What options are there for students with dire Alevels due to life events?( computer science )

[C0p3nhag3n]

Hi my son is struggling with severe trauma and intense anxiety. He also has ASC.He is having treatment,making progress but it’s slow and he’s still quite ill. Getting to the end of his Alevel courses and actually being able to sit through the exams is huge but he has managed to do very little revision and has struggled hugely in the exams themselves. We’re proud he managed to complete them without running out.

So results aren’t going to be good, expecting Ds instead of the As he’s capable off. He is going to take a year off but what can he do to get into Uni? Would he qualify for Access courses or is there anything else? He is bright just had the shiftiest past 3 years.

Retake A levels?
Foundation year?

Foundation year is a good call!

I read about the FT columnist Lucy Cavendish's son doing a foundation year, then going on to do CS at Nottingham Uni. He did well in the end. Some young people lose their way.

Don't despair. Can you ask your school for guidance?

Why can’t he repeat YR13 and resit ?
That’s normally an option in that situation and is why the government funds education post 16 for 3 years…while you are 17, 18 and 19 .just in case.

How about looking for work? Does he code in his spare time? It may be better for him to have a year (or more) off and consider trying to work his way up within a company. There is more than one route into computing careers. Best of luck to him 🤞

Foundation year is a great option though I would also recommend taking a year out first to decompress and learn life skills

Can’t retake. Already started them once and didn’t finish the year. Then restarted again. Unbelievably it has taken him 3 years to access trauma therapy which he started a few weeks ago even though under Cahms and adult services and rated as a high priority the whole time .It’s so bloody annoying. I feel so sorry for him as he’s so frustrated with himself. Think it will be 2 years out actually.

Can you do a foundation course for computer science? Do they take life trauma into account if accepting onto a course and do they look at woeful grades. He is actually a gifted coder but couldn’t code for half of his computer science exam today as too anxious. 😰

Foundation course want quite high grades. Could he do an Access course in a couple of years?

How much support is he getting at sixth form? Does he have an EHCP? If not would you think about applying for one?

I have a 19 year old autistic Ds who is still in further education, with probably another two years in a specialist placement.
An EHCP makes that possible. You can also access other therapies and support and they can go on until a young person is in their mid twenties. So it takes the pressure off a little.

Although an EHCP won't cover Uni/higher education.

Our college doesn’t take older students on course with younger because of safeguarding. They recently offloaded somebody with autism and an EHCP.

Foundation year a very good idea. A lesser known university may accept his grades with his diagnosis. Otherwise can he attend an A level crammer college, expensive but may be worth it if you can afford it and there is a local good one.

I really think a year out may not be a good idea - my ASD teenager I think would end up sitting in his room gaming and getting depressed. A lot of entry jobs involve social skills that can really tax somebody with ASD in hospitality and retail which may not help his mental health.

National Autistic Society and other organisations have lists of companies that have internships and jobs for ASD young adults so may be worth a shot.

Well done for your son actually even sitting the A levels.

He could take an Access course once he is 19. To keep his skills base up he could look at free future learn courses or open uni open access courses.

There maybe supported apprenticeships / internships. Ask your local careers team or council.

He could also consider an HNC for a year. If these are at a FE then they are usually smaller class sizes.

Could he take a foundation course at local college then apply for a degree. Much will depend on subject and location. Access courses are usually for those over 19 who have no level 3 (A level equivalent) and won't be funded. Is an apprenticeship an option?

He would be able to take out an Advanced learner loan for the Access course and once completes a degree this would be wiped.

I second @Punxsutawney’s posts. An EHCP will help and allow DS to access therapies, other therapeutic support and further education, including resitting A levels. If the current college can’t admit older students there are other options, including 1:1 tuition if there isn’t another suitable placement.

I know I’m worried he won’t be allowed do an access, won’t have enough for a Foundation and won’t be able to do Alevel retakes. I didn’t think you were allowed to do Alevel retakes.

It seems so unfair that Uni is ruled out at such a young age because of something that wasn’t his fault. It’s nuts.

Most unis do foundation CS for those with lower grades. My DS is doing CS and has friends who came in on foundation. Best thing is to look at the courses on the uni websites to see what the grades are. Where my DS is the foundation is CCC with ABB for direct entry into the Bsc

Would he consider working instead, and perhaps pursuing CS through other means or evening courses or other qualifications?

I have a degree, but i left uni not having a clue what i wanted to do. I ended up getting a job at a call centre and working my way up. I now work in head offices working on process improvement for utilties.

Can't he just repeat 1 year so he can resit exams ?

DS2 got rubbish A levels and did a Foundation degree, then topped up to Honours and got a First (not computing). It was definitely the right approach for him. He found exam’s extremely difficult to cope with but delivered a brilliant dissertation and that made up for the not so brilliant but sufficient exam elements.

Has he applied this year? If not wait until results day and, if needs be, look at those which appear in Clearing so you know which unis are safer places to target next year with his results in hand. He could resit the papers but it may not be necessary and for cs he could probably find related stand-alone courses at college or work experience to mention on his personal statement. I believe the revised ucas application form has space for explaining such issues, the school reference can also mention it, and he may qualify for a contextual offer as a result.

Many many people go to Uni later - I went at 25. Do you honestly think that were he, by some fluke, to get the grades he needs to get to Uni now,he’d be well enough to manage? It sounds like he needs to take time to get himself well and strong again before considering Uni.

Soontobe60

I beg your pardon. I’m well aware of him needing to be well enough for Uni thanks. We’ve been supporting him the past few years.He hasn’t applied for Uni this year. It’s not about that but future options.

What does he want to do long term? In a lot of IT much more emphasis is on experience over a degree. My DH is a CTO and rarely employees graduates as he finds they have no idea when it comes to actually putting things into practice and so much of what they are taught even at degree level is crap for CS.

My DS is 16 and going into an apprenticeship with a company DH knows and I think he will get further that way (plus not start his career 40k in debt!).

Does your DS code/program etc in his spare time? Does he have any work experience at all?