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To have to give up university due to childcare?

9 replies

Suziebeans · 05/06/2024 13:39

Soooo I am in a bit of a predicament and just wanted to know if anyone had any ideas on what I could do or spots something I am not thinking of.
I went to university when I was 18 but dropped out shortly after due to struggling being away from home.
2 years later I had my little girl and spent the next 3 years trying to get pregnant again as wanted to have my children young so I could focus on my career after (wrong way round I know but daughter was a very very happy accident so made sense to then try again at the time), after 3 years and still not pregnant (it was during covid times so fertility issues weren’t a priority at the time) I decided it just wasn’t going to happen so was time to get my career back on track and felt ready to go back to university. Started a new university degree in September 2021, lo and behold got pregnant November 2021. My university were super supportive and helped me finish the first year of my course and have since allowed me to have two years off until my little boy reaches the age of 2 (August 2024) so he could join the local preschool. I cannot drive and live in a semi rural area with only one preschool which is attached to the primary school, so getting him to a nursery and my daughter to school wasn’t possible.

When I was doing my first year, my daughter was at the preschool but also attended the before and after school club so I was able to do my two full days at uni. Obviously when I finished the year I had my son I pulled her out of the before and after school club as we did not need it for the two years I would be at home with my son. After I had my son in August 2022 I found out that there was now actually a waiting list for the wraparound care and so asked if they could both be put on the waiting list in preparation for me going back September 2024, I emailed them yesterday to ask how their progress on the list was going to be told that the list has hardly moved due to hardly any children dropping out in that time frame. I am unsure what to do moving forward as this is my last chance to finish a university course using student finance, I have contacted the two local childminders too, which are not excepting anymore children on to their waiting lists. My daughter is at school between the hours of 8:45am and 3:15pm, and I can get my son into the preschool with no issues between the hours of 9am and 3pm. So I was thinking of speaking to my university and seeing if they’d allow me to come in between the hours of 10am and 1:30pm on the Tuesday and Wednesday, but then also putting my son into preschool on Thursday and Friday and going into university between those hours again to catch up in the library watching the parts of the lessons that I missed (they are recorded and posted). Does anyone think that is feasible or am I in a dream world? Or would I be asking to much of the university, if they were even allowed to let me do that? Does anyone else have any other ideas? Thank you.

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
BusyCM · 05/06/2024 13:51

Surely it depends on what you are studying and when your lectures are?

katmarie · 05/06/2024 13:52

Have you considered transferring your course to an online university like the Open University? Lots of brick unis do an online version of some courses too now.

Suziebeans · 05/06/2024 14:03

BusyCM · 05/06/2024 13:51

Surely it depends on what you are studying and when your lectures are?

So I was studying Criminology and Public Services. I was at a smaller university where the lectures were more like college classes rather then big lecture theatres etc and I would have three, two hour lectures spread out between 9am and 4pm.

OP posts:
Suziebeans · 05/06/2024 14:04

katmarie · 05/06/2024 13:52

Have you considered transferring your course to an online university like the Open University? Lots of brick unis do an online version of some courses too now.

Thank you so much, I didn’t even realise this was a thing. Will look in to it!

OP posts:
Grazie234 · 05/06/2024 14:10

I've just finished my 2nd year with kids of various ages, do you know what days/ hours your lectures will be? Mine have varied each semester, in the first year I did 3 short days that fell in school hours (10-15.00 usually) and this year in Sem 1 we did 2 x 9-5 days and Sem 2 we had lectures 2 days a week, 12-5pm. Can your university give you an idea of the provisional timetable for your lectures? Hopefully after the first semester some space will open up with wraparound or a childminder.

What's the expected contact learning vs self learning ration for your course?

Ponderingwindow · 05/06/2024 14:14

Have you confirmed the class schedule?

mollybbb · 05/06/2024 14:24

This reply has been withdrawn

Withdrawn by MNHQ

SilverHairedCat · 05/06/2024 14:44

Portsmouth University also do a distance learning criminology degree

katmarie · 05/06/2024 17:03

Suziebeans · 05/06/2024 14:04

Thank you so much, I didn’t even realise this was a thing. Will look in to it!

No problem, I know the OU do criminology, I think it's part of the Psychology area. And they do accept credits from other courses, and they accept student loans. I did my own Psychology degree with them and they were excellent. Good Luck!

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