Ds 18 lost and miserable after AS level results.

[BlastedPimples]

Ds has already repeated year 12 because last year he got two Es and a U in his AS levels. He's 18 now.

This year he has got three Ds.

I mean there is improvement - I had hoped for a lot more improvement - but I really don't know if he should continue and neither does he. We aren't sure if the school will even take him on for his final year.

He's so depressed. So lost. Doesn't even really like doing two of the levels he's chosen.

Is there any advice you could give me as to what he could do in light of these grades? AS levels aren't really useful for anything, are they, other than an indication of progress halfway through the A level course?

It sounds like he's most likely genuinely put the effort in and just found it really hard. (Unlike a lot of kids who do badly at AS Level because they just can't be bothered.) If that's the case, then that's OK. As others have said, there are plenty of less "academic" routes.

Why doesn't he apply to the open university? You don't need any qualifications to study with them and he can apply for student finance in the same as a brick university.
Failing that maybe an apprenticeship in something skilled like plumbing or electrical which have great earning potential.
He's only 18 he will be fine. Some of the richest people in the world flunked school!!

I work in sixth form admissions and would say it sounds like A levels aren't the right path for your DS. Every year I see students who opt for A levels because it's the done thing/ their friends are doing it/ their parents expect it, and likewise at the end of A levels when they apply to uni for the same reasons.

There are so many other paths. Look into vocational qualifications such as BTEC, or T levels, or apprenticeships - there really are some great opportunities out there. A levels don't suit everyone and I think it's a shame nobody at school had this conversation with your son after his first attempt when he got EEU - those kind of predictions would be a trigger in our college for a serious conversation with student and parents about alternative options.

Does he have any career plans or a role he wants to go into?

Look at level 3 BTECs - my son had reasonable but not amazing GCSEs - 2 As, 3Bs, 2cs and 2 Ds- he was a lazy git - but very very good at IT - he did just a term at A level and then decided to do an IT apprenticeship- college one and a half days a week, work 3 and a half- he is now 25 - has 8 years work experience, is a junior projects manager , lives in very nice bit of London sharing with 1 other. It's not the end of the world- in fact he is doing wAy better than many of his school friends who did A levels and degrees- he is inundated with recruiters too !!

I second everyone else here. If he's really not enjoying the courses then I'd get him to seriously consider doing something other than A-levels. There are lots of vocational courses and apprenticeships nowadays that would likely suit him much better.

Find a local college prospectus and take a look through it and have him look through it too.

What subjects did he enjoy to GCSE level? Is there a related job that it would be relevant for? i.e. if he enjoyed Design & Technology, would he be interested in carpentry?

It would be much better for him to get in to a course that he actually enjoys as staying and performing poorly at a course he hates will do nothing for his self esteem.

Another one asking how has he got his results two days before they're released by the exam board....?

OP not been back?

Yes, I'm wondering this as well.

DD is off to collect AS Level result tomorrow which is a stand-alone AS level, not one of her A level subjects for which they only sat mocks. I wonder if the OP really means AS level or is actually referring to mocks?

This does remind me of a prior thread where the OP in fact meant in school exams which either the poster, or the school , was calling ASs Some schools use past AS exams as in school mocks, I think.

Either way, it is probably worth sitting down with their DS and considering other options.

Not enjoying two of the A level subjects sounds like they chose badly, so even just changing subjects might make a difference.

No no. Cambridge AS level result are out. See attached.

Thank you so much for all your input. I really appreciate it.

Ds is academic. He did well in GCSEs despite doing naff all study. He just doesn't seem to sit his bum down to do the graft required at this stage. You can't mess about at A levels.

So perhaps now just isn't the time for him.

We will have some big chats when he gets out of bed today as to what he'd like to do.

And not in U.K. but he's at a British school. They won't take him back for year 13 with Ds and they insist on Cs at AS level and this is his second shot at it.

The international big changes things quite a lot. Standard A level results aren’t out yet, but the international ones have a different timescale.

Will he be able to stay living with you as an “adult” (over 18) on your visa? Is he mature enough to return to the UK? I would suggest he looks at level 3 or 4 apprenticeships - but he has to treat this like a job you can’t just doss off.

He could try clearing, but with only AS and not A levels I don’t think many places would consider him, but possibly some with foundation years?

Thanks for clarifying, OP, I guessed that he wasn't in the English system! Trouble is, that makes it hard for many of us to give anything other than very general advice.

When something similar happened to PFB DS something flipped in me - he’d been unhappy at school, it wasn’t working for him, the school were disappointed in him without putting any effort into understanding why a child who had been top of the class at 12 was now failing.

Took him out of school and found him a job shelf stacking. Eventually he retook some a levels of his choice at a local college.

To cut to the chase, he is now happily independent. He’s worked in a steady job for 9+ years. He wants a job not a career and that’s fine.

School is absolutely not right for everyone. Education is not right for everyone. I would say set him free but make him work, see how the next couple of years go.

OP your son sounds really similar to me. All the way through school the overriding theme of my reports was “has the ability, lacks effort”.
I got excellent GCSE results with minimal revision, which in a way, was the worst thing that could have happened because I carried the same half arsed approach to A levels. Throw in the discovery of boys and alcohol too, and the result was that I left sixth form with a D and 2 E’s. Scraped into a former poly through clearing, hated it from the off and dropped out at the end of the first year. My mum despaired.

After I left uni, I ended up getting an entry level job with a high street bank and 16 years later I’m still there, earning £45K (not London) and making good progress in my career. I genuinely love my job. It wasn’t until I went into the workplace that I realised that actually, academia didn’t suit me at all. A levels are not the be all and end all.

@BlastedPimples I wish him all the best OP- my son as I posted was exactly the same- in all honesty he has been much better working and getting a career built -

You need to narrow down what isn’t working for him A Levels wise - is it the style of learning or subjects?
And then see if you can find a route that takes that into account.
If you were in the UK I would suggest having a look at a BTEC or apprenticeship, depending on his area of interest. Does he know what he’d like to do job wise?
But as you’re abroad these may not be an option.
Three D’s at AS after two years of study does suggest they’re not the right option for him - it will only get harder from here on our. Has he really worked very hard for those D’s, or just done slightly more?

I think I'd be advising my ds to cut his losses tbh

The attainment gap between gcse and a level is large, and if he's only managed 3 x Ds in 2 years, it's obviously not his flightpath

There are the new T levels to consider, but I don't know much about them so can't advise and the workload would be similar to a level I think

What about an apprenticeship?

What are his interests? Has he ever volunteered? What is he good at?

I'd be telling him he's only 18, he doesn't need to make any major decision now

What about a gap type year? Get a job, learn to drive etc?

I'm sorry op, it must be hard seeing him so down x

Don’t want to be harsh but 3 Ds at AS on a second attempt, even with not much work, is not an academic child. Nothing wrong with that but need to face facts. He would likely be better off on a different path.

what options are open to him where you are?

@illiterato I think you're right.

He smashed his 11+ and was doing well at grammar school but then we went abroad and he went to an international school where he just slowly started to not bother any more.

He's probably beyond a UK boarding school given his age. You could look at HE/FE colleges with accommodation for an Extended Diploma Btec which is 3 A level equivalent. My only slight reservation is it's pretty independent living (similar but not quite uni halls) and many students will go home regularly a weekends which is difficult when you live abroad. If he needs a fair bit of chivvying along it might be too much freedom. We looked at a few (Northampton, Hartpury) but as a young one in the year and the family being abroad we went with the full boarding school option. The places with accommodation tend to be those who offer land based courses alongside many other options. Are there options to work for him where you live? Are there plans for you to return to the UK? It's so difficult, there are so many fewer options than in the UK when A levels, or even IB which is even worse.

Being abroad does complicate things, depending on where you are. I was overseas for years myself and understand that, location dependent, it can be tricky to find post 16 options that aren’t “doing A levels in an international school.”