Thread 21 Corona Cohort - Nervous waiting, so frustrating

[Monkey2001]

Continuation of OrangeCinnamonCocktail's threads

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.

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/a4354626-Corona-Cohort-Statements-Scripted-Grades-Predicted?msgid=111487286#111487286

I’m sure this is a very basic question to ask, but can someone please explain exactly what sort of spread of grade requirements you should look for when deciding your 5 choices, and how you should then narrow down offers for your insurance?

For example, DD is being predicted AAB. Realistically, is that the highest grade requirements she should be looking at?
If she chooses 2 uni’s at that level, what should her next 2 be at, and what should her lowest/safety Uni be at?

Then, assuming she gets offers at every level, should her insurance be the lowest grade requirements of the bunch?

I’m imagining a scenario where she gets offers at AAB, ABB, and BCC - is ABB too close to her firm to use as an insurance?

So well done @heifer for your DD and also @crazycrofter - so lovely that she is exploring the world and making decisions for her future

I too actually mentioned Crazy accidentally to my HoY when discussing Ds1's wish for Accountancy apprenticeships.

And this weekend away with 2 friends I said "Piggy said....." and then went

Well done Heifer for a mummy press. You did the right thing!

That’s what I thought about Exeter, Piggy.
I don’t think Warwick would suit her at all, but she has previously mentioned Lancaster. I’ll get her to look again. She’s looking at Reading as a safety, and QM possibly.

That’s hysterical, Oblomov!

Delph? Accurately quoted? Are you really someone incredibly famous?

Have you just accepted a UN post for Covid Matt?

I really had no idea I was so famous and wise...

Warwick is a bit marmite, I think. DS should be considering it too but isn't.

Lancaster looks a bit dull on its website but it really is a forerunner of film education. Bit like UEA with creative writing.

@Oblomov21

Delph? Accurately quoted? Are you really someone incredibly famous?

Have you just accepted a UN post for Covid Matt?

Dammit I’ve been rumbled I am pleased I decided to pose for pictures with a gormless wide-mouthed grin and a thumbs up, though, because I think it looks really professional and competent

@Delphigirl re "you" looking all professional and competent - that ship long sailed ;-)

Great work Heifer to get the predicted grade up, I will be channelling your powers next week at DS's parent's evening.
Great work Also DD getting those grades up too.

Also, how safe/aspirational to be is tricky as it depends on how much they love various courses and how they feel about going into Clearing. In recent years so many of the second/third tier courses and some of the first tier courses are in Clearing that you really can be confident if picking something good up. My niece firmed Oxford, insured Bath, ended up at York (and is very happy). But some DC want certainty so will choose an Insurance which will almost definitely be in Clearing, but means they know where they stand. High grade requirements does not necessarily mean "better" course for an individual.

I like risk so I would go for 3 I love as long as grades not ridiculous and 2 which match the grades I really think I will get, or lower. Particularly this year, when some of the more competitive courses must be planning fewer offers. Then, if I got no offers, there is UCAS Extra, and if I missed the results there is Clearing.

But some people do a stupid thing - they have 2 offers they like, the course they prefer is BBB and the other one is ABB. They put the ABB one as Firm and BBB as Insurance because they don't want to put the lower grade one higher. That is clearly not rational, they are being manipulated!

The whole grades thing is annoying. DS's chosen course is quite niche. The handful of RG / top calibre type unis that do it all want AAB/ABB, then there is a considerable drop to BBC and less prestigious unis. There isn't really any in between or any much higher either! They are pretty bunched really.

@Monkey2001 ds1 was offered ABB for UEA. He only really wanted to go there. He got offers from a few others and we visited Essex as not that far away. They offered BBC if he firmed them. Ds was very tempted to firm them incase he didn't get ABB. Essex offered BBB if insurance. Thankfully he did put uEA and got the grades. But I can see how it's tempting.

For mental health nursing it looks as if all the unis require ABB for a masters and otherwise BBB. So I’m wondering what the point of an insurance would be for dd. I suppose if she decided she wanted to do a masters, she could put that first and then have a BBB offer as back up. But I don’t know whether it’s worth doing a masters…

Wheresthebeach DD also contemplating a gap year. Initially she'd put deferred on her UCAS form but I persuaded her to put 2022 entry as didn't want any offers to be put off. I'm told when they get their offers they either accept or defer. Forms have already gone off so I'm hoping that's the case.

After all my complaining on here that my DS had done nothing and knew nothing about what he wants to study at uni, he came home today asking to submit his UCAS form and that he’d spent the past 2 weeks of study periods working out what to do and where to apply to and writing his statement!
I honestly think he wouldn’t have told me at all if he hadn’t needed me to pay for the application!
He’s chosen Journalism and has applied to Sheffield, Leeds, Cardiff, Bournemouth and Brighton. I have no idea if they are any good and I’ve read his personal statement which I also have no idea about, but it’s been checked by the staff at college so I am just very relieved that he’s made some decisions and that I haven’t ended up forcing him to make them!

Lots of food for thought, thanks, Monkey.
I'd already thought that any ultra-safe insurance choice would probably either a/ go into clearing anyway, or b/ DD would choose to reject it and look for courses closer to her other 4 choices, if she misses her firm offer.
I think I'd prefer her to aim for the unis she really wants to go to, even if it's a bit risky, and take her luck in clearing or a gap year, if she doesn't pull it off.

Those are all excellent choices for journalism !

Fiddlers, that's such a big thing, isn't it? My DS never tells me snatched up to, even when I question him closely.
Glad you're has worked it out for himself

what he's up to

Wow @Fiddlersgreen, that’s amazing! We seem to have spent years discussing career and uni options with dd! The whole sixth form choice process took six months of family discussion and many long chats with her friends before she finally decided (she had 3 choices). Such independence sounds amazing! But dd is a talker.. which can be exhausting! Presumably he’s spoken to a careers advisor/teacher along the way? Or has he done all the research himself?

Thanks everyone.
@Piggywaspushed that’s great to know he’s made good choices there!
@crazycrofter he had toyed with journalism before and I think he did most of the research himself but he did sit down with someone at college who helped him choose which universities to apply to.
We haven’t visited any of them and he doesn’t currently have a preference, this is very him though, he’s very laid back so I wouldn’t be surprised if these uni’s were suggested to him and he then ran with them!

Cardiff is the tops for journalism

Well done Fiddler Junior. I guess a journalist needs to be a self starter, so that bodes well!