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Higher education

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

Original poster

A level Results - 18 days - anxiety rising....anyone else??

999 replies

Poppledopple · 31/07/2016 13:31

Maybe because it is August tomorrow - but seems to have come round quickly. Had a nice break not thinking about anything since last exam and after full on year choosing, applying, getting rejected, getting offers etc....

Might as well switch off and try and get distracted for the next 18 days....as either way it will be v busy few days/weeks after results to get started on next phase of his life.

PFB -- any old hands out there want to give me a slap?

OP posts:
Cocolepew · 14/08/2016 22:05

She will be staying at home.
I sometimes think shes sick of academic work atm, I told her if she wanted to take a year, or forever, out thats not a problem. I'm definitely not pushing her to uni.
I read the other thread, I'm sorry your DS has had such a hard time. Hopefully he will recover well over the next few months Flowers
My younger DD has been struggling with glandular fever so I can only imagine how hard it must be for him.

buckingfrolicks · 14/08/2016 23:00

oh lordie it's getting bad at Bucking House - DS having melt downs already, in panic (he did not work hard enough and is likely to mess up his 3B requirement tbh).

He's refusing to countenance Clearing, and muttering darkly about joining the Met Police.

It's horrendous, the pressure they are under these days.

All the hints and tips have been a lifebelt in troubled waters thank you

Original poster
poppledopple · 15/08/2016 14:15

2 bug sleeps ( won't sleep Wed night.....)

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Original poster
poppledopple · 15/08/2016 14:34

Coco - why don't you suggest that she asks to defer her uni place to give her some space ? Don't bother with college as that is just more of the same - could she work/volunteer/travel etc

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thepurplehen · 15/08/2016 15:02

I agree. Just going to college to "kill time" probably won't really be helpful. Volunteering / travelling or working will build confidence.

ajandjjmum · 15/08/2016 15:06

Sympathy to you all - been there twice!

DS had the right points but not grades (A*AB rather than AAA) for Durham, and they made him wait 5 days before saying they wouldn't accept him.

RunnyRattata · 15/08/2016 15:09

Can I just pop on to say that if your DC looks at UCAS first thing and gets their place it's worth pausing to think a bit if you then find out that they missed their offer grades by quite some way. It can happen and in all the excitement it's not easy to stop and ponder whether they're really up to the standard needed to be successful on the course. Just trying to pass on a bit of personal hindsight and all the very best to your DCs (and you)

hellsbells99 · 15/08/2016 15:19

So if DD gets accepted with reduced grades at either choices (likely with insurance as they could drop her down from Masters to BSc & then if good grades in year 1 can move back to masters), does she still look at remarks? Do we ask for scripts back first and then possible remarks if any errors (Stem subjects)?
If a remark comes back lower do you then lose the place? If they are not priority remarks as place is confirmed then they may come back after uni start date.
Do remarks get sent to the uni directly?
.....trying to think ahead and be prepared!

Cocolepew · 15/08/2016 15:41

I'm just waiting until Thursday.
DD has a habit of going over things constantly, so it changes from day to day.
We discussed different options a few weeks ago, there's nothing to be gained from going over and over them.

RunnyRattata · 15/08/2016 15:47

Hells I think it's more about pausing for thought if they miss by a long way and the uni still accept them. Think being offered ABB and getting BCC. It might be worth having a pause for consideration at that point.

veryproudvolleyballmum · 15/08/2016 15:54

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Butteredparsn1ps · 15/08/2016 15:57

It's excurutiating isn't it?

DD is predicted good grades, but isn't sleeping well. She even dreamed she had got an I grade in one subject !

Good luck to everyone for Thursday .

dottygamekeeper · 15/08/2016 16:32

Hells, your DD sounds as if she may be in similar position to mine, in that she has applied for Masters, but her insurance would take her with lower grades onto BSc.

I have already had the conversation about how, if grades are quite a bit lower than expected, may be the course might be too challenging and we should have a rethink, as Runny suggests.

DS was waiting for his grades this time last year, but as he was going straight onto Art Foundation, we didn't have all the tension building, so this is new to me.

I have passed on all the info gleaned from this thread, DD is prepared with phone numbers etc, but it is a tense time...

hellsbells99 · 15/08/2016 16:32

Yes I understand that Runny and agree!
But it's also a case of if things went pear-shaped, then why?
Bad day, nerves, bad paper, bad marking, beyond capabilities ........

NapoleonsNose · 15/08/2016 17:21

DD is in a group FB chat with people who've applied for the same course as her. Apparently today some have had their offers changed to unconditional. Seeing as they have already made their decision with regards to their firm/insurance choices, so I don't think its a way of tempting them to make a choice between two offers, I can't see why they would do this at such a late stage. Sadly DD isn't one of them!

Original poster
poppledopple · 15/08/2016 17:36

Wow - Has this come thru UCAS Track? As I thought that this was suspended until Thurs 8am - or have they been notified direct from uni? Is this just telling th that they are in ahead of Thurs?

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Original poster
poppledopple · 15/08/2016 18:43

Article in The Observer yesterday speculates that Uni will be falling over themselves to fill places this year because applications are down 2.5%, they expect significant % of EU applicants not to come now due to Brexit and many more professional apprenticeships leading to a degree are available which some offer holders will take up instead. So maybe these last minute unconditionals are a reflection of uni scarmbling for students?

But I would be a bit miffed to get an unconditional 2 days before results - when the blood sweat and tears have already been spent ....!

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NapoleonsNose · 15/08/2016 18:55

I guess that's how they found out - DD didn't say. I have two opposing theories; either they have exceeded their grades and the uni wants to lock them so they don't go through adjustment, or they course is undersubscribed anyway (DD's course has already advertised clearing places), they haven't got the grades but are taking them anyway and again want fill places and not risk students looking elsewhere. Why this is happening now, rather that Thursday is still a bit of a mystery. If the Observer article is correct then I guess it will be the unis competing for students, rather than the students competing for unis and it will be a buyers market come the 18th

Coconutty · 15/08/2016 19:00

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

haybott · 15/08/2016 19:41

Article in The Observer yesterday speculates that Uni will be falling over themselves to fill places this year because applications are down 2.5%, they expect significant % of EU applicants not to come now due to Brexit and many more professional apprenticeships leading to a degree are available which some offer holders will take up instead.

I did not read the article but if it contained this then it is remarkable in its selective use of facts. Total UCAS application numbers were up marginally on last year. Applications from UK domiciled students were down a bit relative to last year's (2015) cycle but this was already expected (mostly demographics); applications from UK based students were in any case 2% up relative to the previous (2014) cycle.

Professional apprenticeships account for less than 5% of the total number of UK applicants to university. They won't affect most of the higher tier of universities.

There had been concern that EU students would not come because of Brexit. Final numbers won't be clear until courses start in September/October (and students officially enrol, pay fees) but from what I have heard right now it seems that most EU students are still coming so this fear was not really borne out in this year's admissions cycle. (We can see that international students are paying deposits for accommodation etc.) We expect Brexit to hit us more in next year's admissions cycle, as there are no guarantees in place for the visa/fee status of EU nationals applying this Autumn.

Overall I would not expect the higher tier (Russell Group type) universities to be behaving particularly differently in Clearing this year than last year. (I know less about lower tier universities, which may well have lost more students to apprenticeships and perhaps to Brexit.) Since taking more students means more fees, there will be plenty of good courses in Clearing but I think it's an exaggeration to say that it will be more of a buyers market than last year for higher tier universities.

Diglet · 15/08/2016 19:42

I think Track is available but isn't updated until results day so presumably those kids that have had their offers changed to unconditional were either offered unconditional surrender direct from the Uni (which seems pointless as they surely can't lock them in) or they were offered their unconditional before Track was put on hold, presumably sometime last week.

It must be lovely for those DC who definitely want to go to the Uni.

Decorhate · 15/08/2016 20:00

I have a feeling that the thing where offers are changed to unconditional happened last year also but can't remember the ins and outs of why

Diglet · 15/08/2016 20:17

Offers were being switched to unconditionals late in the process last year but I wasn't aware of them changing so close to results day.

Hassled · 15/08/2016 20:32

Oh my word the TENSION! It's pretty much all I think about at the moment. Roll on Thursday - whatever the news, I'd rather know.

DS2 has decided he's going to ring his Insurance tomorrow and ask them to release him from his Unconditional offer. Then he'll be able to go through Clearing and apply for one of the many places that seem to be available with more interesting courses/higher in league tables etc. Part of me is panicking that he's burning all his bridges, and part of me can see that if he definitely doesn't want to go there (again - why did he ever put it down?) it's better he frees himself up now. Except that the release process can apparently take 10 days and all those good Clearing places will be gone in 10 days. Nightmare.

Hassled · 15/08/2016 20:37

The thought of being an Admissions staff member with a child going through this - it must be horrific.