Thread 23 Covid Cohort Stepping Into Christmas, Tests, Mocks & Interviews

[OrangeCinnamonCocktail]

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

@20newnames/ DS / Engineering
@Alsoplayspiccolo/ DD / English + Film
@AnneofCleavage/ DD / gap year? Primary Education
@BlueMarigold/ DD / Biology
@cariadambyth/ DD / History / Southampton, Bath Spa, Warwick, RHUL
@collywobble/ DS / PPE, Economics / Lancaster (AAB)
@crazycrofter/ DD / Child (?) + Mental Health Nursing
@Decorhate/ DS / Economics + Politics
@Delphigirl/ DS / Oceanography
@DoggerelBank/ DS / tbc sciencey
@ealingwestmum/ DD / Middle Eastern and European Studies
@EerilyDisembodied/ DS / History or Environmental Management
@estherfrewen/ DS / History / Birmingham (ABB), Cardiff (ABB-BBB), Warwick (AAB)
@EwwSprouts/ DS / Biology
@Fiddlersgreen/ DS / Journalism / Bournemouth (104 pts), Brighton (BCC), Cardiff (ABB)
@Fruitygal/ DD / Biology
@Hattifatteners/ DD / Vet Med
@Heifer/ DD / Biology
@Hopeful201/ DS / Medicine
@Horace123/ DS / Classics / Edinburgh 34/665
@icanbewhatiwant/ DS / History + Philosophy
@Isthisjustnormal/ DS / Comp Sci
@JustHereWithMyPopcorn/ DS / Law
@KingscoteStaff/ DD / Medicine
@Knickerthief1/ DD / Child nursing / York
@Monkey2001/ DS / Medicine
@mummabear74/ DD / Environmental Science
@mummyinbeds/ DS / Law + French Law / Birmingham (AAA), Kent (AAB)
@Nard75/ DS / Maths
@NCTDN/ DD / Liberal Arts
@Oblomov21/ DS / Accountancy / Southampton ABB
@OrangeCinnamonCocktail/ DD / Music (uni)
@PaddingtonPaddington/ DD / Music (cons)
@Piggywaspushed/ DS / Social sciences / Birmingham (AAB-ABB), York (AAB-ABB)
@ProggyMat/ DD / Classics / Bristol (BBB), Edinburgh
@SandyBayley/ DD / Medicine
@Seeline/ DD / Liberal Arts / UEA (AAB), Kent (BBB), Nottingham (AAA)
@Shimy/ DS / Business + Management / Birmingham (AAB-ABB), Loughborough
@singingstones/ DS / Neuroscience
@Volterra/ DS / Maths
@whatsnext2/ DD / English joint hons
@Wheresthebeach/ DD / gap year? Marine Biology / Southampton, Portsmouth
@whoamitojudge/ DD / RyanAir cabin crew training
@Zebracat/ DD / Liberal Arts or Anthropology
@ZittiEBuoni/ DD / tbc applying next year

@whoamitojudge I've been wondering how your Dd getting on for you. Thanks for update, I'm sure there will be some 'high points' to report back. So exciting for her .

@Wheresthebeach talk to Portsmouth my DS1 - he’s dyslexic and narrowly missed the grades and they accepted him. He had a strong PS and clear interest in the subject he was studying. This wasn’t a crazy year like this but Portsmouth are flexible. Just need to check on the subject.

Cheers @Fruitygal. Lots to discuss with DD then. Fingers crossed for flexibility if needed!

Good luck to your dd @whoamitojudge, hope she settles in and makes friends. Hopefully you'll get used to her being away, but I can imagine it must be hard

Congratulations whoami, so pleased.
Could you get a pet? A tortoise? A large bottle of gin?

Hee hee at pet gin. Well done to baby whoamI. It must be very hard to say goodbye to an only, especially as this course seemed to appear quite suddenly. But so wonderful that she got her hearts desire.

We had so many children, and part shares in other peoples’ that I’m never really sure how many I have. But this is definitely the last and I think I may do a little dance when we drop her off next Autumn. We are certainly planning a big holiday for October.
lovely to hear all the offers coming in. Although it is making me a bit anxious that there will be none left.😬 The application is now waiting for school to send. I’m trying not to ask every day if it’s gone yet.last of the mocks today so I’m hoping that attention will now turn to the NEAs in history and Computer science. She never really mentions psychology so I don’t know what nasties lurk there.

Congratulations to whoami, it must be really strange for you. I have been dreading the empty nest next Autumn but yesterday DS1 (nearly 21) announced he’s moving back home which we hadn’t really expected (not at uni). So I won’t have an empty nest for a while longer.

We haven’t told DS2 (the one I write about here) yet, will break that to him gently. I’m not sure how happy he’ll be . He will be mostly pissed off that he doesn’t get the house to himself while DH and I go away for a few days I think!

Combine the two?

Ooh DD’s finally off the blocks with an offer from Leeds of A, B, M2 (Pre U).

Yay!

Well done @ealingwestmum dd!

I wish I had such positive news! Dd spoke to the careers advisor today and now thinks she wants to do a Psychology degree! I can’t take any more uni visits/long debates/indecision! A year out would be the obvious answer but she’s adamant she won’t do that!

Fantastic, @ealingwestmum

Fantastic @ealingwestmum - great news

DS got Lancaster offer today AAB or ABB if firmed but hoping his Lancaster Access Programme will knock that to BBC - that comes later seemingly. That's plain History

@crazycrofter, oh no! I can relate to that feeling of limbo. Would be nice to have a decision they can stick to, at least until the summer. Which of psychology or mental health nursing would be easier to negotiate a place for in clearing, I wonder, if a last minute switch was needed?

And wonderful news for your DS, @estherfrewen. These offers are coming in thick and fast for everyone's talented offspring.

Well done to mini @ealingwestmum

Aghhhhhhh! So DH apparently supervised DS doing the last few bits of the UCAS form (after I did all the PS to-ing and fro-ing I didn't think I needed to supervise the rest in great depth), I said, ok let's add on the 4th choice and submit it. DS merrily goes to submit and I say, hang on let's double check it first.

Thank f**k I did. He had missed further maths GCSE off it altogether (grade 8 and he is applying for engineering so pretty relevant), also not put any employment history in... I talk him through adding those and convinced him to save it as pdf, print it and we'll have a final check later. There is no f'ing attention to detail, I had to tell him to put capitals in the address details!!!, it's driving me mad.

Can I check that the only place work experience goes is in the personal statement, there isn't anywhere extra for it is there?

Thankfully he reacted ok to DS1 coming back to live at home which was a relief.

Well done to mini @estherfrewen too!

crazy, you must be pulling your hair out!

@20NewNames your post made me laugh out aloud on the tube 🚇 getting funny looks ?!😂🤣 there IS a separate section for work experience on ucas form !!

Thank you everyone. And well done esther to your son, hope the Access Programme brings the offer down if the further cushion takes the stress off?

20newnames, that’s the way it goes…they have moments of pure genius and then daft as a brush moments later! Lovely to look forward to one shortly out, one back home.

Congratulations 🎉 on offers @ealingwestmum and @estherfrewen !

Congrats on more offers @estherfrewen and @ealingwestmum

@20NewNames 🤣 Men!! I will always regret trusting DH to go over Biology coursework with DS1, he is a very good report writer himself, but supervising someone else not a strength! Missed an A* by the tiniest margin and sorting the SPAG in coursework would have tipped him over.

@crazycrofter oh no!!! Can you remind her she wanted something very practical and hands on, which Psychology isn't? My niece got her place for Psychology at York in Clearing with A*AB. Careers advisors can be useless, a friend was cross this week when her DD was told she could be a volunteer by the Careers Advisor! I suspect there was more to it - maybe they said you could get a job to pay the bills and volunteer to fulfill other interests, but that was the message she took away.

crazy I wouldn’t know where to start on supporting vocational type courses, I hope you all get some clarity on how to proceed if she goes ahead with 2022 entry.

Glad it made someone laugh , I'm still fuming inside!

Sorry to be a pain but where exactly does work experience go on the UCAS application then? He has his employment in there, part time jobs. But he did a week of very relevant work experience, which of course is referred to in the personal statement. That didn't look like it should go in the employment history bit. Having a google shows that in the past that would have gone in there and there was a bit for full time/part time/ work experience but now it only says full time and part time.

Feel a bit late to this but I had left the actual form itself to DH and DS, obviously foolishly

How exciting but quick for @whoamitojudge. Hope she settles in and has the best time - well done her for going to follow her dreams - my DD wouldn't be ready yet, she needs that further year I think..

Well done on more offers - it's very exciting seeing them coming in - my DD is currently off sick (Full of cold and chesty cough she hasnt been able to shift for over 2 weeks). I think she may be working on her PS along with some revision/homework but I've given myself 24 hrs off mentioning the words Personal Statement today :-)

@crazycrofter Has your hair turned grey yet?? :-)

@20NewNames - I haven't seen UCAS form yet... maybe tomorrow I will ask DD to log in so I can take a look around it..