University offers for 2017 start (Part 2)

[EnormousTiger]

Continuation of the original thread which is now on to 40 page maximum.
Original thread (part 1) here: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/higher_education/2759621-Uni-offers-for-2017-start?

Most offers now received. My twins have had offers from their 4 and are currently deciding which will be firm and which insurance. One twin
( possibly two of them) is going to an offer holders' day coming up at Bristol next month with his friends from school.

www.tes.com/news/school-news/breaking-news/exam-board-edexcel-launches-investigation-alleged-leak-economics-a
My son had not known about the leak today (and did not see the leaked paper) but he said it was the best economics paper he did so is worried - hopes they do not give less credit to that paper just because some people might have seen it which would be extremely unfair no those for whom it was their best economics paper.

They need to get to the bottom of these leaks.

Both twins said geography was easy today and wondered if that were because it is the first year of the new system. A level.

All finished for them now.

Last exam for ds today (Physics....possibly his worst subject) he's not too downbeat as he's fairly optimistic about his other subjects and the Welsh Bac which counts as another A level and thinks he's done well in that anyway!
Ah well, accommodation booked and deposit paid for his first choice uni....just have to wait 2 months now and if he does get first choice he'll be starting there just over 2 weeks after results!..... last of mine to fly the nest

Ahhhh! Dd (22) was just sick and I felt odd the other night! Pleeeeeeasaasse don't let ds get it. He has exam tomorrow morning and 3 hours and 45 mins (extra time) Friday morning.

Dingit how did your DD think physics went today?

DS is optimistic thankfully. He needs an A, but did well last year so needs 200/300 ums by his calculations, from the three papers. Mind you could be immaterial if the a* has gone😢

Tobee- sending you all healthy vibes.

Mine thought the AQA physics was fine, as it was more like the old spec style which she preferred. She heard some bad report of the edexcel though.

Mine need to consider accommodation next (and a few other tasks I reminded them of) but not today they say which I can understand. On 1 July they move on to an allowance so if they want me to buy clothes etc outside of that allowance they need to buy them before 1 July and I've said I will get them a new lap top each (as they don't really have a properly working lap top - problem with being children 4/5 - you get everyone's cast offs) and something else... ah yes the bank. I think they can get a better Nat West form just with the UCAS reference number rather than waiting until the Autumn. And one needs euros for a trip abroad this month - his first just with friends.

Penny, dd thought physics was hard but ok. Compared to C3, anything would be. I'm dreading Friday (c4)

Another one with a child feeling despondent about C3 :(

dd thought C3 was fine but I think she did a different exam board. The other exam board sounded terrible. She said Physics AQA this morning was ok.

She also has Maths C4 on Friday but seems happier now that the remaining exams are spaced out.

Hoping this hot weather breaks soon. A thunderstorm tonight would help.

DS thought OCR physics was ok, even good, today. History was good too apparently. So pleased today went well after C3 yesterday. Prepping for C4 on Friday now and then just physics and chem practical
papers next week. Looking forward to next Thursday then it's just the wait for results.

DS and his school mates found C3 pretty ok but that was OCR. Perhaps it was simply by comparison to OCR Biology#1....

One of my two was reminding his twin that he thought there was a really bad economics paper in AS last year and yet he did fine so hopefully in the one paper he thought went badly the same will happen this year. One thinks he has messed up what should have been an easy History paper but we shall see. They were asking each other what grades they might get in the car but it's very hard to guess at this point even with AS grades feeding into some of the exams. No point in thinking about it now until August.

I would also like a thunderstorm. Very hard for me to work in this awful heat.

The leak thing is bad. What happens with a leak? I can see how grade boundaries sometimes need to go down but surely they can't make them higher across the board because of this thing on TSR? Anyone know?

DD said today, "If they had asked the right questions in the psychology exams, I could have got an A." I resisted the urge to be anything but sympathetic.

Well my son is hoping they won't have to resit the economics paper across the country or that that third of 3 papers is not ignored in the marks.

Also why would anyone who had a leaked paper then publish that they had it by posting it on line - it seems very silly and weird. I don't thnk there is much corruption in our exam system compared say to China but I suppose a parent might offer a teacher struggling for money £10,000 for a paper and they might cave in so I bet some cheating goes on. I would rather my children failed everything than got good marks with any cheating and they know that and agree with me.

They now seem to have realised it might be a good idea to start looking at university accommodation and making some decisions, at long last!

They have even applied to convert their Nat West accounts to student accounts today

Still stress here re the Economics 'leak.' Needs an A or A* and very worried in case grade boundaries affected. I just keep trying to say soothing things

I don't see how teachers can be bribed, they don't get to see the exam papers for the subjects that they teach, even after the exam. Everything is sealed and only handled by the exam officer and invigilators, who are not teachers from the school.

I've been outside an exam where the teacher has been reading the paper while the kids were taking it.

Ds has his two most important exams today, I wish this weather would break.

dah I don't see how the exam board can raise the grade boundaries thus penalising those students who didn't cheat. Especially as the leak must have come from the board.

That would be outrageous, no?

Just came down to find DD asleep on the living room floor. I'm guessing her bedroom was too hot, but I don't think a night on the tiles is a good idea before an exam.

Fingers crossed that there won't be any implications for students who didn't see any leaked paper (if there was a leak (?))
Lots of messages on twitter from students to Edexcel.

All finished here! Yay! Dd was much more upbeat today with the Eng Lit paper so now I want us all to forget about it ............... until mid-August, obviously!