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Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

Original poster

Results Day and UCAS

370 replies

MotherOfGirls · 06/08/2013 12:03

Eldest DD is expecting A level results on 15th so this is my first experience of UCAS. She seems to think her results will go to UCAS before they are emailed to her by her school, and so she will find out if she has made her offer by checking her UCAS account. She also thinks this happens at midnight. Can anyone confirm any of this, please?

OP posts:
AmGrowingAnAwesomeTree · 16/08/2013 10:30

I know STEP is a biggie for Cambridge but he got A* in Maths; Further Maths; Economics; Physics; Chemistry (I can't remember the 6th one!) so his STEP one can only have been a bad hair day. IMHExperience, Cambridge seems to be much more 'aloof' (IYKWIM?) than Oxford, kinda 'snotty' to their applicants whereas Oxford seems to be much more collaborative? Am hoping that isn't the case when they actually start there...

JugglingFromHereToThere · 16/08/2013 10:54

Personally I'd think Cambridge were making a mistake turning down a 6 A candidate AwesomeTree* - he might well prove that to them one day !
Hope he gets to go somewhere just as good, and it all works out for the best for him.

ICBINEG · 16/08/2013 10:59

amgrowing I was doing this 15 odd years ago and can safely say that while I utterly cruised A level maths and further, STEP is a different beast altogether. I can only imagine this is even more the case now than it was back then.

A levels currently have a lot of question 'types'. If you can do the 'type' then you get great marks on the exam.

witness the outcry over one of the exams this year because it had 1 question on a whole paper that wasn't an easily recognised 'type'.

Passing a test like that just means you can follow a recipe/protocol well. It doesn't mean you are actually able at the subject. (you might well be, but the A-level doesn't really test that).

STEP (in my day) had no question 'types'. You would open it up and there wouldn't be anything that you had seen in a past paper for instance.

Missing the grade on STEP having aced A-levels isn't an indicator of a bad hair day so much as an indicator that you have been rigorously 'taught to the test' for A-levels....

I flunked STEP by the way...I had also been taught to the test.

BeckAndCall · 16/08/2013 11:04

There a mum on the other thread waiting to hear if her DD will be accepted having made the A* grades but missed the STEP, too. I suspect it's not uncommon.

And my fingers are crossed for your DS, mozzamum - hoping you get some answers soon

ICBINEG · 16/08/2013 11:06

The other thing about 6,7,8 A level candidates is this.

As selectors we need to be fair in allocating places to students on their ability rather than their parents salary. I got applicants to review with 8 A-levels listed (performing at A A level) going to the best schools in the country and I got applicants from horribly deprived areas doing 3, (performing at A A levels) and oh by the way their teacher left half way through the year.

Which candidate is better?

We only look at 3 A-level predicted grades because it would be unfair on those whose schools only offer 3 to include more than that.

saythatagain · 16/08/2013 11:13

Would anyone be able to give their advice please?
DN has been offered a place at Kent to study Ancient History as apposed to Modern History, which is what he'd wanted to do originally.
Has any mnetter followed this path?

tiredaftertwo · 16/08/2013 11:16

It would also be unfair to tell applicants that only three (or at most four) A levels are "counted" and then reward someone for doing more.

I know STEP is a biggie for Cambridge but he got A in Maths; Further Maths; Economics; Physics; Chemistry (I can't remember the 6th one!) so his STEP one can only have been a bad hair day.*

No, if STEP told them what a string of A* does, they wouldn't bother setting and marking it.

The point is they believe it provides different information - and they do track predictors and degrees closely. They are clear that STEP matters and that extra A levels don't - so his low (relatively) score is either because he chose to ignore that and focus on qualifications that are not relevant, or he isn't the sort of mathematician they want.

I do think it is important that myths are not perpetuated as it may put people off - I don't think what has happened, on the face of it, goes against their stated policies which are published.

ICBINEG · 16/08/2013 11:18

tired absolutely correct.

I didn't know STEP was still used but it REALLY makes sense for maths. The A levels have turned into a recipe collection.

SDhopeful · 16/08/2013 11:23

My DC are at a very academic school, very bright children and outstanding teachers. The DC do only 3 A levels, and an extended project/essay , never more, because they prefer the pupils to read around their subjects and get into them in depth, rather than just adding more subject 'tick boxes'.

SDhopeful · 16/08/2013 11:24

It sounds as if the bright boy referred to below was badly advised

Mozzamum47 · 16/08/2013 12:26

Hi All, Thanks for all the support - its gratefully received and definitely encouraging and many congratulations to all those who managed to achieve their grades and get into uni. Quick update DS's Deputy Head has been in touch today to assure DS that the school will give him every support and help to achieve his full potential and to reiterate that he is totally capable and must not be put off by his results. He has even offered to tutor him personally on top of his lessons in order to make sure that he can do better next year. School have organised some tutorials starting next week! It is truly amazing the dedication of some teachers - restores my faith in the education system. If only the examination system could be improved in such a way. :)

ICBINEG · 16/08/2013 12:37

Moz yes..if only indeed!

tiredaftertwo · 16/08/2013 12:39

Mozzamum - heartwarming post of the day award Smile. School sounds great.

Good luck to your boy.

pannetone · 16/08/2013 12:53

That is fantastic support from the School Mozzamum. It does make me sad that in my DS's case the school 'wrote him off' when he failed to get his high predicted grades. The galling thing was that DS's subject teachers saw his potential, but senior management sights were too firmly fixed on their league table position - DS was at a super selective grammar that comes in the top 10 state schools for results. Now we have a disability discrimination verdict against the School (we took them to Tribunal) and they have been ordered to improve support, policies and training for SEN pupils, but it comes too late for DS who has now finished there. I am so glad my DS has his uni place; it has been so hard for him to keep going whilst being repeatedly told by the School that he wasn't capable of achieving his goal of studying engineering.

Are the School proposing that he repeats the year Mozzamum? We wanted DS to be allowed to because he didn't have the AS grades (or would have been predicted the A2 grades) he needed to get into uni to do engineering. In the event , the School didn't let him repeat the year and they refused to teach him A2 Maths, and DS couldn't apply for engineering without that. Waitng an extra year to apply for uni wasn't an issue - but it would have been much better if DS had been allowed to re-take Y12, rather than do AS re-sits and some A2 papers in his Y13.

Mozzamum47 · 16/08/2013 13:17

Pannetone, he doesn't attend a highly academic school but it does produce 8 or so Oxbridge candidates every year. Its a fairly small rural school with high caliber teachers (as its such a lovely place to live!) I am really sorry that the school your DS was at was so awful. At the moment it is planned that he will do resits and not retake the year but, this may change when we receive the scripts back. His teachers believe that he is more than capable of upping his game and, it has to be said, is one of the top maths pupils in his year. They are scheduling additional lessons throughout the year in his AS subjects. Perhaps it didn't help that he didn't have a physics teacher since Christmas - just a lot of stand ins. He is taking a gap year in any case so he wont apply to uni until he has received both his resits and A levels.

fallon8 · 16/08/2013 13:31

Going to stick my neck out..
For all of those who are "disappointed" with "poor results" which must be the fault of the school,is it possible,that your child isn't as bright as you would like to think they are.or they don't want to go on to further academic education..just a thought

FannyMcNally · 16/08/2013 13:35

University choices are made and offered based on predicted grades, they aren't pie in the sky.

Mozzamum47 · 16/08/2013 14:12

fallon8 - not a very helpful post. I have never once said that the school are to blame and indeed, I do not hold them in anyway responsible, it is DS that sat the exams not his teachers. They have faith in my DS.

tiredaftertwo · 16/08/2013 17:14

fallon8, no one has said that I don't think. This thread has some very knowledgeable people on it helping parents who are trying to help their dc, some of whom have faced illness or other difficulties. Not sure why that calls for such a comment. And FannyMcNally is right, these are people who have not made grades predicted by their teachers, who also wrote the references that convinced these universties to make these offers.
Good luck anyone still waiting.

alreadytaken · 16/08/2013 19:51

AmGrowingAnAwesomeTree maths at university is different to maths at school and it's not unusual for students to find the transition difficult. I know that at Cambridge some students who pass STEP still struggle with the very different nature of the subject. It IS tough but if he really wanted to be a mathmo it would have been more useful to do fewer A2 subjects and spend more time practising STEP. Presumably he has an excellent backup.

fallon8 · 16/08/2013 21:58

We left ours to get on with it.
One is a naval officer,one is an area manager for a French oil company,one is an officer manager..honestly,it was a lot less hassle for all of us..try it..it makes life easier for everyone..children grow up despite their parents

BabyDubsEverywhere · 16/08/2013 22:15

Saythatagain
this may be a bit late in the day to be any use to you, but I study Ancient history, but at Birmingham. Well I do ancient and medieval actually. For the ancient side the bulk of the course is around the Greeks and Romans, then you select other modules within the subject - massive choice there to make it what you want, we can also choose modules outside the main discipline, so modern history modules can come in then. This is the case for Birmingham anyway, may be worth calling Kent to see the structure of the degree and what sort of modules he will be able to add in?

Must say I LOVE my course... and Birmingham is fabulous for any mumsnetter DC coming next term :)

Chopchopbusybusy · 16/08/2013 22:31

Well, good for you fallon. I like to take an interest in what my DCs are doing...not necessarily interfere....try it... It's fun...

JugglingFromHereToThere · 16/08/2013 22:36

And personally I'm hoping to avoid any of mine running away with the navy

DalmationDots · 16/08/2013 22:36

Hoping someone has the answer...Out of interest as different news articles are telling me different things, why do so many top unis (durham, bath, warwick etc) have so many places on clearing this year? Durham seems to have an endless list and not just for Stockton places but the main Durham colleges too.
Is it because so many missed their grades? But then surely taking those who just missed is better than opening it up to those they haven't interviewed or selected previously who probably did barely any better? Or are they hoping to attract adjustment candidates? It is surprising they have so many spaces. Is this linked to the fees or the a levels being supposedly more harshly marked?

And well done to your DC and for those who haven't got what was expected, sorry to hear and I hope things become clearer soon as to what went wrong as remarks begin. My DC are now at uni and it feels so stress free compared to the years before with constant angst and strategy making to choose the right subjects/unis.

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