Class of 18. No need for new school shoes

[OhYouBadBadKitten]

Old thread:www.mumsnet.com/Talk/further_education/3478916-Class-of-18-now-in-2019-blimey

A thread for those of us whose kids left school/sixth form/college a year ago. Friendly chat :)

Good luck to your dd Hardwick!

Oh my goodness, I lost you all before bloody covid! It's great to find you again.
It seems very strange to be thinking of the dc who are finishing this year, ds1 still has 2 years to go. He's been home for most of this year doing lectures and exams remotely and returning for practical lessons. Being based in Hertfordshire rather than London has meant that he can drive back which is quicker and cheaper than the train. He tries to go to their house when his (very lovely) girlfriend is also there, I have to say that they have been very mature throughout, making the most of the short time they have together.

Ds1 has also finished ...big dissertation and some essays but no exams on his particular course.
He is staying in his uni city and hoping to find a (menial but confidence building) job now, which will prepare him for job hunting next Sept. He comes back and forth and at the moment we are enjoying the Leftovers (drama series) with him. He wants to write for screen, he says! Quite sotto still and very cautious since last March, he is applying for auditions in uni productions again now. Apparently there is a Timberl*ke W play in prep for next year he wants to try for.
Dog continues to be lovely but we had a sad incident..one of our cats was killed by a speeding car as he crossed the road, car was too fast or maybe cats reflexes were slow. He was 13, and it was instant, and I'm glad he didn't suffer some dreadful op and that the speeding car will watch for children now, but it is a shock.
My dog loves no mow May!

I am sorry about your cat Nettle that is very sad. Your ds has exciting plans - when hes a famous screen play writer you'll have to invite us all to one of the swanky does I'm sure they must have!

dd finished third year exams. She got through them happily enough, so is enjoying her freedom now until she starts a summer placement. Results in a week or so. Do you remember how I used to cook her breakfasts before every gcse and a level exam? She has kept up that cooked breakfast tradition which makes me daftly happy.

@UrsulaPandress - do you know, is the SLC postgrad loan application page still not open? Or am I being an idiot.....?

DS is back home, along with all the belongings he has accumulated. After poor health in the first term, ambivalence about the course at times, and the challenges of strikes and pandemic, he has had the time of his life over the last six weeks. He spent every day hanging out with a small group of close friends. I'm glad he has finished on a high.

No idea when he will get results / degree, as the staff at his university are on a marking boycott and the external examiner for his subject has resigned.
Thankfully the job he'll be doing for the next year is not conditional on receiving his results.

I'm so pleased it got better for him Bronze He has overcome challenges this year.
How on earth final exams can just not be marked though is beyond me.

@janinlondon - I think post grad funding is available now - I don't think you could apply before July for Masters funding.

DD is now undecided about doing a Masters. She has Covid, again and was one of the students caught in the trap of moving out of rental and meant to be going home before next rental started. Fortunately she and the current squeeze could camp out at a friend's whose rental extended a couple of weeks further. Listening to You and Yours last week, so many students were caught in this trap and were being charged £100 per night to stay on in their rented properties having tested positive. Or breaking 'the law' and going home as they had nowhere else to go. Someone really didn't think this through!!!

And some Liverpool students haven't got their results yet as the lecturers are on strike.

DS was one of those affected by industrial action and not having exams marked. Funny that they have now managed to give him a degree without marking all of his work......

He has now decided not to take the Masters place at the university he did his undergrad degree at, he has applied to one in our home city and is just waiting to hear if he has a place. In the meantime he is lying about the house, complaining that we eat too early in the evenings and not sorting his shit out that has taken over the garage.

He still has a boot on 12 weeks on from his Achilles tendon injury but you'll be glad to know it isn't affecting his social life. He and his friends seem to spend an awful lot of time booking tables in pubs to watch the football.........

that's rotten for your dd Ursula she must be so fed up.

The results are in, and DS got a 2:1! He was heading for a 2:2, but got a 1st in his dissertation, which pulled everything up. I'm so happy for him.

Congratulations to your DS!

Congrats to your DS!

Congratulations to your DS

Congratulations, what lovely news.

That's brilliant Bronzegate. Congratulations to your ds!

Many congratulations to your DS Bronzegate, what great news after such a grim time.

Thanks @UrsulaPandress - I have found it now! Sorry for your DD and all the others who have been caught in this trap.

It’s a 2:1 for ds.
He’s home with us for just over a month and then moving to Southampton to start as an associate with a chartered accountancy firm. His exam prep materials for his professional exams arrive next week and he needs to clear all his stuff out from the loft so fun times ahead. I’m looking forward to a dramatically lower grocery bill.

DD is heading back to her uni town today and will be staying till Christmas we expect. She has taken her beloved but very elderly and frail cat with her on the 7hr journey because the vet thinks it a safer bet than him staying in our house with building work going on. He's blind and very slow so really wouldn't be safe with walls moving etc.

DD has been told not to expect much face to face first semester. For her it may be nothing till labs restart. She's hoping to get a part time job somewhere, maybe tutoring or something without fixed hours.

Fourth year here she comes!

DS and I just "attended" his "graduation ceremony" on Zoom. The whole thing was 20 minutes long. A lot of that was taken up with technical difficulties, awkward silences waiting for the transition to the next segment, and interruptions from unmuted guests. The speech from the head of DS's subject department had been pre-recorded and had no sound.

Fortunately DS didn't have high expectations, and was able to laugh about it. I'm just relieved that (at his request) we hadn't made an event out of it (hiring a gown, inviting family etc).

Some of his friends had hoped for a proper graduation, so he's a little disappointed for them.

Congratulations to your DS Shanghai.

DD deferred her exams, so is currently doing those. She has been told lectures are online next year, at least until Christmas. Seminars would be in person, but her particular courses will also be online as the lecturers are vulnerable.

Bronzegate such a shame about graduation.

Ds moved into his flat last week and has been surprisingly productive: joined the gym, worked out route to work, changed electricity suppliers, started baking again..
It’s great to see him so enthusiastic after 18 months of moaning!

@OhYouBadBadKitten
@Knotaknitter
@UrsulaPandress
@HardwickWhite
@starfleet
@Bronzegate
Apologies for all the tagging! How are you and your dcs?

@ShanghaiDiva - hope things are going well for your DS. How is he enjoying his job?

All good here with DS - part way through his post grad, he wasn't sure about it initially but is now enjoying it. He is living at home and commuting as are most of his course.

He is more relaxed. It was difficult when he moved home after 3 years a away and it took him a while to settle back.

He does drive back to his old university city often as a few good friends have stayed for their post grad courses and 4 of his old halls flatmates/2nd year house share are back from in year in industry. He is also back playing football with them after his achilles injury last year.

We have an actual graduation ceremony in April - I'm quite excited and have bought a new frock. Him not so much.......