Thread 30 Covid Cohort, Mad March Hareing Towards Exams

[OrangeCinnamonCroissant]

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 29

I've made this one a little bit earlier as things are so busy, at home and on thread, so please feel free to use up previous thread first

@shimy It's certainly been like this for a couple of years. DS had a TSB under 18 account that converted to a student account once he had his place. He actually has his loan paid into a different account and transfers a weekly allowance into his student account. Stops him spending too much 😁

@Seeline Well I must be completely wrong because I could've sworn ds1 opened his student account in January of the yr he went (2019) I must be remembering it all wrong. He also has 2 accounts one for the loan and another for his weekly allowance. It works great doesn't it!

I didnt even know that we needed a student account - so much admin!

Dd wants to get a Santander student account for the railcard, but it said on their website you have to be 18 (although I’m sure it didn’t say you needed a confirmed place). I assume she put her Lloyds current account down on the student finance form. I don’t remember it asking for bank details though?

@crazycrofter your are right about the 18yr old criteria, DS was told this too. They didn't say you needed a confirmed place, what they said is you can only apply for an account once you have received your A'Level results. Which means wait until August. DS has also just completed his student finance application and it asks for your banking details (obviously as they need an account to pay your maintenance loan into), ds just saved it without any bank account details for now.

So finally an update here. It's so tough out there this year. DD just rejected by Exeter - Flexible Combined Honours in Anthropology and Human Geography, on the basis that they were over subscribed with applicants with higher achieved grades/predictions. She is not too disappointed as it was her 4th preference, but is not feeling confident about getting good news from St Andrews or Edinburgh now. Her friend was rejected from them for Human Geog, but offered combined Geog at their Cornwall campus, which she is not interested in (they don't offer Anthropology at the Cornwall site so not an option in DD's case).

Thanks Nard. I was hoping he’ll be able to get the discounted railcard that Santander offer but will see what happens after results.

Seems I’ve replied nard twice .

@GoldenRuby So sorry to hear about the latest rejection. This years admissions is really brutal. Has she got any other good options if Sa/E don’t work out? Fingers crossed for her that she gets one of them.

@Shimy Ds didn't open a student account until he had results. His put his child's savings account number on student finance page, then edited once he'd opened the HSBC student account. He chose HSBC as they offered £100 cash. He didn't need a rail card so didn't go for that.

Thanks @icanbewhatiwant. That’s good to know. I’ll also check if HSBC still do the £100 cash gift & compare it with Santander’s offer.

@Shimy thanks. She has got a Durham offer, so is really pleased with that, and Sussex (but less keen as that is too close to home), but two good options.

@ChristopherTracy

I didnt even know that we needed a student account - so much admin!

They don't have to have a student account, but they can be useful with cheap/free overdrafts etc. Some have credit cards attached I think. Many have incentives - railcard, cash etc so worth exploring.

@Shimy just put some bank details and a uni choice and you can do the finance - things are changed later once you get to results day

Sorry to hear about the rejection @GoldenRuby. It’s horrible for them.

What happens if a student is too ill (COVID or something else) to sit an exam?

Sorry to read about Exeter Golden but lovely she's got a Durham offer.

Fingers crossed for everyone else waiting offers.

Kings I asked our head of sixth that question and the answer wasn't great. The grade will be awarded based on exams taken, plus any evidence the school can supply but only if they believe there is enough evidence. Got that email the Friday night, and we're broken up now. It sounds to me like no resit offered automatically - I guess they can resit in November. I've though she's had Covid now, I'm seriously thinking of keeping her off school for a week before exams (as school isn't doing study leave as far as we know) to keep her well. They won't like it, but there isn't much they'll be able to do and being healthy is much more important.

@GoldenRuby Glad to hear she’s got 2 very sound offers already. Wish her luck for more good news soon.

@Fruitygal Thanks. That’s what he’ll do for now, I just got confused it was supposed to happen before results, clearly I’m wrong.

@KingscoteStaff I think they've spread the exams out so if you're ill for one History exam, for example, you should be ok for the second one. And they will then award the grade based on that one exam.

I'm a bit worried about it to be honest, as ds has barely done a full week of school this year, with migraines and covid and he now appears to have covid again. I can't actually imagine him having the stamina to get through all those GCSEs. Also, he knows what will happen if he misses one, and I can just imagine him claiming illness for his second exams so that he only has to do half of them!

hmm how long do they realistically think you are covered by one infection - is it still 90 days or is it now much shorter? So if DS got it now from me that would be better obviously then later?

@christophertracy some individuals are becoming reinfected within 4 weeks at the moment, due to the different variants. So having it now doesn't guarantee you immunity over the exam period

@Shimy thank you for the alarm click recommendation. One of those sounds like it will do the trick!

@crazycrofter I'm another one in that position with Gcse's. I really don't know what's happening as Ds missed a whole term of schooling this year due to severe ill health. He's done his mocks, but I don't know how he's done. I also don't know where he will be going to school next year and I can't plan either.

Yikes - 4 weeks? That's not good. There's so much at stake for these kids it's madness that they are not on study leave.

I thought it was 3 months immunity. But that's not the case DD will def have time off to wfh.

@crazycrofter That sounds very tough. And GCSE's are a real marathon. Hope he stays well.

Why are some of the schools not doing study leave this year? DS goes on study leave on 13th May. He got his last set of mocks back which are pretty good thankfully, he got A*AB 1% off an A for Bio. I wish they’d ‘found’ him the extra mark or two just so they had some ‘evidence’ in case of Covid crisis! He is not worried at all about the exams being cancelled or not sitting one despite my explaining the issue. His head is firmly on the sand.

Same with both of mine @JustHereWithMyPopcorn, planning to work harder for the real things and feeling quite relaxed . It doesn’t even cross their minds that they may not go ahead/they could miss one. Dd also got A*,A,B so it wouldn’t be the end of the world but ds’ latest report is still showing 4 and 5 for two of the sciences. He’s done loads of revision for them now and feels confident - but he hasn’t demonstrated that at all at school because he’s been focused on his own personal revision and not bothered with homework/school work But if he got the grades from his latest report it would be ok I suppose. He might have to switch from Business A Level to BTEC.

Both kids are off today with blocked nose/sore throat/headache - sounds like covid again?

DD last day is May 27th apparently, so they have a week of exams whilst in school full time and then the other 3 weeks she only has to go in for exams. Luckly DD only has 2 the first week.