Reassuring BTEC thread for those who don’t get the GCSE’s they need.

[EddieHowesBlackandWhiteArmy]

I just wanted to start a thread in anticipation of results day tomorrow.

My DD got her results in 2020 and safe to say the CAG’s were not the results she had hoped she would get. They did not permit her to study the subjects at her 6th Form that she really wanted to do. In fact they didn’t get her onto A-Levels full stop.

After a most unpleasant morning she contacted her school and they informed her that all the results qualified her for was admission on to their BTEC courses. She was gutted and honestly, so was I. I am forever grateful to the wise women on the Corona cohort thread who reassured me that BTECs weren’t a dead end qualification. I’m embarrassed now that I even thought that but I was brought up that A-Levels were the be all and end all of qualifications and without A-Levels you’d never get into uni. I was incredibly snobby about BTECS and thought they were for students who weren’t capable of achieving academically.

2 years down the line I wanted to come back and for anyone who might be in a similar position that we were in 2020 reassure them that BTECs have been bloody brilliant for my DD, the constant assessment through coursework and the ability to resist exams throughout the the course of study has really suited her way of learning and she’s achieved fantastic results, earning two distinctions which have given her the equivalent of two A’s at A Level in terms of UCAS points. Last week she got into her first choice uni. She did convince her school to allow her to take one A-Level which she achieved a D In which I think says everything about how BTEC’s can really bring out the best in a pupil.

So I just wanted to reassure anyone who might need to learn about BTEC’s for the first time tomorrow. I knew very little about them and what I thought I knew was a very prejudiced view. In hindsight they’ve been the best thing that could have happened and I wish there had been a similar thread for me on results day in 2020.

The people I've heard have had difficulties have been on the IT and engineering courses rather than health and social care, I don't know anyone who has taken those ones yet.

@OddGoingsOn I would carefully with T Levels as many Unis didn’t accept them when DS was applying last year.

However another BTEC success here. I was also snobby about them but DS didn’t listen and said he’d rather he did a subject he lovef for two years than A levels for the sake of it. He did computer games design
One of the big advantages is that you have something tangible for your efforts His final project was amazing. He could have used that to get a job in the industry, even if he didn’t do enough to get into Uni.
When all his friends were stressing about revision he was enjoying tweaking his final game design. All in and done and dusted when the others were sitting their A levels.
He had offers from all five unis. Three were RG and the other two gave him unconditional offers.

He’s off to Warwick and excited by his course. Many of his friends feel burned out and want a gap year.

That’s impressive!

I really wish there’s a re think on Btec funding

Thank you so much everyone for your advice. After a VERY long day exploring options, he’s all enrolled…Level 3 Music Production here he comes!!! It just feels right for him. Amazing brand spanking new building with the best facilities and the staff seem fabulous! I’m over the moon too. A bit of travelling but only 3 days a week so he can do that. Seeing his face light up about the prospect of studying his passion was the best feeling. Thank you again everyone!

Ah that’s lovely! Well done - sounds like a good choice.

@OddGoingsOn that's fantastic- that's exactly what you want, for them to feel inspired and enthusiastic and ultimately enjoy their eduction. Very pleased for you.

this is brilliant! My DS is also doing games design as a BTEC and I am hoping he really enjoys it. So lovely to hear first hand experience

@lightisnotwhite brilliant result for your DS. Mine also did computer games design BTEC and achieved an unconditional offer from his top choice uni.

@FunnysInLaJardin hope your DS enjoys it!

It's not the colleges, it's the employers and the hours.

BTEC work placements are 240 hours and the content is mainly dictated by the college / teacher so if I was teaching health and safety then I'd ask them to bring in various policies from the work placement and document any training they had.

T Levels expect the employer to provide 315 hours but that has to be structured so the student does different things.

So for BTEC HSC a lot of students did placements in care homes or nurseries. They were supervised but often used as an extra pair of hands. They were more likely to be giving out cups of tea and biscuits or changing nappies than true nursing care. And that is absolutely fine, they can see the kind of work different professionals do and become part of a team.

The T Level work placements asks the employer to provide training, and they want the students to do things like take a medical history, learn how to take physiological measurements such as BP, blood sugars or to shadow a midwife.

NHS staff are stretched, so do you think they want to have a teenager in tow while they are working? And then to give the student a project which they then have to assess?

Another suggestion is:

Design and develop ideas for distraction techniques supporting the development of the well and sick child and present them to the team.

That sounds great on paper, but you have to get a team together to listen to a student present something they probably already know.

Also I'm not sure if a 16 year old is ready to be on wards / in labs. I don't mind medical or nursing students observing when I'm in hospital, heck I asked a medical student if she wanted to intubate me (she was shadowing an anesthetist) but I feel a bit different about a college student. I can't articulate why.

Thank you for this op. I must admit I've been ignorant about BTECs too. Dd2 has just achieved a pretty unspectacular string of GCSE results and is doing a Btec for one of her 6th form options. I've been concerned about its 'validity' too, however one of dd1's friends has recently got into a very highly-regarded Uni with two Btec distinctions and an a level.

@OddGoingsOn brilliant news. That passion will serve him well

@OddGoingsOn Brilliant choice to go with what they love. “It’s not the things you do you regret, it’s the things you don’t …”

@FlyingPandas @FunnysInLaJardin Thank you. I am pleased and relieved. He’s really looking forward to Uni and has got so much more confident knowing he’s got into a good one.
Also I get the impression that computing of any sort will guarantee them a career and DS is finding it much easier to imagine a path now it’s fine tuned a bit.

The choices at FE level felt much trickier having to find the right subjects, right college and get the right grades with a fair amount of expectation thrown in.

Can I add a BTEC success story. DD did very badly at GCSE. She didn’t pass English and had less than 5 passes. I pushed the college to let her do a Level 3 extended diploma, which only happened once the Principal got involved, and she came out with triple Distinction* (and passed her English). She then got her dream job and was promoted within 6 months. I honestly couldn’t be prouder of her.

Loving all of the positive stories in this thread and that it has been useful for some who were in a similar situation to us.

My ds just completed the T level in digital something and will now do the HNC and HND at the same college and may convert to full degree afterwards - and he's also working 2 days a week as a software developer for a start up company who are set to take on millions on contracts and who want to keep ds on and are already discussing finding his degree at the end and future salaries and terms and conditions of employment if he wanted to stay on.

That was through a placement he had to do as part of the T level.

I doubt A levels would have got him the same bright future!

That's interesting because for T level a merit is BBB equivalent for ucas and pass is equivalent to the grade you got for year 1 so C-E.

An Extended Diploma BTEC 3 x D is equivelent to 3 A levels ie 168 ucas points

3 x distinction stars that should be 3 x A*

Hi OP just working my way through reading TFT but wanted to give a huge thanks for starting this thread as we may be looking at this in two years ...

I'm so chuffed things worked out for your DD it must be good for building resilience to climb such a hurdle

As I read on a similar thread a few days ago ... there's more than one road to Rome

This in bucket loads

My daughter was awarded all GCSEs, so could have chosen any course. But she chose 1 BTEC and two A levels. By far, the BTEC style of learning suited her best, and she got the highest grade in it. She's not great with exams (procrastinates until too late!) so it was the best decision for her.

I'm fairly sure it is the BTEC that secured her place at a RG uni. If she had done 3 A levels, I don't think she wouldn't have got the ABB grade needed for her course.

Thankfully, her degree is fairly practical, and there's not too many written exams in that either!!

I'm a fan and think my younger child will also do a BTEC for one of her college options too.

Thank you

BTEC changed Ds2’s whole attitude to learning. He really didn’t enjoy school but has loved his experience with BTEC and is engaged, motivated and much more confident. He completed his level 3 with merit and is now halfway through a higher level BTEC in games design which will give him the option to top up to degree level. He’s responded well to the structure of the course and the college is supportive while allowing much more autonomy.

DD went to 6th form and A levels/EPQ route. She did well and is now at her chosen uni but says it felt much more of a results factory experience and there was a lot of pressure. Each child’s learning style is individual when making these choices but having compared the two the BTEC route has proved a much more positive experience and more geared to a lifelong leaning mindset rather than potential burnout.

These past few years have provided a really useful opportunity to challenge my own prejudices and preconceptions regarding different qualification options. Schools can tend to reinforce traditional paths, promoting A levels/uni as the main highway to success. Having seen ds2 blossom with BTEC and ds1 forge a career he loves via apprenticeship, I now happily agree that there are many ways for our dc to get where they want to be and choosing the route that best suits their learning style and interests is a very good call.

My son got OK GCSE results - mostly 4s and 5s. He worked hard but really struggled with exams. He enrolled onto a double engineering BTEC and one a level which he got a 6 in - his highest grade, which was his best option for him. He felt bad about it, all his mates were doing A levels - but it was the best thing he ever did. He loved the course, he loved the way it was structured, he was always good at coursework so it worked really well for him. He came out with Distinction(star) Distinction(star) and a grade C, could have gone to Uni but decided to do an engineering apprenticeship instead and is currently on £33K at 20 years old. He'll be on £40K, when he completes in a year. Best thing he ever did - and he's happy which is all I ever wanted. I will always rave about BTECs, I doubt he'd be in the position he's in now if he'd taken three A levels.

My daughter is just starting a BTEC in health and social care. She wants to be a mental health nurse. It's completely the right course for her