A Level Results Day

[3catsandadog]

Hi If UCAS does not update first thing before the school opens for result is it a bad sign that the offer has been missed.
Good luck to everyone awaiting results :)

Late to the party, but I’ve kind of blocked this from my mind until the last week or so...

I’m another one with DC in consecutive years, (12 and just finished 13) so exams and university open days are the norm here too! DC1 is a ‘winger’, DC2 a planner so the two approaches have been interesting...

DS is fairly sure he’s missed his grades, he picked a tough subject and there’s not much disparity in offer grades from the Uni’s. He’s also fairly sure he wants to change subject so we’ve been looking through the clearing choices. And indeed learning about clearing, this being our first experience.

We’ve managed to get to the stage where he’d accept his firm choice as he loved the Uni and stick with the subject, otherwise he’ll go through clearing. And narrowed that to two Uni’s that already are showing clearing places (slightly narrowed choices due to lack of biology).

Yesterday was doing the final draft of DD’s personal statement for her. Fun and games indeed.

I’ve found A Levels much more stressful than 2 sets of GCSE’s, AS’s last year and mocks this year. I’m just the parent too.

JustAnother have you talked to his first choice uni about changing subjects? Do they have a good course in the subject be wants to do?

My son had a place at Bath for Biology and ended up doing Politics and International Relations! It was a bit different as he was on a gap year when he decided be wanted to change so already had A Level results, but maybe worth talking to them before next week?

bagel, my DS has decided on equally diverse subjects. Maths at Lancaster to Marine Biology, I’m not sure they do this course.

He chose Maths as he’s good at it and hadn’t really cemented in his mind what he actually wanted to do a Uni. So he chose what he’s good at really, not what he loves. He was only just developing a love of all thing aquatic at that stage.

The lack of biology isn’t insurmountable, but does limit the field. Thankfully he has all other science based subjects.

Might I enquire whether the gap year was beneficial? My DS is a quiet soul, I’d worry he’d spend the year in his room.

DS is quite a people person anyway. He went to Israel and worked on a kibbutz in the desert (quite a famous one for chocolate milk and ice cream!). Made lots of friends but we also have (OH's) family and friends there. He knows the language as well.

After about 4mths he went travelling for another few months in Europe with an American guy he'd made friends with on the kibbutz. I think it made him more capable doing things like shopping, cooking, washing clothes etc which was helpful - general independence.

He was lucky he was able to transfer courses, rather than having to reapply.

Please tell me more stories about gap years that went well. My dd is not quiet but is likely To sulk and she has been sheer horribleness to live with for months- especially mean to dd2- god forgive me but I need her out of the house! Can’t wait for results day in hopes it ends the misery or at least we can start to rebuild our former good humour.

Hi! Managing to get myself more anxious than I need to be. Last week ds's firm choice said it had spaces in clearing for his course but as of today it's dropped off their list. I guess they have the results now so know how well the applicants have done. Was hoping if the course was in clearing it might have implied some leniency for a dropped grade but who knows?!!

I'm hoping that my three DSs will all be going off to music college or university this autumn.

DS1 is definitely off to RAM as he has an unconditional offer having taken his A levels last year. DS2 and DS3 are both waiting for results so fingers crossed for Thursday.

And DD is waiting for GCSE results the week after.

My dd is not quiet but is likely To sulk and she has been sheer horribleness to live with for months- especially mean to dd2- god forgive me but I need her out of the house!

I remember speaking to one of our students who said she was exactly like this during her A-levels and while waiting for her results. I think it was a major reason for her younger sister turning down an offer from our university to go somewhere else. The student in question - the one who was horribleness personified at results time - is one of the best students we've ever had, although I perpetually feel sorry for her boyfriend.

I am waiting for A levels results too for DS1 and GCSE results for DS2. I am terrified by DS1 is leaving Home but I am putting brave face for him.

I'm also fairly terrified about my elder daughter leaving home, especially as neither her firm nor her insurance choice is somewhere I regularly pass through. But it's something she has to do some time, so we'll all have to be brave about it. My other worry is that her younger sister really doesn't recognize how much she's going to miss her.

Accidentally clicked on this. We're in Scotland and Dd got her results last week. She couldn't get in UCAS before 9am but got her results at 8am from the SQA. At 9am she got into UCAS and the unconditional offer was there and when she looked they had updated on the 2nd her place.

Her email from UCAS came through just after she got into UCAS.

I’ve Gone to France to get away from it All and be distracted. I’m not worrying about exams but have discovered a mortal fear of driving and don’t want to have to get us all home. It’s just struck me this might be me just shoving the anxiety into something else...

We are going to the pool before I cry. Oh, too late

Hi such a stressful time for all, just wanted to put some good vibes out there and wish everyone good luck for "A" level results on Thursday :)

We are also tense here and I wonder if I'm going to survive. My DD decided last week that she wants to take a gap year.

Does anyone have an idea how to go about it? Does she call her 1st choice before Thursday and asks for deferral or on Thursday?

Any advice greatly appreciated.
Good luck to everyone on Thursday.

I think the earlier the better Nada so they know how many places they have to fill before offers go out.

Anxiety levels are now sky high here. Dd has convinced herself she's failed one and keeps saying she's not being modest. I never knew having a child could be as stressful as it is currently, even her being ill and having surgery was less stressful than this. The next three days are going to be aaaggghhh

Whirlygig your DD isn't the only one! We/she has been trying to ignore it for the most part. But she registered for clearing some time ago and, over the weekend, looked at unis who would accept lower grades. Now she has a list of 5/6 with a range of grades. Of course, we haven't visited any so it's a shot in the dark but she has a top 3 within that list. Don't know what more we can do except wait 😩

Thank you Teta.

Bagel mine has an unconditional as her insurance but now she's not sure she's going to take it if it all goes pear shaped 🙄
I might have a sneaky look myself at clearing because she's refusing and ignoring it. She's currently unwell and I'm sure the stress is just making it worse. She's been working full time all summer so at least she's occupied during the day, it's evenings now we are having floods of tears and cries of why didn't I chose a profession that didn't require uni

Joining you all. I have the double whammy this year too, with results on 16th & 23rd to get through. Highly unlikely that eldest is going to get the A level results need for chosen course, so 16th is going to be a really, really stressful day. The insurance place still requires the same grades, so we will be up shit creek without a paddle and probably looking at a year off, retakes etc. Every time I think about it all I want to barf. I know my social media feeds will be full of "#so blessed" and "#so proud" etc from all my friends whose DC will have done well and I will have to resist the temptation not to be adding "#so fucked"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dd only retook one this year so we have no plan b. She thought it went ok but after last years debacle we realise anything can happen and we will never look at exams in the same light again. So I am stressing but she seems to be calm.

😂😂😂 Margo I'd actually post that on fb I think. I've never even done a blessed or proud hashtag so if it all goes tits up, we should all use the hashtag.

I'll join you all. DD has done 4 A Levels and seems pretty calm about the results. She's got an unconditional as her first choice so that takes the pressure off the results. Her predictions were very high but she's not confident that she'll get those high results, but luckily she doesn't need them.

I'm definitely more worried than she is.

I am with you DRAGON. DS1 has unconditional too but still very curious to know his results

Margo I like your hashtag. there will be something in clearing though, there really will. And his insurance might have a different policy over dropped grades. there is also the possiblity of them offering another course in same department with lower grades. this happened to a friend's son at Warwick. Applied for Maths and ended up doing Engineering because he didn't want to go to his Insurance. he only realised he really wanted his firm uni when he got into the insurance. He has had a great first year, doing a subject he didn't think he wanted to do, and his parents felt uneasy about the choice too. But it worked out brilliantly.

Ds1 also has an unconditional. So why am I looking at all the Clearing stuff? I feel he is going to spring something on us on the day like, I want to do film or I want to be an opera singer...and wavering..