Moving from Australia to UK with 16 year old son - seeking school advice.

[SusieCH]

We are trying to decide whether to wait until our son finishes high school in Oz before moving back to the UK or move now (I’m keen to move now, husband would prefer to wait). Our son’s 16 and in year 10 in Oz (equivalent to GSCE year in UK) so would start 6th form in the UK in September 2024. He would just have turned 17. The Australian education system is different from the UK in that they don’t sit an equivalent to GSCEs and are therefore not used to exam pressure. Would we be setting our son up to fail? Has anyone moved from Oz to the UK and had this dilemma? We’d be interested to hear opinions and/or advice.

Have you asked advice from the college he will go to ?

If you do move I would arrange for 121 tutors specialised in a levels and the subjects he is going to do

If you post in the expats' forum on here you may get more targeted advice. You need to hear from people who've actually done it...and find a suitable school willing to admit without GCSEs.

I did once teach IB Economics to a student who'd been educated in the States and she found it a big struggle, although she was bright.

Wait.

i know several adults whose parents moved them at that sort of point; one reckons it took more than a decade of adult life to get over it (under performed really badly at A levels, went to a poor university). work life is fine for them now, but I don’t think they have ever forgiven their parents - it was not a forced move.

What's the reason for the move?

I really don't think a move before the end of high school is a good idea. It would be hugely disruptive to him and could have long term consequences. I would let him finish his education in Australia before considering a move back to the UK.

I would wait until he finishes high school

Honestly I would wait.
Academics aside this is a very tricky age to move teens. My DC are at an international school and I see big problems with this age all the time. And often these are kids moving from the same academic system (IB)

My friend did this and coped fine, went to a good university (had to take a gap year though as you had to be in the U.K. 3 years to get home university rates) but the systems are quite different, not as different as the USA though, my American friends kids really struggled when they came here eldest at 16, the school (private) had to put them down 2 years

Am not a total expert, but have had family in a similar situation.

There are issues to consider:

1. GSCEs. If he does not have Maths and English GSCEs (or an accepted overseas equivalent) he will be probably be required to sit them in any sixth form setting - otherwise they will not get their funding. In addition, he will need them going forward. Be wary of any college that does not raise this. I am pretty sure Y10 Australian education does not qualify for it. Check out here - this is what you would need in order for him not to have to sit them https://enic.org.uk/Qualifications/SOC/Default.aspx
2. College Entry Requirements and his subject choices - depending on what subjects he wants to study (and where) there are more often than not entry requirements for colleges AND courses. So for example, to sit Maths A level or Physics A level, students often need a 6+ in these subjects. Schools/colleges may flex on these for an overseas student - but you may need some kind of current school reference for them to do so. Does he know what he wants to study.
3. Uni - if he wants to study at Uni, he will have to have been living in the UK for 3 years before starting/1st Sept in order to be considered a "home" student rather than an overseas one (and charged accordingly) https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/eligibility-for-home-fee-status-and-student-support-in-england/

So there are pros/cons for moving now and later.

If you can get your son, in the next year, to sit Maths/English GSCE or equivalent (he only needs 4s, unless he wants to pursue further) then that would help the move now. It will reduce the burden on him in Sixth Form.

In addition, if he has a particular passion (e.g. Physics/Chemistry etc) then again, consider him sitting this GSCE too - or some equivalent - so he has a qualification to open doors up to him.

And YYY - ask the school/college you want him to go to.

I just lost a longish post I'd been typing, but others have said some of the things I'd been thinking in the meantime!

I think the biggest issue to consider is university (or alternatives) - what he might want to do, where he might want to do it (would he ask to stay in Australia for example?). There may be a few specialised situations where you can get home fees after less than 3 years living in the UK, but they probably won't apply to you (check!).

After thinking through that, work backwards as to the routes your son might take. I know of someone who did home-schooled IGCSEs in NZ prior to UK 6th form, that possibly made it harder for her university applications (I think she was initially applying for medicine though). Definitely do some research together about what he might need for applications.

If currently in year 10, does that mean you'd have 9 months "up your sleeve" for him to prepare for 6th form study? I think he'd need to make the most of that. IB courses are available at some private schools - could that be an option that would make sense?

Non-university higher education options are probably quite different in UK and Australia, if that's a relevant pathway again worth looking at carefully for decision making.

Don't forget that the Scottish system is different if you might end up there.

Good luck.

God the U.K. is a depressing mess at the moment. Why are you moving back? How does your son feel leaving his whole life behind?

Surely the equation is: where will he go to university? Because if he’s here when he finishes school and want to go to university in the UK, he won’t be classed as an international student ie pay huge fees.

or does he want to go in Australia?

Wait.

He won't get in to a VI form without some formal qualification, he could go to an FE college but he would start on a level 1 course.

Also if he could just slot in to a VI form he won't be elligable for 'home' universery fees and student loans.

cross posted with just about everybody - sorry!

of there is no GCSE in Oz going straight to A levels would be Awful…… I think finish high school. Presumably their leaving exams aren’t pinning it all on 3 or 4 subjects anyway so probably a kinder system.

Absolutely as per PP. I have DC with dual nationality, who could go to university in two very different jurisdictions, and the number one consideration is what will they be wanting to do age 18. Figure that out and then work backwards from there. The uk and Australian curriculum are VERY different.

It sounds like he would be a year older than everyone else. In England kids are 16 when they start sixth form. And he won’t qualify for student loans for university since he wont have been here for long enough. Do you have the means to finance him through uni (circa £30k for course fee plus the same on top for maintenance ie £60k ish).

We waited until one child was 18 and had finished high school before moving back to UK, and Dd still had 2 more years before starting UK high school. It seemed like ideal ages to us.

Kids usually start A levels aged 16.
Will he be 17 before 1 September, the year you move? That would be an extra level of complications (not insurmountable) of complication.

If he is 16 now then your son would be eligible to start sixth form in September 2023 not 2024.
Whereabouts in the Uk are you moving to?
My daughters sixth form college have a programme for students moving from overseas where there was an extra year where pupils took some GCSEs e.g. Maths and English and some level 2 qualifications before moving onto taking A levels and/or level 3 qualifications.

Yes, you would be setting him up to fail. It’s up to you whether you do that.

The A level (and IB) courses are taught and examined on the basis that students have already done GCSEs. Taking them as a first ever exam would lead to bad results compared to his peer group. Plus, the social issues and stress of moving will lower his academic reaults too.

He’d be much better finishing his secondary education in Australia and then doing university here - or even just moving out of home and staying in Australia for university while you guys move here.

It’s an odd time to move from Australia to the UK, I assume you’ve been given a tempting job offer or have family here who need you, but do bear in mind that cost of living is much higher here, commutes are longer, transport and weather are worse, houses are much smaller, the education system is in crisis and the healthcare system has completely collapsed. If you call an ambulance for a life-threatening emergency, expect a wait of several hours. It isn’t a move I’d ask children to make but if you do, make sure you can afford private healthcare and ideally also private education.

If you really need to move for family reasons, perhaps he could do boarding school in Australia for his final two years?

No

You need three years' residency to pay home fees not international, and being here solely for education ie. Boarding school does not count

I think you'll be putting your son at an extremely disadvantaged position moving forward. He will have no GCSEs or equivalent so should he want to apply for university that would impact him. It could also be an issue for any future employment as most places expect good passes in maths and English at GCSE and he will not have this.

More importantly it's a little cruel to do this to a teenager during an important educational period. Unless circumstances are unavoidable then I'd stay put until he's completed his HSC or whatever it's called now in Australia.

"Wait.

He won't get in to a VI form without some formal qualification, he could go to an FE college but he would start on a level 1 course."

Not necessarily. I taught at a FE college and we accepted an American student onto our Level 3 programme with no formal qualifications, and just his references from his school. But he really struggled. He went from being an advanced student in the US to being really behind in the UK, and I think would have been better doing his GCSEs first.

I would recommend getting in touch with the local FE or Sixth Form college and see what they offer, there's no set rules, so each college makes their own. You might find, if he comes at the end of year 11, he could do a year of GCSEs (English, Maths and a couple more) to be enough to get him onto an A level programme the year after. That's what my current college would offer, but as I said, it's up to each college to decide... so you need to talk to your local colleges.

The school I work at would allow him to start level 3 courses in sixth form and take GCSEs in English and maths. If he was 16 on arrival we'd probably support a 3 year program of study (eg one year of btec, 2 of A-levels) so that he could stay with us until he could get funding for uni. Unfortunately if he's 17 when he arrives, this wouldn't be possible.

The lack of GCSEs might limit his uni options a bit and he might not get A-levels which truly reflect his ability. But it would definitely be possible for him to study level 3 courses in England.