Worth carrying on with A levels?

[Maliko]

DS has target grades of C,C,C in English, History and Psychology. His predicted grades are D,D, C. Is there any real reason to carry on? Surely grades that low won't get him into to uni?

Has he applied to any unis? Has he had any offers?

What does he want to do at uni?

He's in year 12 so hasn't applied. He wanted to do English or Psych at uni but I can't see that happening with these grades.

They will get him into uni. Dd didn't get amazing grades, she's now at uni and I've never seen her so happy. She just got a high 2.1 in her first assessment.

But there will be plenty of posters piling on to say there is no point in going to uni with those grades and that a mythical apprenticeship would be better.

He might have to be flexible. Look for joint honours at ex polys. If you pick a good one, in a lively city with nice accommodation, there's no reason to think he won't love it

So they have predicted his grades on the basis of half a term's work? That seems very early.

How have his target grades been determined?

Is he the type to see this as a bit of a kick up the backside and start working harder, or is he working at his limit now? Did he get decent GCSEs?

What does he want to do? Has he got anything extra to boost his application? Out of school activities? Do a foundation year at university? I know a couple who did these before starting the course proper when they didn’t get the grades. Universities are keen to offer them these days.

what were his GCSEs like?

He still does scouts but that's it really. We have talked about pulling him out and trying at a smaller private 6th form. Fundamentally I don't think he has the skills needed for independent learning. His GCSEs were mostly 6s with a 3 and a 4.

Are BTECS an option? Bloody brilliant things.

I’m sure he’ll get in somewhere with those grades. I wouldn’t worry at all. And it’s very early days yet in his course.

Tbh, 3 x Cs in those difficult subjects with 6s at gcse is pretty good. But I would have been looking at btecs from the start.

Is he enjoying the course so far? That will make a big difference.

I agree with Trewser.
With those GCSEs, Cs seem pretty good. Would BTECs be a possibility?

Those grades are not an issue, there are many uni's that would be very grateful for a student with CCC. And those are the types of uni's that may offer more student support as their students are less likely to have excellent independent study skills. So it's a win win.

Start having a look at places that typically ask for CCC, noting that they're likely to accept CDD. Go to some Open Days and ask specifically about the student support available. You may be very pleasantly surprised, it's a world away from my day when we were somehow just magically expected to progress from spoon feeding at school to independent study at uni. Good luck!

A friend of mine went to study geography with DDE. He didn't even have to go through clearing. I think the offer was made on the basis of him achieving BCC but on results day the university accepted him anyway. I think it very much depends on the university and how much demand there is for the course.

The grades aren’t the problem. This attitude of dropping out if the grades aren’t high enough is. I know plenty of people, myself included, who have completed degrees and got onto 6 figure salary jobs with his target or predicted grades. As a PP said most unis would be able to accomodate him - if he can’t study the subjects he wants there are plenty of others available. He just needs to research and you need to support him to finish something.

Yes, what universities say they want and what they are prepared to accept can be rather dissimilar, even at some “top” universities.

Those grades are not an issue, there are many uni's that would be very grateful for a student with CCC. And those are the types of uni's that may offer more student support as their students are less likely to have excellent independent study skills. So it's a win win

I agree with this. Dd has had extra maths lessons, loads of tutor and mentor time and extra essay writing lessons. Brilliant.

Education is about more than grades. It’s also about lifting his skills from where they were 6 months ago to where they can get to in 18 months time. There’s plenty of value in staying on even if he doesn’t get grades that whisk him straight to university.

It is very early to predict grades, especially in essay based subjects where progress is cumulative as technique develops. Have a look at the entry requirements for prospective courses, English may be a struggle to find at those grades but a combined honours or something like Comparative Literature more possible.

Not sure why you say that, LIZS, there are loads of uni's offering English degrees who will bite your hand off with CCC. The UCAS website is a great starting point. Look at the "English" subject area and you'll see a huge variety in entry requirements. Many lower than CCC.

Obviously, it would help if he vould get to a point where his predicted grades at least match his target grades - has he asked for / been offered guidance re what needs to happen for this to take place? (One of DD's Eng. Lit. teachers spent a lot of time telling the class that they needed to write A level standard essays, not GCSE, but gave precious little help on the subject until really pushed). But in any case, has he thought of starting with a foundation year at university? Some universities only allow Year 0 entry for specified groups (mature applicants, applicants from 'under represented groups', good enough grades but wrong subjects etc), but some encourage applicants who just haven't quite got the grades and need help with study skills, e.g.
www.sussex.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/courses/psychology-with-a-foundation-year-bsc

An English degree is tricky, both on terms of the volume of reading and level of critical thinking. Even getting accepted with middling grades does not guarantee that their analytical and essay writing skills will meet the demands of the degree and the first year could prove hard while developing them.

I'm sure there will places which accept him if he gets a mix of Cs and Ds.
Perhaps what you mean, is will somewhere with a strong reputation take him - and with those grades he won't be looking at the prestigious locations, so it depends if you think the living costs and tuition costs and debt those will probably bring are worth the sort of degree from the sort of place he will probably get. There's no right answer to that and it's a personal decision. Some will decide going to uni is an experience in itself which is worth a lot and having any degree is better than none. Others these days decide that especially a non-vocational degree at a less prestigious uni isn't worth the £60k of debt.

I'd say it is early days if he's only half a term in. He needs to keep going and develop determination and study skills. I wouldn't encourage him to entertain the idea of dropping out as if he is a but work-shy that will just be the excuse he needs to not push himself from the start. Emphasis the need to work hard and that he needs to be aiming for the higher target grades not lower current predictions. I would keep a close eye on things and review towards the end of the L6th. If he is looking more like achieving EEE or failing, then it won't be worth carrying onto the U6th. If he hasn't got a work ethic to get through the A Levels and pass or to actually study whilst at uni having spent all that money in getting there, I would question if it's worth it. But for someone who works steadily and has a good focus and who gets a mix of Cs and Ds there are uni courses which can be worth doing and open doors to jobs - work ethic is very important in all this.

If uni is something he's interested in, I'd suggest he looks at sites like WhatUni where he can put in his chosen subject and predicted grades, and it'll then show courses available. Some unis, especially those that'll take lower grades, work on ucas points which will give some flexibility if one subject is harder than the others.