Oxbridge applicants 2018 part 3

[OhYouBadBadKitten]

Looks like we need a new thread.

Oh thank goodness Lucycat! What a relief for your DD. Well Done you for being knowledgable and assertive enough to sort it out.
It's stuff like this that makes me anxious about marking in general though and how subjective it can be, particularly in essay subjects.
I can feel a Sleepless night ahead for me!

Ds is doing his first exam right now. He was very calm when he went in this morning - let's hope he still feeling that way now he's in the middle of it. Sending good wishes to all your children who are also sitting exams this week.

dd is doing hers too. After an anxious moment yesterday afternoon she seems hopefully to have cleared her head, ate her favourite breakfast and got off ok.

That's the first exam done. Phew! I've marked off on the family calendar with a thick marker.

That's good to hear OYBBK, my DD was certainly much more relaxed after first one out of way.

Had second and final Biology yesterday - now a 2 week hiatus before next one. Most are crammed in her last of week of exams. Certainly very different feel from ASs/ GCSEs in terms of spacing!

dd was much more relaxed too. Next exam is next Wednesday. Hopefully now the first one is done it will make things feel less tense.

It sounds as though DS is doing the same board as your DD OYBBK - his next one is on Wednesday. He thought yesterday went OK, although some of his friends thought it was worse than any of the papers they had practised. I, too, will be crossing it off the list.😀

It does STEPmum.:) I've sent you a pm. Hope thats OK.

Ib all finished here. Dd so happy to be done. Feels they went ok but just have to wait and see. Going to feel like a long wait till 6th July

Can’t believe you’re all done fatbottom when we’ve hardly started! Sounds really positive that your DD feels they were OK. Can’t imagine life on the other side of this!

The joys of non science or maths subjects- DDs are all between 4th and 19th June so we have 2 weeks yet before they even start!

Is that good or bad Lucycat?

It's the prolonged nature that's stressy here. stretched over 6 weeks.

Good - I think, but it's DDs 18th today so it's great that she can take a day (or 2!) off studying.
How did my little girl get to be so grown up?!

Happy Birthday Lucycat's DD!
Definitely good not to have any exams yet then. DD's Birthday was at the weekend, but the 2 impending exams this week put a dampener on her partying.

Enjoy the celebrations!

Yippee its great thats its all over and now seems to be party time in a major way followed by travelling for a month. Think that might be more stressful than the exams for me ! Teenagers never seem to realise how much us parents worry, though that might just be me 😁

Won't say I'm not jealous fatbottom.

I got a call from DS's sixth form tutor today voicing concerns that Cambridge might not be what DS really wants. Apparently he isn't showing the 'drive' that Oxbridge students usually display and the tutor wanted to try and understand whether DS feels under pressure to accept Cambridge when he might be happier at Durham. He's tried to have a conversation with him but DS wasn't very forthcoming. I tried to have a gentle conversation with him this evening but, as he has an exam tomorrow, didn't want to say too much. I don't want him to choose a uni to please us or the school -I just want him to be happy wherever he goes. Anyone else wondering if their DC isn't absolutely sure of their choice?

I'm sure many of our DC are not absoutely right for anywhere. If it were me I'd have that conversation after exams. How worrying for you to hear from the school. Ane dotally, we thought Durham seemed wonderful.

Anecdotally

Agree with Voilets it's probably best left until after exams now, would hate anything to cause a confidence knock this close to them.
Then perhaps a post-exam trip to Cambridge to see if it re-kindles whatever it was that made him want to apply?

Do you think he's working/revising enough? I'm guessing that's what the tutor was getting at.
It seems a strange phone call for a tutor to make. I can understand your worry

It seems a strange call from the tutor this close to exams that should have said.

STEPmum I think I'd have that conversation at the beginning of half term.

I hope today's paper went well. dd was as noncommittal as always.

STEP I think that is a conversation to be had after exams, To be honest if he has not shown enough commitment in revising then it may end up a choice he does not have to make. I mean that in the nicest way. On the other hand my DS really wants to go to Oxford and is not revising well so who knows!!

Yes I think it is a concern about the amount of work he's doing (or not doing). He's always taken a very relaxed approach to revision though so I was surprised that the tutor raised it this week - DS has been like this all the way through school. I think you're right, alittlechampagne, when you say it might be a choice he doesn't have to make. I don't think he's putting in the necessary hours to prepare for STEP but I feel that nagging is not going to help - it's got to come from him. On the plus side he thought today's paper was "quite good".

Good suggestion about visiting both Durham and Cambridge again after exams too. I guess by then he'll have some idea about how the exams have gone.