Going to university soon

[WasherWoman25]

Why does every post on MN when talking about teens say ‘they will be going to Uni soon / at 18’?

Stats seem to vary between 25% - 35% of UKs teens going to Uni. So approx 1 in 3 or 4 go at 18.

Of the teens I know, it’s definitely a case of more don’t go than do.

the higher education entry rate among UK 18-yr olds peaked at 38% in 2021. It fell back to 36% in 2024. 49% of state school pupils from England had started higher education by age 25 in 2022/23. So the stats are slightly higher than you suggest.

Having said that, MN isn’t a representative sample of the UK. The annual MN census shows it’s a more highly educated and more “middle class” cohort than an average sample of the population. Thus it follows that children of Mumsnetters are more likely to go to uni.

49% by 25 isn’t going at 18 though is it?

And yes, the rest is probably my point. In MN middle class world doesn’t usually apply to the people asking about teens sharing rooms, going on holiday with them, getting part time jobs etc

Anecdotal but between me, my Dh, sister and BIL, only one of us went to uni. So 1 in 4. My niece on dh’s side was the first ever one to go to uni in their family including wider cousins etc but her sister hasn’t. I’m not banking on both my children going, I will just support them no matter what they choose to do and they will always be welcome to live at home or come on holiday with us no matter their circumstances.

Actually dropping my sister off at Uni was what made me adamant I never wanted to go.

Every young person I know bar 1 (did apprenticeship) went to university at 18/19. It’s very much a case of what circles you move in (and the example that didn’t was the child of an old friend I haven’t seen for years). Rates at my dc’s 6th form colleges were (dd1) 85% and (dd2) 100%. It’s what you do here. The drop outs wouldn’t have made it to 6th form though!

Are you a ‘drop out’ purely because you don’t go to Uni?

I agree that their demographic on mumsnetters makes it more likely that their DC go into higher education.

There is a much higher percentage of posters who are on 6 figure salaries and whose DC were privately educated as well (I'm not part of that demographic).

I don't think every post about teens does talk about going to uni.

100% of kids from one school went to uni? Really? I can’t believe 100% is correct. My eldest went to a top London private school and even there the stats were not that high. Some went travelling indefinitely, some went to exciting places like a cordon bleu chef school in France, some went into family business, some developed mental health problems and bombed exams and either went to crammers for re takes or disappeared.

I actually think the assumption that all kids go to uni is part of a wider problem on Mumsnet of some posters struggling to comprehend that people live different lives to them. You see it on lots of threads - someone will mention some issue with their kids school and a poster will pipe up about it being the school holidays, because if THEIR kids are off school then all kids across the entire world must be too.
I think some people just live very narrow lives and aren't capable of seeing past their own experiences.

This. There will be parents of teens who aren't posting about their teens going to uni soon. Obviously the posts which say they are going to uni will be more visible than all the parents posting without teens going to uni!

Two DDs 24 & 21. Eldest went and youngest didn’t. I think it will start to decline as the fees rise and the wage you start to repay the loan has reduced to around £21k and over 40 years not 30.

There are many posts about all the middle class teens who leave education and stay in their rooms gaming or anxious and can’t look for work because they are so pampered even uni is too much like hard work!

Drop outs? Nasty
many very successful people realised uni was for those who needed to go for their chosen profession and those with no idea what they were doing to do. And those successful people knew what they wanted to do didn’t require 3 years studying history or geography or anthropology.

it’s unbelievable that people hold so much value in 3 years studying something random aged 19. So much more is learned by actually getting out there and working.

I say this as someone with a masters degree.

All 3 of mine have gone. I always assumed they’d go as all very academic and high achievers. But it’s not for everyone. DC of friends / family tend to go.

My eldest didnt go to uni and neither did any of his friends. My eldest was never academic and struggled in school/college and it was never something he even considered.

My second son starts uni in sept and all his friends are also going, i know because i spent a week helping them all write personal statements as i interviewed for a uni they were all applying to as they all want to go into the same industry that requires degree level studying (all areas of computer science). This has always been a part of his plan since starting secondry school.

My youngest is about to start GCSE's and uni is in her plans, again though because her career goals requires degree level study (nursing or paramedic). A lot of her friends are looking at uni, though their aspirations are more varied than my son's friendship circle.

I guess it depends on career goals, and the child. 2 of mine have very clear aspirations that require uni, one didnt. If they dont i guess it depends on interests, my eldest is very outdoorsy, but also very much into how things work and go together, mechanic, eletrician, building work etc type roles were what he was looking at so uni was never condisdered, but if his interests were academic, even without a career goal, then may be uni would have been looked at more whilst deciding his future goals.

Mumsnet however, isnt the best cross section of society to gather accurate statistics that represent things like this.

This is a very good point!

It’s not so much the people posting about their DC going to uni, it’s the replies to which room should they have, should they come on holiday posts etc. There will almost certainly be a ‘well they will be going to uni next year so x,y,z’. The OP won’t have said what their plans are, they just assume as they are approaching 18 that immediately means they are going off to uni.

Well yes because you don’t just turn up at uni gates with a suitcase!

If your 16-18 yr old teen is doing A’levels they will have some idea of their potential grades, they will have been looking at possible uni applications, looking at or planning to go to uni open days.

Their 6th form will be advising about career paths, courses which are required for some career paths, possible careers and if they need degrees. Or careers with “x degree”.

It’s not really an assumption, it’s a long process, which doesn’t just happen. So if your teen is putting in the work during 6th form, has a list of unis they want to visit, has investigated careers and courses, why wouldn’t you assume they weren’t at least going to try and you make your plans around those assumptions?

One of ours wants to be an astrophysicist engineer.
One wants a maths based law career.

They both need to go to uni to do this.

Their current predicted GCSE grades and test results, particularly in the subjects required in the A’level subjects they want to take, indicate they are academically capable.

They both want to move out, are looking forward to being independent, not sure how much they realise how skint they will be but they will. Quite keen on living somewhere else and meeting new peers to study and have fun with.

So with al that information why would we assume they wouldn’t, at the very least, try and go to uni?

I’m not sure your are understanding what I mean. I’m talking about other people assuming an OPs child will be going to Uni soon, despite them having not mentioned it in their OP. It’s the assumption that everyone’s 18 year old will go to Uni (obviously you have a good idea about your own child). One example this morning, DSS (12) wants the big bedroom, half of the replies, he can have it until 18 WHEN he goes to Uni. Like, there is a 2/3 chance he won’t go to Uni at 18!

Unless people have a strong vocational direction I think degrees cost too much these days.

Exactly.

How judgemental.

I’ve realised in my OP I have put ‘post’, I meant reply not post.

Ds is 20 and earns nearly 26k. One of his friends earns 33k. They both went to college not uni. Are they dropouts too??