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Original poster

support thread for those of us who have DC submitting UCAS applications in the next few months

815 replies

mumoverseas · 21/08/2010 14:53

Thought we should all get together and calm each other down/mop fevered brows/hand around glasses of wine etc. We've seen other go through it over the past few months and it will be our turn soon.

DS has just got his AS results which were not too bad. AAAB. The B suprised him as it was for maths and we'd expected a B for french which he had not studied for a few years as sat his GCSE early. He says he will re-sit one of the maths modules and one of French ones to get a higher A Hmm

He (we!) has been considering various Unis over recent months and has visited 4.
PS is all in hand as is extended project (whatever all that is about) but time is creeping by and not long now til his mid Oct deadline (one of his choices is Oxbridge)

There has been so much in the papers over recent days about the lack of places at University at the moment and stories of how so many good students did not get places as they didn't put 'insurance' choices.

How is everyone else coping and how do we get our children to make realistic choices?

OP posts:
ajandjjmum · 04/03/2011 21:52

Well done kidsmom's DD!

FrumpyintheFrost · 04/03/2011 22:08

Yay well done - DH went to York & loved it there - but a long, long time ago

Yellowstone · 06/03/2011 15:42

There can be definite upsides to siblings being at the same place though (apart from ease of logistics and less petrol money). My eldest two girls are at the same place and like the fact that they can call round to one another if they want to. Their sister is going there in Oct and their brother is applying for 2012. I know other families the same, it can work really well.

FrumpyintheFrost · 10/03/2011 07:44

Good luck to everyone's DCs today when the results come out!

IShallWearMidnight · 10/03/2011 08:05

stress levels here much worse than last August Sad. Fingers crossed everyone gets what they need

ajandjjmum · 10/03/2011 08:20

I feel sick, never mind DD! Hope it goes well for all your DC.

FrumpyintheFrost · 10/03/2011 09:42

OK, results in, 3 x A (hurrah) and a D in Chem - oops!

Not sure what happened because he had put a lot of work into that exam, obv bombed it somehow Sad

IShallWearMidnight · 10/03/2011 10:51

all Maths papers were A (and 100 UMS for FP1 Shock) and a B in Physics here. Annoyingly I can't remember the exact marks from the summer to work out if she's got enough for an A*, and I haven't managed to speak to her yet.

Can he resit the Chemistry Frumpy? Well done on the rest though (I reckon us parents get to take a lot of the credit for all the handholding, cups of tea and angsting we do Wink).

Anyone else?

webwiz · 10/03/2011 11:04

Much relief here - A* in Core 3, 100% in the chemistry AS resit and A in the A2 paper and a B in the further maths paper that DD2 took when she was really still ill with Glandular fever. She keeps her A in further maths though as has spare marks from other papers.

Well done to your DS Frumpy hopefully he can fix the Chemistry in the summer.

Well done to your DD as well IShallWearmidnight

ajandjjmum · 10/03/2011 11:45

Well done to your DC. We didn't quite get the 4 U's expected, but not too far off. Sad

gingeroots · 10/03/2011 12:07

Congrats to those whose Dc's have got the grades they need .
Commiserations to ajandjj - I asked my Ds to text me his results today but he declined ,said he'd tell me when he gets home " it's only 5 hours ".
So ....guess he's delaying the moment of truth as opposed to anticipating sharing the glad tidings .

gingeroots · 10/03/2011 16:47

Yup - things not too bright on the results front here .
Biology worst ....
Hope others have brighter news .

ajandjjmum · 10/03/2011 17:42

Know how you feel ginger - biology was the killer here, with Business Studies a close second. I'm just thinking this might be the 'kick up the backside' certain people need.

gingeroots · 10/03/2011 17:48

what grades does your DC need ?

gingeroots · 10/03/2011 18:57

sorry ajandjj ,don't know why I asked that .
Not thinking straight .
Hope you're coping ok at your end tonight .
I feel a bit beyond worrying at the moment ,exhausted with the stress of it all .
DS was in tears earlier today ,but you'd never know it now .

webwiz · 10/03/2011 19:33

Sorry things haven't gone well for your DCs ajandjjmum and gingeroots.

FrumpyintheFrost · 10/03/2011 20:08

Congrats ISHALL..., and specially webwiz dd, such a relief for you!

ajandjj & gingeroots - sorry results aren't what you had hoped.

DS has spoken to his chemistry teacher and will get hold of his answer paper which she has offered to look over with him. Luckily it is the 4th of his 4 subjects but as he still has D2 & S2 Further Maths to take in the summer, he really neeeds to pull out all the stops to get his 3 As.(These are his weakest 2 modules)

I was wondering, does anyone know anything about M3? DSs school dont do this, but as he is also doing Physics I think there is quite a lot of overlap, so am pondering whether it might be worth trying to do this at home, to take in the summer. Or is that a completely mad idea?

webwiz · 10/03/2011 20:24

DD2 is doing M3 in the summer she says its ok but she finds the stuff on simple harmonic motion hard. I presume that overlaps with physics.

I've no idea whether it would be possible to self study it though. I think sometimes its easier to try and glean a few extra marks in subjects that are already been taken rather than taking on something new.

snorkie · 10/03/2011 21:45

well done to all & I hope some selective retakes can put those who are disappointed back on course to get the overall grades they need.

A friend's ds is planning to self teach M3 as an extra module - his school encourages it for the more able ones as apparently as it gives more flexibility with the arranging of modules between maths & further maths(?) and means they can get away with flunking one of the others I suppose. I have heard it is quite hard though and I can see the sense in not spreading yourself too thin.

webwiz has your dd chosen her firm and insurance yet? I'd be interested in hearing a bit about how she chose where to apply and what she thought of them after visiting as ds (yr12) is currently beginning to think of where to apply for maths next year.

webwiz · 10/03/2011 22:11

snorkie I think she will be choosing Bath first and York as insurance now that she has her results.

When she was choosing her universities she was trying to get a range of offers. The maths universities tend to fall into little groups so Bath, Durham, Warwick all have offers that ask for an A, then there are the ones that ask for AAA etc etc. She chose from each group so that she ended up with Bath AAA, Exeter AAA, York and Southampton AAB and Nottingham ABB. We didn't visit Exeter because DD2 decided she wanted a lower insurance offer and she didn't like the department in Southampton. Nottingham was very nice but she preferred the city and feel of York also the students that showed her round were massively enthusiastic. She just loves Bath though so hopefully she will end up there.

snorkie · 10/03/2011 22:32

That sounds such a sensible strategy webwiz, I shall suggest it to ds. I think the offers are going up yet again this year (I know Oxford will be A A A for eg), so we may need to wait until they are all set.

Bath and York are both really beautiful cities - your dd has excellent taste!

peteneras · 11/03/2011 01:57

DS just scored 100 marks in C4 Maths to add to his other 5 modules last summer therefore securing an A*. One down and a couple more to go to enter medical school in autumn.

peteneras · 11/03/2011 02:09

Congratulations to all DC who's achieved the desired results. Sorry about those who didn't but please don't give up - best wishes for summer resits.

ajandjjmum · 11/03/2011 08:14

ginger
No worries at all - I just wasn't on MN last night! She has three offers which ask for 280 points and one wanting BCC. All looked very achievable after GCSEs, but A levels - particularly this year - have gone sharply downhill. What is irritating is that she chose the first three on the basis that they asked for 240-280, so with her GCSEs and decent PS and reference, she'd hoped (expected) at least one 240 offer, which never came. The experience for many this year, I fear. Hard not to worry though, isn't it!

Well done to all those who did well - I am very jealous! Grin

For those with high expectations who did slip up, DS had a string of As at Physics until the result for his January module came out last year, and he'd got an E!!! No-one could believe it, but he'd just screwed up on the paper, and hadn't realised it. He came out with an A* overall in the summer, so although it seemed like the end of the world, it possibly gave him some added incentive.

Does this parenting worry ever end?!!!

mrswoodentop · 11/03/2011 08:27

Webwiz did either of your dd's apply to Durham ,I ask because ds1 is thinking of applying but is worried that having both parents who went to Durham will count against him.

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