Post GCSE’s 2022 - Year 12 2022/23 General support thread

[Rollergirl11]

This is a thread for supporting all young people post GCSEs 2022, regardless of their educational setting.
Our DC’s may continue down various pathways ( employment, apprenticeships, higher ed)
Everyone is welcome!

Hi @LouisCatorze, the situation regarding reform of Personal Statements is still fluid but, if I am reading correctly, any change will be introduced no earlier than the 2024-25 UCAS cycle ie affecting those applying in Autumn 24 onwards for Sep 25 entry onwards ie current Y12 applying in upcoming Y13 will still using the current PS format.
https://www.ucas.com/advisers/guides-and-resources/adviser-news/news/personal-statements-will-not-be-changing-2024-entry

@sheepdogdelight, with reference to U of Birmingham offers in principle, you might not have seen the recent posts on the sister HE thread, which might be helpful:
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/higher_education/4814337-offer-in-principle-any-ideas

Yes, that's how I read it too @PerpetualOptimist but DD is likely to take a gap year, so may not even apply in Year 13 (upcoming academic year).

Thanks; interesting thread.

Understood, @LouisCatorze, yes can see your DD may straddle PS regime change.

Agree the reforms may not necessarily make the PS better but will make it different. Segmenting the PS into sections might make the process easier for some but proposed elements on preferred learning style etc look a bit strange.

I'm not entirely sure the new system will make it any fairer. Just has the potential to make answers more formulaic in a way (which seems to be what education is all about nowadays).

Problem is how do you make it fair??

That was exactly my DDs point. Given that she is definitely taking a gap year, is the fact that she will have to write a personal statement if she applies this year for a deferred place (ie ticking that box on the UCAS form to apply for a 2024 place), and not have to write one if she applies for Sept 2024 next year while on her gap year, a reason not to put in the application this year?

Her school is saying she should apply this year, because they can help her with the application this year, and (presumably) not next year. She is wondering whether the faff over a personal statement is worth it and whether she should not bother.

That is why she (and I) are so keen to understand what will be required for September 2024 - as that is indeed the year that we hope she will go. Fluid is, unfortunately, not helpful in making that decision.

@Notagardener agree that it is difficult to make these things fair. And given that personal statements (or their equivalent) are not even looked at for a lot of courses/less highly sought-after universities, it's all a bit of a travesty.

This time last year they were all knee deep in revision. Doesn’t time fly! 3-4 weeks of college left here. This time next year DS will be job interviewing eeek

I am finding it hard to believe that next week DS will be one of the eldest pupils in the school. He's my youngest,and it only seems like 5 minutes ago that he was joining year 7 and here he is pinning on a Prefect badge. He has a couple of open days booked in June and a driving test looming, plus exams at the end of the month so lots going on at present. Though the biggest thing that he and his pals seem to be excited about is that they are finally entitled to the back seat on the school bus! 🤣🤣
Where's my baby gone though? I have to confess I am not really looking forward to having an empty nest, though of course it has to happen.

I hope everyone is enjoying half term. DS has all his mocks back now, he achieved AAAA, with one of the A’s one mark off an A*. We don’t have predicted grades yet , I think they will come with the report. We are going to wait until later to visit universities because he will take a gap year.I will be interested to hear what others have to say after their visits. We are in London so luckily we can travel to those without staying over and can also do Cambridge in a day. The cost of open days seems so off putting for many families.

Good to catch up with everyone's news.

@LouisCatorze we have got permission from school to take DS out on a Friday to go to one Open Day, the others are booked on Saturdays although we may cancel a couple & go in the Autumn instead, as getting Saturdays off work is tricky for DS. Durham & Newcastle are definitely...we have found out that school are taking the whole of year 12 to a University Fair thing in Newcastle the day before we are booked on the Open Day, which will mean 2 consecutive days of travel there & back (two & a half hours each way) for DS. I thought about travelling up on day one & meeting him there & staying the night but unfortunately have a work meeting that can't easily be moved. The University/careers fair in the stadium is the second event like this that school have arranged & DS didn't rate the first - although there are reps from lots of unis, they were only able to answer general questions & mostly just pointed the students to the website!

@zighead DS too has been to parties & is working tonight, he seems confident about the exams but doesn't seem to have done as much revision as I'd hoped. He did revise hard for his AS exams but doesn't seem to take internal exams as seriously.

@Rollergirl11 so sorry to read about the break-up, we can all remember how devastating that was at that age. Hope the open days will distract & energise your DD

Realised that second paragraph doesn't make sense - we need an edit button! Meant to say that we are definitely going to the Newcastle and Durham Open Days 😂

Regarding Open Days, my concern is about the general reliability of rail services and short notice strikes. This hits prospective students looking to travel solo or in friendship groups to Open Days. With 16-17 rail cards, travel can be relatively cheap with fixed tickets but no trains or cancellation of early morning services clearly harpoons that travel option.

Obviously many are driven by parents to Open Days but the option of going to all or some Open Days and Offer Days independently is important for those wanting to do that or where parents not in a position to offer transport.

Sorry to hear about DD @Rollergirl11 , hopefully the trips to universities will help.

I should have said DS achieved 2A* and 2A,s does anyone know how predicted grades work ? We are completely new to this. Although DS will be applying to university with actual grades due to a gap year.

@LouisCatorze at DD’s sixth form they are allowed 3 days for open days that fall on college days. She is taking one on Friday 16th June and another on Thursday 6th July. @legospringqueen are you going to Durham on the Friday date?

Thanks for everyone’s well wishes for broken hearted DD. She is doing okay. It has made both of us realise though that she wouldn’t be wanting to deal with this close to her a-levels next year so I think she’s imposing a relationship hiatus until then. Apparently she’s going to have a “hot girl summer” instead. Dread to think what that means but get the jist🤦‍♀️

Went to the Exeter open day on Friday and she’s fallen in love with it. There wasn’t anything she didn’t like. Loved the course, the campus is beautiful, accommodation looks cozy and sociable and Exeter itself is lovely. The only con was the hills. I keep telling her it’s just the first place she’s looked at but I must admit I can see her there. We will see how she feels about the next 3 open days in the next month.

Hi all, I dropped off this thread for a while.

DD had AS Business and Welsh before half term, in school exams in Product Design next week, and will get her art portfolio grade in the next few days.

We’ve got Brighton Open Day on Sat, and poss Ravensbourne the next week, but the trains look a bit grim. Should be going to Kingston on Weds 14th, but I now have a funeral to go to, so we’ll leave that one until September.

I don't know how predicted grades work @Clarencebridge but at the last parents evening DS's Physics teacher said he was happy to predict him an Astar as long as he got an A in the exam next week (he has been getting mainly As and Astars through the year.)

I've realised that DS only has four more teaching weeks until the summer break as this coming week he is only in for his exams (Mon, Tues and Thurs) and he has a week of work experience at the beginning of July. Fortunately we were able to organise this with a friend and they have also said he can just do Mon-Thurs which works well for us as DD has a teacher training day on the Friday.

The only open day he has booked so far is Warwick but he has ruled out London and Scotland so that has narrowed down the short list a bit.

@Rollergirl11 we are going to Durham on the Saturday - I guess you're going on the Friday...we could have had a Mumsnet meet up 😀 let's compare notes afterwards instead!

We're doing Durham for the September date as it clashes with Bath which ds is really keen on.
We're getting predicted grades in a few weeks but I understand they are a bit negotiable! Ds hoping for one A star and two As so fingers crossed!

@legospringqueen ahhhh a Mumsnet meet up might have been fun! Not sure what DC‘s would have made of it. 😂 Yes let’s deffo compare notes.

@Rollergirl11 - yes it will be really interesting to hear everyone's reports on the unis visited (I'm not going with ds, dh is so I'll probably get more from this thread than from either of the men in my family!).

Glad your dd is doing ok after her breakup.

We are off to Bristol Uni open day on Friday June 16th. I was expecting my DS to want to go to Durham as lots of kids from his school go there.
I think Durham is a lovely place to visit but it’s not a very diverse place and unbelievably hilly which my DS is not a fan of. It’s also very small which will obviously suit some DC but I was amazed that I kept seeing the same people all over my weekend stay. It must be funny living in the Castle though as a first year Uni student. They were playing croquet when I visited!

So, so annoyed. Brighton have just cancelled Saturday’s open day. Five days’ notice, and I can’t get a refund on the hotel booking.