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Original poster

Ucas / Results 2014 (carrying on Ucas Forms Sent.... thread)

630 replies

Littleham · 10/06/2014 11:55

Thought we might need a new thread for the results...

OP posts:
traceyinrosso70 · 20/08/2014 22:10

can you believe its a week since we were all stressing so ? DS has GCSE results tomorrow but no where near the same stress levels. Hard to believe that this time last week DD was so unsure whether she had met her offer now she knows she did, has been offered her place in halls and has already joined facebook groups for some of the societies she would like to join !! She is away on camp this week minus the stress :)

boys3 · 22/08/2014 13:55

The end of last week does almost feel a lifetime away.

Although accepted into his first choice prior to the re-mark being confirmed DS1 got his first re-mark back today. The original paper was graded at D, indeed just one mark above an E !! The remark today has more than doubled the raw score and taken the paper to just a mark away from A, and more importantly put his overall grade for that subject up from an A to A

Quite how the original examiner could get a mark quite so badly wrong is, to put it mildly, a concern. In his case it luckily worked out, but there may have been DCs in a similar situation who subsequently missed out on their first choice, or/and insurance, through no fault of their own. We were strongly supported by DS1's school, and perhaps had suitably sharp elbows to get the re-mark done. Paying for the re-mark was also not an issue, but again for some families genuinely might be. Irrespective of where a DC is applying to, be that Cambridge, Cardiff, Coventry, Cumbria (just to take 4 uni's starting with a C), I think they have a right to expect that their exam scripts will be competently marked.

Rant over.

Tracey - in all last week's excitement not sure if I posted a well done for your DD. Well done to her, really pleased she got the results she needed for her first choice.

traceyinrosso70 · 22/08/2014 17:22

thanks boys3 . That is dreadful about the remark - I just don't understand how it all works. Last year my DD1 had an English Lit AS paper remarked after a predicted A grade even with an outstanding piece of coursework came out as a C overall. Her mark came back unchanged but yet her friend had a Chemistry paper remarked, which I would have thought was much more black and white and far less subjective, came back with an extra 6 marks taking her up a grade . Just relieved it didnt stop your DS getting in at his first choice !

Molio · 22/08/2014 22:58

boys3 a re-mark was so badly re-marked in 2012 when an elder sibling looked at the photocopied script that the school sent a letter of complaint to Mr Gove. The re-marker had simply not re-marked at all and a section which hadn't been marked at the outset was left unmarked on the re-mark - completely bizarre. Glad your DS has been vindicated!

secretsquirrels · 23/08/2014 10:32

One of DS's friends needed 3 As for med school and he got a B on his Physics. He was 10 UMS short so a remark was optimistic IMO. It came back as an A and he has his place!

eatyourveg · 25/08/2014 07:49

A few years back ds1 had a remark for one unit of his A2 English Lit - it went from a U to 6 ums short of an A. Always worth questioning unexpected anomalies I think. Thankfully his uni had accepted him anyway

secretsquirrels · 25/08/2014 11:14

How long do these remarks take does anyone know? DS asked for a non priority purely pride re-mark on his Physics which was 1 UMS short of A*.

boys3 · 25/08/2014 11:45

squirrel DS1's priority remark took 8 days from submission (with cheque) at school to receiving amended result back - this went to the school in the first instance, who contacted him straightaway. A friends DS had a priority re-mark a couple of years back which was turned round in 4 days. I think it varies on level of demand, I got the sense there have been quite a few English Lit re-mark requests across the country. A priority re-mark could take up to 18 days according to the form DS1 submitted for his, and presumably a non-priority one would be a bit longer.

I do wonder whether in DS1's instance it might have been a case that the original mark only reflected one rather than two essays, given the huge leap in the re-mark score.

Needmoresleep · 26/08/2014 10:29

A lovely happy ending, Secret.

DS has had his accomodation confirmed, and has received some details of his "orientation" week. It is really nice to see him looking forward to starting the next phase of his life.

The big surprise was an inviation to a parents orientation day. Will it be a dodgy disco and some middle aged people dressed in animal onesies? Hope so. Though expect I will be disappointed.

secretsquirrels · 26/08/2014 11:28

Great news Needmoresleep. For me I think it's easier to let them go if you feel they are looking forward to their new life.
Yes we have a "Welcome Address" for the parents when we take him down, also a parents' newsletter apparently.

Incidentally, does everyone know about meningitis C for new university students?.
It's a new thing this year. It was in the small print of the uni welcome pack. DS has had his at the local GP surgery.

secretsquirrels · 26/08/2014 15:18

Well DS got his re-mark back.
He was 1 UMS short of an A*.
It went up by 12 UMS! So he got his A*.
Seems to me as though the original marker must have turned over two pages.
Luckily he didn't need it for his place.

Needmoresleep · 26/08/2014 16:02

Well done. He must be a very clever boy, and should do very well at Warwick.

CatherineofMumbles · 26/08/2014 17:18

squirrels well done to your DS!
Kinda scary for those of us with DS who are just embarking in 6th form...
Had never intended to be directly involved with DS A levels (work in schools and see how DC manage themselves very successfully) but now thinking need to keep a weather eye...

boys3 · 26/08/2014 19:20

squirrel well done to your DS.

However the mark difference is again worrying, 18 UMS point revision (reading what you've updated on another thread) really makes you wonder how much care is taken. A lot of exam scripts to be marked I know....but errors of this magnitude could have significant consequences for some DCs. Lets hope Uni exam markers are more switched on.

ICantFindAFreeNickName · 27/08/2014 01:10

I'm a bit confused about the day we drop them off at uni. I have read that that the best thing to do is unload the car, help settle them in for a few minutes, then leave and let them get on with making new friends etc. Then a few people mentioned doing a supermarket shop, once you have unloaded all their belongings from home. Now I have just found out that not only do the uni have a talk on for parents, but there are campus tours and free admission to a historic house & garden, just for us as well. What is the best thing to do, to make it easier for the student (& me, who wells up every time I think about leaving ds there, even though I cant wait to get rid of him most of the time).

SierpinskiNumber · 27/08/2014 01:40

For drop off I think it depends when you arrive. If all the other flatmates are already there then it's probably best to hurry along but if you get there before everyone else then you can probably hang around a bit longer.

I have three kids at Uni and did quite speedy drop offs with them. I was mostlyexcited for them and not sad. I think I might be a bit sadder when DC4 leaves and it's just DH and I left at home.

LetsFaceTheMusicAndDance · 27/08/2014 07:56

Last year DS1's uni gave everyone tim slots for drop off to avoid gridlock. It was done and dusted quite quicky. I found packing the car and seeing his room empty was worse than the drop off itself. I couldn't go in his room for a long time afterwards. It smelled of him and he wasn't there.

lalsy · 27/08/2014 08:03

boys3 and squirrels, great news for your dss! I agree worrying that markers seem to be turning over two pages at once. Also, maybe with all the systems at their disposal, much lower marks on one paper than the rest (was that the case?) might trigger a check that every question had been marked.

I too am baffled by drop off day. We still don't know our time slot or even which day, but it is now 2.5 weeks away and a 4.5 hour drive each way - not quite sure how to plan.......

Isthiscorrect · 27/08/2014 11:02

We have a parents orientation. Strangely it is on the Friday before they move in on the Sunday, so no chance of us going. No idea what it is supposed to include but not likely to be a stately home.
We have booked a hotel with underground CCTV car parking for the night before so we can go out to dinner and give ds a good send off.
Personally I'm both very excited for him and a little sad for me. We are very very close and already we have had a number of road trips this summer which were great fun, something for me to look back on. I can't believe we really got to this stage, it seems like only yesterday that they were all beginning at nursery and the biggest worry was them remembering which peg to hang their coat on.

secretsquirrels · 27/08/2014 13:04

Isthiscorrect That sounds a lovely idea. We have a 4/5 hour drive and I was planning an early start.Not sure whether DS2 will want to squeeze in among all the stuff come along as well.Do siblings normally stay at home?

cricketballs · 27/08/2014 13:15

WE have been sent an nvitation to a talk by the vice for parents of new students. It is on the day of move in and there were 3 time slots we had the choice of. DS will get an email beginning of September with a link for booking move in time. We are hoping for early move in, I'll quickly sort his bed out, DH and I will then leave him to go to the talk, drop in on way home to say goodbye....can't believe it's not far away now!

Needmoresleep · 27/08/2014 14:40

In case anyone is looking at renting in London this article may be useful

www.rentonomy.com/posts/186

I am not sure I understand all the metrics, and London is huge so journey times vary strongly depending on college, but the areas listed look like a sensible starting point.

MummiUni · 27/08/2014 19:42

Hi I'm not sure if this needs its own thread it not but----

How are you marking your DC leaving to go to Uni?
Nothing special?
A nice meal at home?
A big farewell party for family and friends?

What is the fine thing?

MummiUni · 27/08/2014 19:42

What is the done thing? Not fine thing, sorry.

secretsquirrels · 28/08/2014 09:28

No party, I suspect he will do some farewell stuff with his friends, they all seem to go at different times.
Maybe a farewell meal