us were distinctively average in our med school cohort surrounded by others who had all their As at A level. We were all top dollar at our various schools. University is a different ball game to school.

DD went to Bath and it is full of students with results similar to those your DD is predicted. Uni shouldn't just be about your academic course - there are so many other things to experience as well. Also, think longer term - what's she going to do with a politics degree and how will she earn a living?

Has she considered QMUL? London, Russell Group prestige (if you subscribe to that notion), genuine self contained campus and an excellent Politics department.

If she pushed herself so hard at the expense of everything else then it probably was unnecessary. If she did it and also had time to focus on other things then it likely taught her a lot and creates a great work ethic for the future.

I can't see why going to Durham or Edinburgh (bear in mind that's a four year course like all Scottish universities) is a problem. Nor York. Beautiful places, excellent universities. I lived in London and went to university in Staffordshire (first time went home every other week-end!!! so homesick) and had no problem with the travel (by train, a direct line). DD went to local university DS again to Staffs, though from the Midlands.

It seems to me you have produced a non-existent problem. There are plenty of universities to choose from. Also, at eighteen your DD is quite likely not to want to come home even once a term - at least after the first term!
And wherever she goes she will have to work. School and university are two different things entirely.
NB I hope she reads plenty of books just for pleasure - this is a greater indicator of success than lots of academic reading.

My daughter has a medical condition which influenced her choice of uni. We all decided that it would be useful for her to be within 2 hours drive of family members, just in case, and to attend somewhere with a hospital that could treat her condition. I realise that you may not have family throughout the UK as we do but maybe there are relatives closer to Durham etc that your daughter could visit instead of travelling back to your home? She will probably not want to go anywhere once she's been at uni a few weeks but just knowing that there are others nearby might give her the confidence to travel further and allay any fears you might have too? - Just a thought.

DD1 got a full set of A stars because she always liked to do the best she could. Still does. Why wouldn't she? Daft question really.

She could try for LSE, more applications per place than Oxbridge.

Oxbridge terms are 8 weeks. How often does she expect to go home?

If she's studying properly and making full use of the experience she won't want to be home more than once a term, if that.

(I agree with PP that if she's had to slog her guts out so far to get these grades then she may struggle at Oxbridge).

Apply for Cambridge and see how it goes. She may not pass the interview as I've had friends with 4A* but were rejected. The colleges all have very beautiful campuses and I can see why she'd prefer a campus experience.

And we're in the far SE. All the girls have chosen universities a long way away. They used to get the train. OK, it was/is a bit of a drive at the beginning of term but I love a hotel stay and a day out in an exciting city.

She is the kind of child who takes a while to settle and make friends.
Child? She must be 17 or 18, so a young adult, right?

What careers is she interested in if she wants to read politics? How about a gap year to allow her to learn more life skills and really know what she wants? Often the A* students who haven't socialised or done any extra curricular activities are a little young and inflexible.

Better to go abroad, lots more options and even Oxbridge is in decline in comparison to a lot of them out there.

I went to what was considered one of the most prestigious Russell Group universities at the time, and now you don't even see it outperforming mets (although it's still in the RC). Things can change.

Base it on the specific course, not the uni. Many courses are awful in reality.

I also have a friend who rejected a lecturer role at Oxford in favour of a "lesser" university because it was just better for her in terms of what it involved. She doesn't regret it.

She could do Politics and IR, they also offer a language alongside so 'Politics and IR with eg Mandarin' is an option.

DT’s had all A’s for their 4 A levels. The advice we gave them was to choose where they would be happiest for 3 years. We were in central London and DS went to Warwick (did his Masters there as well) and DD to York (she rejected an offer from St Andrews on location). Both got 1st and are now in successful graduate roles - DS in engineering in Amsterdam and DD with the EU in Brussels.

Neither applied to Oxford, Cambridge or Durham - wasn’t the Uni experience they wanted.

Your DD needs to decide what she wants from her Uni experience and narrow down her options.

There is an 'H' in Edinburgh.

My friend's son got a lower offer from Oxford than from Warwick.

Might be wrong but I think parents in the South East tend to perceive southern universities as mire prestigious than they possibly are. Where I grew up the aspirational universities were the "red brick" universities like Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield, Birmingham, Newcastle. I'm not sure people looked past Oxbridge and Bristol in the South, and generally not London due to cost of living. A lot of this prestige is of marginal benefit anyway surely? If she's interested in politics she needs cultural capital and relevant work experience to get on. Does the have political leanings as she's likely to need to join a party, unless she's thinking of civil service, which does institution blind recruitment

Look forward, not back. Make the decision based on where she wants to go, not based on the time she spent revising for an A Level. There are plenty of other fantastic things about those other unis you've listed which could mean she'll thrive there more than at Oxbridge.

She’s applying for a subject that is only really top at oxbridge or some London places. It’s subject specific. If she was applying for
medicine or law she’d be very lucky to get any of the unis you’ve listed. I had top grades (4 a levels and an extended award) and went to Warwick. Some of my flatmates in year one had Bs etc but going to Warwick has not held me back in my career …

Durham would be a good choice.

Working hard and getting great grades will stand her in good stead for LIFE, not just for university entry. Your attitude is odd. You're treating it like collecting badges for achievement, like the GirlGuides or swimming awards.

Other universities in the UK are not consolation prizes for the non-Oxbridge lot.

At this stage though she just needs to stick 6 choices down. Then decide nearer the time. But like most things in life there's rarely one right path. You weigh up various options, take a leap of faith and then make the most of it.

I went there, we used to joke we were the ones Oxbridge didn't want! But it's a bloody good university and the campus is amazing.

Depending on where you live in the South East, Oxbridge Universities might still not be that convenient or quick to get to by train. Durham is very well connected and only 2.5 hour train ride from London...