Corona Cohort: Statements Scripted, Grades Predicted

[Monkey2001]

This is a thread for supporting all young people post GCSEs 2020, regardless of their educational setting. It is respectfully requested that all are supportive and helpful to each other. If you want to start a debate, e.g state vs private, please don't within this thread. Please also be sensitive when responding to threads about grades.

Some of us have been here since first thread back in yr10, some will be new. Everyone has been friendly and helpful in the past. Everyone is welcome. It is hoped this will continue.

From OrangeCinnamonCocktail:

Our DS/DD may go down various paths (such as employment, apprenticeships, higher ed) We have decided for anyone interested they will most likely find us within the Further Ed board.

Previous thread - www.mumsnet.com/Talk/further_education/4339233-Thread-19-Corona-Cohort-Enrolling-on-Year-13-hopefully-NOT-unlucky-for-some?pg=1

Thanks for the link @Monkey2001. Now to see if he’ll watch anything I send him! Dd doesn’t ….

@Seeline, thanks for that tip. We can’t even find his size on eBay from the tails we’ve found (used). I doubt any of his teachers would be his size to be honest as DS is quite petite, he’s 5ft.6.

Another possible option would be to ditch the whole tails thing and have a traditional top made for him from our home country, so unique, custom made & roomy enough for arm movement and ten times cheaper but I don’t know wether this would be a big No, no?

Personally I think it’s a lovely idea Shimy! I love to see the personality of conductors played out in their attire

I think that would be wonderful! Equally, a black shirt and trousers, or a white shirt with fancy waistcoat. A look at the conductors at The Proms shows pretty much anything is fine.

Okay, I hope his housemaster will be as positive about it as you have. I know English dos can be very strict in their dress code and he doesn’t want to let his house down.

Dd has gone to RHU on her own today (she refused to get up early doors to go with me). I hope she'll be ok. DN is there so hope he is awake and they can meet up! I need to go through the insurance offer thing with her, she was suggesting she might get in to.RHU if her planned insurance (Surrey) doesn't let her in, but Surrey entry requirements are BBC and RHU ABB so it is not likely...bless !

I think we are going to have an issue with insurance too orange. DDs favourite has a lower offer than most if her other choices. The only one in the running with lower grades is probably her 4th choice. 2nd and 3rd are definitely higher. 5th is also higher, but that is really there to fill the 5th slot 🙄 Probably just wait and see what offers come in. There's always clearing......

Insurance will be issue for us, too, if DS doesn't get a Cambridge offer. They are otherwise all AAB/ABB . Sheffield is BBB but is not his favoured course.

DS is also in a similar situation with his choices. However, the way we look at it is, although some of the choices have the same standard offer requirements, We factored in which ones were more likely to be flexible on results day. Durham for instance is AAB for ds’s course and would be a great insurance but so also is Birmingham. We felt Durham was quite rigid in its offerings and if things don’t go to plan on results day, Birmingham might be more malleable so knocked Durham off the list.

@Seeline DDs favourite after Oxford is lower than her third choice but is the same - for now- as number four and five.
So, much of a muchness and we’ll also wait to see what offers she gets before considering a firm or insurance.

You see this is another reason why I think the entry data should be available for all. It so hard to make those choices, unless you know what the true situation is RHU says ABB entry requirements but also will consider two A-Levels. There is so much background research needed to be done !

It was quite helpful in the Southampton Open day talk when they said they would see what they could do with entrance grades...but would insist on at least B in Music A Level....but why can't that be on their website?

But the last two years will have skewed the entry data due to no public exams?

This is an interesting take on how to choose firm and insurance I think.

Basically don't trust the offers - they're inflated because the universities are so keen to be firmed, because if they're firmed the ball is in their court and it's completely up to them who comes.

I agree with everything in that video re: university offers, it is a game, one we played for ds1 and it worked a treat.

Have seen quite a lot of flexibility in accepting missed grades in past (for years when exams were on) amongst the DC of friends and DD’s friends so I guess those of you who are teachers have seen it a lot? Have seen Bristol accept a dropped Chemistry grade for Veterinary for example .

Wasn’t very surprised to hear what the guy in video above said. I think Shimy makes a very good point about having an idea who is likely to be a bit flexible. I made a note of who had clearing spaces the night before results put this year for DS’s subjects.

As well as inflating grades in recent years ‘playing the game’ as per above video it has given Universities a little control against exams being cancelled and over offering to some extent.

The single biggest thing that bothers me is accommodation not being guaranteed. There is a very small bit of me that hopes DS gets rejected flat out by Cambridge, rather than accepted and then misses the grades as then we do get into that awful madcap rush to sort out accommodation and that has been very fraught this year for many students.

In all honesty, at this point in time, I’d be more wary of universities that were offering guaranteed accommodation after two years of having ‘their fingers burned’
Our Corona Cohort don’t know if their A levels are to be decided by public exams, reduced content exams, or the next version of GAVs, CAGs or TAGs.
That’s before we - and they- consider if the ‘grade inflation’ will be allowed to continue or be pegged back to 2019 levels, 2020 levels or some point in between!

Agree with you Proggy, so many unknowns- need to add in deferrals from this year too.

@Volterra was just about to add that point and gap year entrants with grades in hand!

...And the return of international students in person, not just online!

@ealingwestmum yes that too!

It's just all irritating me at the moment, I'm not sure why...I think i'd just rather transparent and easy to find info.

Dd managed to get to RHU by herself, three changes on the train. Suspect she feels a bit grumpy about it all and is hungry has reported to me it is 'disorganised' . Weather probably isn't helping...DN is giving her a tour of his halls...at some point.

Best look for tents in the January sales then..