I remember the unravelling. Not particularly DD, though her medic application, a couple of school positions, and the fact she has been very ill over the summer into the start of the term, meant she was exhausted. The bigger problem was the way stress passed around until it affected many in the year group. Next term is, if anything worse. Mocks and course work, and for some interviews and rejections. (Not just medics. DS did not hear from Warwick, UCL and LSE till late March - and then two rejections and an offer.) And of course exams during the summer, especially difficult for those sitting on tough offers.
Sorry, that all sounds pretty gloomy. Part of the problem might have been that DD loved her sixth form and really wanted to eke every last minute of experience from it, so continued try and do everything. And did!
It passes, but Yr 13 is horrid. Particularly for our barely adults. All I can say is that if things don't go according to plan, it's not always a bad thing. Doing your best is all a student can do, and if it does not work out, having a rethink can deliver better ideas.
DD was worried about leaving school because she loved it so much, but the signs are that she may enjoy her gap year even more. Despite having to work harder than she has done before. And hopefully by September she will be sick of cooking and cleaning and appreciate being at University.
Good luck to everyone.
On clothing, I don't think it matters, with medicine an exception. This is one example:
"As we are seeking to identify your suitability for a clinical environment, we expect our interviewees to adopt the dress code required of clinical medical students at King's."
We struggled because so much smart casual on the high street is too middle aged for a 17 year old. In the end I left her in a smart boutique (Comptoir des Cottoniers - during the sale) and set a challenge for the helpful staff. After several trips to the stock room they came up with a lovely, well cut pair of black trousers, a dark and fairly plain printed top, and a loose cut black jacket to go with her black chelsea boots. If we had known what we were trying to achieve we could have done it cheaper at Zara or Mango, but the jacket is an absolute favourite and the top and trousers, though saved for "best", have had several outings. And DD felt comfortable, wearing her clothes rather than them wearing her.