University - we don't know where to start!

[Unicycle82]

My ds is nearly 17 and in his first year of A levels.
He would really like to go to university and we would like to support him. We are very proud, neither myself or my dh went to university and we literally have no idea where to start.

They did go to a UCAS event from college but they only had an hour there and ds said it was packed and just came back with some brochures.

Does anyone have any tips when looking for a university. Did you shortlist 2 or 3 and then travel to see them?

How do you know which universities are best for certain subjects? Or which would suit your child better?

Thanks so much in advance ☺️

Does he have an idea of what he wants to do?

Needs to think about whether campus or city based

Would he want to commute or live away?

Need to think of the costs (depending where you live). In England student loan doesn’t cover living costs. DS saved from his part-time job to help fund his first year

There will be open days in June and September. Hopefully the college will also run information sessions with systems to help narrow down by subject, type of uni, predicted grades vs, entry grades etc and to describe the stages of the process. They may even request them to consider a draft of ps over the summer. Unless they are likely Oxbridge, Medicine/vet/dentistry or need to take a further test such as bmat there is no urgency in early year 13 although some prefer to get the application out of the way.

Start here https://www.ucas.com/undergraduate/applying-university/advice-parents-guardians-and-carers

What grades has he got to date and what is he predicted? That determines where he should apply. The school might recommend something like one aspirational, 2 where he expects to get the grades and a couple in case he doesnt get the predicted grades. You should now that what they say in their prospectus is normally less than they offer to students. The Student Room website is useful, he should join.

First up what subjects is he doing at a level.

What grades is he likely to get.

Then you use online info eg www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/courses to sort courses by the likely grades you'd need.

Then choose some that are in the right ballpark in terms of likely offer for the subject- choose one or two that would be a bit ambitious and one that would be an easy win - make a shorltlisy.

Then research the websites of those ones and choose a few to visit open days for, based on which you like the look of, which is closer to what you want (city/campus) etc.

What I would add is don't be shy - ask anyone you know whose been through the process recently to talk him (and you) through it. Neighbours, family friends, parents or kids a couple years older than him. I'm sure they would be happy to talk to him and give a bit of flavour to the online research.

With open days it is now very common for parents to attend as well as young person (in my day would have been total embarrassment if parents attended but now very much encouraged).

Look at price/availability of accommodation, can differ widely

Take him to a few open days. Even take him to stroll around some campuses on ordinary days, if you're anywhere near or passing.

Narrowing down to some subjects - or groups of subjects - is a good start.

I gave up on the Guardian university league tables for subjects when they insisted University of Suffolk was the strongest institution for History degrees. The complete guide or the Times guide are good, though, and the UCAS site has much more information than it used to.

League tables can be quite odd, sometimes useful to look at individual criteria ranking rather than overall ranking as some league tables have a bias towards a certain criteria which might not be as important to your DS.

When doing open days look at the surrounding area too as might be living there after first year

You could join WIWIKAU on Facebook, there’s loads of people on there asking every question possible so it might help. I’d use the links above too for balance because WIWIKAU can get a bit intense. That site is very focused on all unis being equal, whereas I feel like MN is more focused on some unis being better than others- I’d personally err more towards MNs view although I can see there are exceptions/there’s nuance.

One thing to factor in too is letting your DS lead. Obviously most teenagers need a bit of help, but if research/a point of view/some light scheduling is more than he can cope with (and I’m not saying it is- just if) then a year out is amazing for building life skills!

I may be slated for this but here goes. One of the reasons for the income gap between rich and poor being so huge is that first generation aspiring uni students are sometimes ignorant of or ill advised in choosing the right degree and university that will make them employable in a very expensive competitive world. They may also not know lawyers, IT consultants, engineers, pharmacists, biochemists etc in the family or friend group so don't aspire to the professions.

A 'vocational' degree like law, medicine, biochemistry, pharmacology, veterinary science, accountancy, certain sciences and so on from a 'good' university (not a former polytechnic - Oxford Cambridge or a Russell group university or a other well regarded uni outwith that group- look at Times higher education guide etc) is more likely to lead to well paid employment.

He should do lots of googling and think about what he wants and also look at statistics for employability and salary levels on graduation and onwards. Eg. Economics graduates and law graduates often amongst highest paid.

Following, as I'm in the same boat and clueless. Apprenticeships are another option depending on what your son wants to do.

Thank you everyone!

He's doing Art, Craft and Design A level, Biology and Chemistry.
Strange mix I know but his dream would be a perfumer which is where the art/science mix comes in. Plan B would be Botany/plant research.
The perfumery school he's looking at like you to have a degree first.

He's thinking of Plant Science at University. He likes the idea of being in a city as we live in the country. He likes the idea of a London University, probably so he can take regular trips to Harrods to view the perfumes! He doesn't party or enjoy drinking though.

That’s quite niche!

Costs obviously higher in London. DS currently pays £165pw for university accommodation, going down to £115pw next year (foregoing ensuite). A friend at a London university is paying £250pw

Start with the perfumery school and work backwards.

What degrees do they favour? Then which is the best uni you can get into that does that or those subjects.

Then look at the careers those courses lead to if he doesn't make his dream, what else would he be happy with?

Hey, it's a a minefiled, isn't it?

At the risk of being too simple, here is how it works.

Your son applies through Ucas. There is a fee (about 30 quid from memory). The deadline is usually the end of Jan for the year you applying to. /some jjis, like Oxford and Cambridge have an early deadline). You get 5 choices.

Your son has to write a personal statement and get teacher references. He has to input his predicted grades and any other relevant qualifications (so for music, you might put the grades you achieved in say, piano or whatever). Once the Ucas form is compete you press submit.

The universities will start to make offers. Once the offers are in you firm a choice and insure a choice. The insurance choice is one that you are pretty damn sure you'll get the grades for, so if you don't make the grades for the firm, on results day you'll be certain of getting your insurance. If everything goes horribly wrong and you miss the grades for both offers, you go into clearing. Clearing is where unis advertise the courses that didn't fill up and you scramble to get on one of those courses. Lots of phoning round on results day.

So that's the application process.

To get to the stage where you put preferred unis down, you start by thinking about what subjects or careers interest you.

So, say your son is taking stem subjects and wants to study pharmacology, you look at all of the pharmacology courses. Then you check that your son has the right a levels. If he does, then you look at the typical offer. So say your son is predicted and A and 2Bs, you look at unis around that entry requirement. One should be aspirational (so 2As and a B), a couple should be around the same entry requirements as predicted grades and one a bit lower (say, 3 Bs).

By now you should have a decent list of unis. Then you start thinking about where those unis are. So, say you live in Manchester, does he want to live within a 2 hour radius, or is he keen to go all the way down south?

Some unis are campus unis, so a dedicated space where all of the buildings are with accommodation in or very near the same site. Or a city uni, where the buildings are dotted throughout the city and accommodation is too.

Some unis accommodation is more expensive than others.

We looked at some unis in the midlands. University of Birmingham is a campus uni. Coventry Uni is a city uni. Warwick is a bit of both, but students often live in Coventry and commute to Warwick (not that far). Some students live at home and drive to uni every day or get the train to uni every day.

I'd set aside some time over a weekend and do all of the uni/course research. Then book into some open days (go on the actual university website, they'll be advertised). You should be able to visit the department, talk to the staff who run the course as well as current students. You should be able to see the accommodation and other facilities, like the library, student Union and stuff.

There are some things that are different, depending on the course. Arts courses may ask for a portfolio or interview for example.

Hope this helps! I have been a bit general about some elements, but the gist is there!

Exciting times.

I know...He's always loved plants since he was very young. Loves rare and tropical plants and then after a trip to Harrods a couple years ago, the perfume department sparked a huge interest!

Gosh those accommodation costs are high....

Wow that is niche for a 17 year old - good for him! He's certainly doing the right subjects, and recognises need for plan B - he sounds very clued up. Yes to open days, check out how much you'll be expected to pay maintenance-wise. And for him, check Biology course content carefully - plant science modules may be very scarce at some places. What grades is he likely to get?

This is very helpful thank you!! That's what I needed as we really don't have a clue!

I didn't realise you could apply to so many.

Firstly, have a look at this about how much money he will be entitled to from the government in the form of a maintenance loan which will pay for his accommodation, food, books, travel, socialising etc. His loan will be based on your household income meaning you will have to top up his loan. As a ballpark Dc's first year halls were £6k, the loan was £4.5k (minimum loan amount available) and Dc still needed food. That is where the bank of Mum and Dad comes in.

https://www.savethestudent.org/student-finance/maintenance-loans.html#amount

Google best UK unis for plant science, start looking at their entry grades to see if this fits in with his grade profile. Also youtube will have videos from the unis themselves and also students talking about their lives at that uni.

Open days are great but are usually held when uni students are home so far less people milling about but they are good to book onto. Visit some cities over the next few months, walk around the university grounds or around the buildings to get a feel for what it is like. Start looking at summer schools now, google year 12 summer schools in plant science etc, some will be online, some are free others are a few hundred quid.

I suggest a spreadsheet to keep track of the unis and their entry grades etc. And remember to come back and ask MN questions, anything from a particular uni or course, accommodation, whatever. Lots of us have been through this with our own children. Both Dh and I went to uni but Dc2 is at a sixth form where 75% are first gen uni applicants. When I went only around 20% of 18 year olds went, that means a lot of adults didn't go so you are not alone in that.

What kind of grades can he expect at A level? Any idea what he's getting for assignments? What GCSE grades did he get?

What he's getting and what he's capable of is very different at the moment as he spends most of his time testing his nose and researching the perfume school. I keep reminding him that he needs to concentrate on his A levels as he needs them too!

At the moment looking like Bs/Cs

We did have a quick Google last night and found a university called Edgehill. Has anyone heard of it?
It had a plant science course which is 70percent lab and field work and they take trips abroad. He likes the look of it. It's the complete opposite end of the country though.

Bs/Cs some lower in some modules of chemistry. He's good at the organic chemistry but not so good with some of the other modules.

What grade degree will he need for the next stage?