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Higher education

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

Original poster

Missed form choice but 600 UCAS points

55 replies

Sliceofthecake · 18/08/2016 19:22

DD missed out on her first choice uni by a fraction so we are going to get the paper reviewed.

In the meantime, she did astoundingly well in other subjects, scoring 100% in one subject, 95% in another and also an A* for General.

She's over exceeded her insurance offer by miles. She was so stunned this .owning that she didn't know which way to turn for adjustment places.

Should she withdraw her application and reapply next year for different RG unis? Or go with a friendly non RG uni where she'll (hopefully/probably) get a first?

OP posts:
Gobbolinothewitchscat · 19/08/2016 08:45

slice - I woukd greet her smilingly this morning and advise that there's no need to discuss further. It's clear (after this recent debacle) that university would not be the right thing just now. Better to apply next year when there's plenty of time to work out what to do and the heat is out if the situation.

She can learn to drive - yay!

Work in the hotel across the road - boo

Do gap year programme - yay!

(2 goods to one bad ratio. Perfect shit sandwich!)

I woukd also ask Grannie nicely to shut up

senua · 19/08/2016 08:45

It sounds like she is in too much of a fug to make a sensible decision. There is too much riding on this (career, debt, etc) so pull out of this year and re-apply.

confuugled1 · 19/08/2016 09:24

Another one who is very Shock that granny saying somewhere is in a safe part of London would make such a big impact on college/uni choice.

Surely most of the big RG colleges are in nice bits of London!

And ditto boyfriend being close. Have seen too many people end up choosing a course based on it being close to boyfriend rather than what they really wanted to do. And then regardless of whether or not they stay together they've based their life on something not of their choosing.

Worse still is what happens to people like dsis - long term boyfriend from school dumped her just before finals. She had spent loads on travelling to see him (he never seemed to go to her as much - always had excuses as to why his uni town was better to go to, it wasn't!) plus she missed out on friends, boyfriends and good times at her own uni. And don't get me started on the timing!

Hope she manages to pull herself out of her fug and ends up having a great year. and if she is deliberately doing the opposite to what you think is a good idea as a means of exerting control when she feels she doesn't have any, even if it's detrimental, then maybe use that to your advantage...

Original poster
Sliceofthecake · 19/08/2016 09:28

She phoned NotLSE who said, unsurprisingly, that they're now full and the only option is for her to reapply next year.

OP posts:
titchy · 19/08/2016 09:28

Just to point out the obvious that RH isn't in London at all...

Original poster
Sliceofthecake · 19/08/2016 09:30

I know. I know. shakes head

OP posts:
Original poster
Sliceofthecake · 19/08/2016 09:32

Oh, if anyone from RH is reading this, I'm not dissing the place. I just think she's so close to her dream that she shouldn't give up. If she'd just scraped AAB then I'd be packing her bags for her already.

OP posts:
bojorojo · 19/08/2016 09:40

Why has she fixated on one course? Is there nothing else that is similar? She does seem a bit immature. I also think she is suffering from loss of face and all the input which is rather conflicting and not helpful. I do know schools that say X university is just as good as Y university which, by any rational evaluation, is total rubbish!

Students are safe at every university! Equally there are dreadful people everywhere so perceived safety is bottom of the considerations really. Although all young women should learn how to stay safe, even in leafy areas! The 3 RG universities in London are great even Q M in Mile End which was never thought of as being a particularly salubrious area of London!

I think re-evaluating what she can do and where she can do it will help and she will find a course that suits. What did she actually want to do?

Original poster
Sliceofthecake · 19/08/2016 09:54

I am going to strip some wallpaper as a form of therapy. I'm hyperventilating.

OP posts:
Dancingupthewall · 19/08/2016 10:59

She wouldn't phone clearing. She panicked and her brain shut down which makes me wonder whether she's sharp-elbowed enough to cope with a top tier university in the first place, if she crumbles like this under pressure. [snip] But she can do so much better and I worry that she will regret her crippling lack of confidence in 10 years time.

Reading this, I'm glad she's considering a gap year. It doesn't have to be a "yah" year! She doesn't have to save the whales trekking in Nepal etc etc. She could just get a minimum wage job and mix with all sorts of people, do some volunteering, and generally decompress.

As titchy says, General Studies and an overall UCAS points tariff don't cut it at research-intensive universities (a term which goes beyond Russell Group & is more important, frankly - includes excellent places such as Leicester, Lancaster & UEA).

MaudGonneMad · 19/08/2016 11:05

I know of at least 2-3 RG universities that do accept General Studies.

haybott · 19/08/2016 11:19

Courses requiring high grades at RGs don't accept General Studies as one of those grades.

Dancingupthewall · 19/08/2016 11:36

Once again, I think this is partly about very specific courses at specific universities, and those of us working in the sector obviously have different experiences.

Any research-intensive university I've worked at or been an External Examiner for [ugh grammar, sorry] hasn't taken General Studies, nor calculated entry by tariff points - it's always been grades.

However, a highly experienced Admissions admin officer once told me that GS was one of the best indicators of success at university. So those of us in research-intensive/RG university courses which don't count GS may be missing a trick Hmm

MaudGonneMad · 19/08/2016 11:40

Does AAB count as high grades?

bojorojo · 19/08/2016 12:14

Yes - for lots of courses but not at the top universities and it depends what subject too! These grades in MFL will get you almost anywhere!

hellsbells99 · 19/08/2016 12:20

I know Sheffield accept General Studies for some courses

Original poster
Sliceofthecake · 19/08/2016 12:24

I feel so sad because what should be a triumphant time for her is turning into angst all round.

She DID love RH and said that she didn't want to leave the place when we went to the Open Day. But if she loved it that much, why did she spend all of yesterday in tears?

Everyone on here is right. But I am also telling myself that RH is still uni of London and it's not as though it's a former FE college turned uni. It's still a decent place where I know she'll be happy and make nice friends who are just like her.

But....

The reason she wanted to go to notLSE was the richness & diversity of cultures of the students themselves.

OP posts:
Dancingupthewall · 19/08/2016 12:37

RHUL is an absolutely excellent institution. It's not a bad second choice.

For most degree programmes, wherever students go, they'll have a good time, they'll learn, and they'll grow & develop. But if she had her heart & pride set on notLSE then her tears are probably not about RHUL, but about not getting into her 1st choice. If RHUL had been her first choice, and she'd missed the offer, I suspect she'd be in tears as well.

But you know all this ...

GinandJag · 19/08/2016 12:38

I'm confused.

She missed her grades on her first choice but wants to withdraw from her insurance? Why did she put RHUL down if she wasn't willing to go there and wants to break the contract she has with them?

Advicepls7080 · 19/08/2016 12:43

She technically doesn't have a contract with the University until the first day of the course.

GinandJag · 19/08/2016 12:44

My DD has just finished her first year at RHUL and it has been the making of her. This was her insurance offer having missed the grades for Sheffield.

She, and you, need to look forward and not dwell on the past.

notamummy10 · 19/08/2016 12:53

Until a person enrols in the first week, they have no liability for fees or they aren't breaking any contract as they aren't technically a student there... They may been accepted there but they aren't technically a student at the university until you enrol and get issued a student card, which is when Student Finance gets activated!

I hope your daughter finds what she wants to do!

Original poster
Sliceofthecake · 19/08/2016 12:54

ginandjag She doesn't - it's me as Meddling Mum Who Is Interfering.

I suspect she will go there.

She didn't get first choice.
She didn't ask them to hold her place.
She didn't contact clearing for readjustment.
She probably won't consider rd sitting or reapplying.

All the while, I'm buzzing around like a wasp in her ear saying "You can do this, you can do that."

I only asked about the withdrawl issue because she might have confirmed the place already and i wanted to find out the facts in case she changed her mind about a gap year.

I feel like the pushy Cambridge mum in the AIBU thread. Someone posted "Her course, her life." The Tiger Mom in me says "Yeah, what about my 36k and the rest??

She's now gone AWOL in the safety of boyfriend's house. I think I should give up the chase. She raved about the RH lecturers and she'll do very well there.

My issue is that the carrot has been dangled and I need to stop shouting "Grab it!! Grab it!!!"

OP posts:
worriedworker01 · 19/08/2016 13:12

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

GinandJag · 19/08/2016 13:30

I'm not a sixth form tutor, so not an expert by any means.

My understanding is that you can only do adjustment if you exceed your firm offer, and you can only do clearing if you don't have any offers.

If she does not want the RHUL place, she will need to phone them first to discuss her options.