Year 13 2024/2025 - support, discussion and looking after each other - continuation from year 12 thread

[elkiedee]

I've just realised that the year 12 2023/2024 thread is full - oops! - last message on 16 August - don't know if someone started another continuation thread but I can't see it. This coming year DS1 does A levels and university applications, DS2 will be in his GCSE year.

If there is a thread already started please let me know.

Re joining you from the old thread. DD just about got what she needed to stay on for Alevels after her AS results were 2 grades lower than expected. So she was shocked and rather unsettled as she’d worked hard but struggles with exam technique under pressure. She is planning to take a gap year and apply with grades in hand as I think she’ll struggle to get any decent offers with her current grades plus we’ve encouraging her to take a break from education and build her life experience. She got some related work experience in the holidays and kept her lifeguarding job going too. Anyone have good links for helping with the maths needed for Biology AL as she’s realised that’s one area that let her down in the AS levels because she’s not actively doing much maths anymore but need to get her grade up.

Off to Sheffield tomorrow for the open day on Saturday - really interested to see what it’s like since it’s got a great reputation for physics.

@Changes17 we (ds included) really liked Sheffield - different subject but it had a really good feel

Think we’ll visit Newcastle but in Nov as this month is a bit busy - not sure where else ds wants to look - we’ve already done Liverpool

I think we’re done for open days after this weekend. I like Newcastle, @Monstermunchy - have a great time when you do go!

DS back at school and said nearly everyone in his chemistry class got 2 grades lower than expected in Chemistry AS. I think it made him feel better. He will resit his chem AS next year. I'm am hoping that the grade predictions from school will be ok. Off to Nottingham open day next week.

I'm trying to do open days once a month, so we will have Bournemouth in October, Wimbledon in November and Nottingham Trent in January. There are only a handful of places which offer the course DD wants to do which it makes it a bit easier, but so many people change their mind about what they want to study during their art foundation year, so who knows where she'll end up applying?

We went to York open day yesterday. Went well. She liked the east campus where she would be based.

Less keen on the original campus as more build up but from what it seems she would only need to go there for social stuff if she wanted to.

Got a bit upset this morning as think it's hitting home - she only turned 17 a week ago so it's a bit daunting. Despite that she still decided this morning she wouldn't go to the kings open day as she did want to move away from London to broaden her horizons.

Just back from Sheffield and finally seem to be narrowing things down to bio chem or medicinal chemistry ( I have only just realised this is athing.) York still a fave but need to go to Liverpool and see what we think in a few weeks. She too is only just 17 @Fluffycloudsfloatinginthesky . We liked the accommodation on campus east at york too, but bioscience is on west campus so she like many others will commute!

We went to Nottingham yesterday. It was a bit odd as ds23 went to Nottingham Trent so we know the city. Ds liked the campus and course but would not want self catering. The talk about the sport he does was rather bland and he was disappointed. The facilities were good and lots of green space. Leeds next!

DS1 is doing an early UCAS application as he is applying to Oxford University to do Maths, and seems to have realised at the last minute that he had to submit an initial application today and pay a fee. So I got up earlier than normal and came downstairs in order to make the payment, and found that DS1 was still choosing his other 4 places (he's been working on the personal statement).

He is very keen to apply to Oxford but realises that he might not even get an interview or an offer, as competition is so stiff. His school puts Maths & FM students in for Maths in Y12 so he already has his top grade for that, but he will be up against students with predictions of 4 A*s (as most Maths applicants will, like him be doing Maths & FM with two other subjects).

Apparently he can make changes but this is going to be stressful. I wish school had made the deadlines clearer to us as well as him. I can't do it for him and really don't need to, but discussing such big decisions at 7 am, and being told about the fee/application submission deadline of 9 am today yesterday evening, eek!

@elkiedee try not to panic. Dd college have said just add the Oxbridge choice at this point and one other and anything else.can be added later . She's not doing early applications, but lots of friends have and they have done one or 2 and added the other 3 when ready. Check with college but I think if it's submitted with all 5 choices you then can't change them

Apparently at this stage he still can make changes.

@elkiedee That's a very early school deadline for Oxbridge! The actual deadline is next month, but different schools like to have varying amounts of time to check the paperwork etc.

I have helped with UCAS for years (I'm a teacher). When kids pay the fee and click submit, it doesn't send the form to UCAS... it sends it to their nominated referee at the school, so that the teachers can attach predicted grades and the reference. It is only when the school has done this that the form actually gets sent off. So students can still make changes in that period before final submission (although they would need the school to 'unlock' the form).

@elkiedee that sounds a rather stressful start to the day!! We actually managed to have a chat re personal statements yesterday which was a good step forwards. Ds messaged his brother to get his from 6 years ago!!!

@PhotoDad

My dd school want everything submitted by mid/late November for the normal applications. My dd has also been muttering about half term for some reason so don't know if they have brought it forward even more.

Thanks @PhotoDad for the explanation. DS1 has now set up DP with access to school's communications/info on university applications, deadlines and processes on Satchel One (previously known as Show My Homework), which I think is really helpful. Part of my stress at 7 am yesterday was just worrying about not knowing what was required/what I was doing/whether I'm doing it correctly. I like to be able to check information and understand whatever the system is. And DS1 had clearly thought he had a bit more time - he was worried about putting down places he hasn't seen, and was saying "maybe I should put down X university even though I wasn't sure I liked it that much, because it's a good university". He has form for this - he was dithering about where to study for A levels, and then whether he'd made the right choice, into the beginning of term!

DC1 is also an early UCAS applicant. Although she doesn’t have the most amazing credentials, her other UCAS choices should all be really achievable for her subject – the likes of Warwick/Durham/St Andrew’s etc haven’t grabbed her at all, so she’s applying to universities further down the league tables. In theory that means she has room for a very speculative Oxford application safe in the knowledge that she’ll probably have three good offers from the other four.

College are managing all the UCAS stuff, and I don’t really know much about what’s going on, other than the fact that she’d quite like a lift to her Oxford entrance exam over half-term. Sounds like at some point I'll also need to produce a credit card .

We have two more open days to do in Scotland, and we're making a short break of it instead of our usual half term London theatre trip. DC2 and I are I'm looking forward to it more than DC1 is - we'll drop DC1 at the universities and then have some fun in town while she does the open days.

@PhotoDad do you give advice on what offers to choose?

We certainly do if the student asks! I'd say about a quarter do ask their UCAS ref for help in picking between offers. It's outside the school's control as applicants can click on accept/reject themselves.

@PhotoDad can I ask what’s best to do if YP is taking a gap year? The college said apply and defer but their AS grades aren’t good enough we think to do that for what is a competitive course with interview - I think it just suits the college as the tutor said I teach 100s of kids I may not remember them next year if they come back and ask for a reference then! Yet she’ll need a college reference I’m assuming if she applies with grades in hand next year instead. She’s intending to get more relevant work experience and save money in the gap year. I’m trying to work out what roll the college will play if she’s applying next year but not a student there.

@AutumnComing2 There's no best answer to that! Of course she can apply this year for a deferred course and then again next year if she doesn't get what she wants. That way the tutor would already have written the reference and can just update it with a sentence about gap year plans or similar, if need be.

@AutumnComing2 i helped a young person last year who reapplied on a gap year and it was painful trying to get support from her old school. I would apply and defer as you can always go again if needed.

Ok thanks maybe I need to help her look into it abit more as she’s definitely isn’t going next year and I’d be amazed if she got any offers off her AS level grades as two of them were below expected sadly. They have put extra support classes in to support bringing them back up.

Thinking about it can she apply for say one course knowing she’ll get rejected based on grades but then her application will be in the system ready for next year? I’m assuming she’ll still have to apply a fresh again? I’m assuming there’s a cost as well? We’ve got a parents information evening next week I’ll find out more then I expect.

Yes, she'll have to start UCAS from scratch, but at least the tutor will have a reference on file to remember who she is! Good luck to you and her. There is a cost; at the moment it's £28.50, unless she had free school meals.