Preparing to go to university - the admin!!

[TheThirdOfHerName]

Most 18 year olds are capable of sorting out their pre-university admin, but mine needs support (due to dyspraxia & anxiety). Because he needs my help, I've found out quite how much admin is involved.

He started the process with a list of tasks, e.g. apply for university, apply for student finance, apply for DSA, apply for accommodation, apply for a student bank account. Initially it sounded straightforward, but each task is actually made up of many subtasks, most of which require different logins, passwords and security validations.

Applying for accommodation was supposed to be done completely online, but at three different stages of the process the system would not let him access the next step and he had to sort it out with phone calls and emails.

This morning he completed the online registration for his course. There were six stages to the process, including several "Computer says no" moments along the way. Luckily the website accepted the third ID photo he tried to upload. He couldn't access the final stage until the system had accepted his responses for the first five stages.

I often see posters comment that in their day, students did all this independently, and query why modern 18 year olds need help. It's true that when I was a student I handled the admin myself, but everything wasn't so bloody complicated back then!

It’s the impotent rage caused by getting 23 random computer failures and a system that requires you to have already logged in successfully before you can get through to tell anyone you haven’t been able to log in.

Yes, this is it exactly. The accommodation portal was the worst; he had to phone them several times and send emails to get it to do what it should have done automatically.

I have learned from this experience.

Have now got DS2 (aged 16) to set up a bank account with online banking, so he will have two years of experience in dealing with the frustration before he goes to university.

One notebook, all notes and passwords all together in one place

Isn't this directly contrary to normal online security advice?

Isn't this directly contrary to normal online security advice?

no.

DD and I spent at least 4 hours yesterday evening going through all of her "paperwork" (all online) It's complicated, contradicting and there's just SO much of it

(university contract, college contract, department contract, college accommodation contract, tenancy agreement, medical agreement including medical and vaccination records, SU membership, online bank account, insurance, bursary applications etc)

and that's before you even get to the glitches, system failures and processing errors.
No way would I have expected her to tackle it by herself, and she has no additional needs.

Hopefully now that we've done it all once, she'll know how to manage most of it independently in future (but I'll still be here, happy to help if she needs me to)

I have no doubts whatsoever about maturity or ability to access and complete her degree clairetree - I think it was extremely unhelpful and actually quite unkind of you to suggest that she shouldn't even attempt it.

Clairetree1 They don't know everything at 18. As a parent, teaching them how best to navigate offiicialdom is just another life lesson. No different to teaching them how to organise themselves when starting secondary school. I did this with both of mine, it doesn't mean they were immature or stupid.

Although I do think they should know all about bank accounts much younger than 18.

As to passwords, mine are all in a book. Not the actual passwords but a simple code. (For example I might use the first letters of a song title together with a memorable year and that would be written down as songyear)

Quite apart from disability needs, it is all new to most young people and there is a lot of it all at once, probably more than at any other time in their lives.
Besides difficult in coping with paperwork is not a new phenomenon. I work briefly as a receptionist in a GP surgery in Cambridge nearly 30 years ago. A lot of students registered with us and in those days it was a simple paper form. Many still made mistakes.
My fellow receptionists were astonished that some of the brightest young people in the country found it difficult but I was not really surprised as academic ability and administrative nous are not in one to one correspondence.

Hooz DD knows about bank accounts, has had a bank account since she was a tot, and a current account with debit card/online banking etc since she was 14.
You'd think transferring to or opening a student account with the same bank would be a simple process, right?

Wrong. It's more complicated than you could imagine, I have no idea why they'd make it so difficult.
Anyway, after several attempts last night, and more this morning - DH works in IT and even he gave up - she has made an appointment in branch to get some guidance.

I have no doubts whatsoever about maturity or ability to access and complete her degree clairetree - I think it was extremely unhelpful and actually quite unkind of you to suggest that she shouldn't even attempt it.

I'm not suggesting your DD doesn't attempt it.

I'm not even suggesting the OPs son doesn't attempt it, I am suggesting that he defers until he has the maturity to be more likely to be successful.

And believe me, that isn't an unkind suggestion, its a kind one.

I have no idea?

did you see the bit where I explained I have seen thousands of youngsters set off for university and hundreds of youngsters fail and crash out?

I have no idea. I fixed your punctuation error Clairetree1. No need to thank me, you are most welcome.

Damnit! I told myself I wasn't going to, but I fed the troll. Sorry all.

OP, it's hysterical, isn't it, that some of these processes are so poorly set out. Honestly, I imagine some enterprising contractor could make a mint if they offered to sort out a few institutions' admin systems.

Hingle

There are a lot of different issues on the thread. Most students do most of the admin themselves. Mine particularly don't like me interfering as they think I am worse than they are at things (that view is fine with me - means I have less to do) but when I have time and if they want any help I will certainly have a go. We have to remember things many of us have spent 20 years learning - like you have to read an electricity meter when you rent somewhere is not necessarily something someone who is younger will know.

Another issue is some people are just bad at admin and some are bad at it because of a disability.

Finally (my bug bear) many modern IT systems are set up to make you unable to claim - it seems to be written into the systems in a way - eg my attempt to get my council tax discount which ultimately had to be done by post as the upload on the website doesn't work. Some of that is deliberate and some is accidental - son told where to click to pay a sum due and then it doesn't actually tell you what you pay and what you owe because someone who designed the system or didn't keep it running is at fault.

However some of it is better than in my day when you had to call the school or go in to check UCCA (not UCAS in those days). Some new things are better; others worse.

I have no idea. I fixed your punctuation error Clairetree1. No need to thank me, you are most welcome

not a punctuation error, I am pointing out to you that I know far far far far more about this than you do.

sending someone to university who is not capable of the enrollment admin is simply setting them up for disaster.

You think it doesn't happen? thousands of university entrants crash out every year.

they still owe the student loan money back, they still are one year down on loans they can get for studying for the rest of their lives. They are still a year behind where they could have been, never mind they are frequently ashamed, embarrassed, distressed, lost confidence, frustrated,

If someone is so clearly indicating that they don't have the ability or maturity to be likely to succeed, why are they going?

disaster waiting to happen

OK, I was being polite. Keeping all your passwords and online information in one book is certainly contrary to normal online security advice. Not so bad if it is coded in the way Hoozz suggests.

My fellow receptionists were astonished that some of the brightest young people in the country found it difficult but I was not really surprised as academic ability and administrative nous are not in one to one correspondence.

Agreed. We've had students of leading universities in for work experience over the years ,and the sheer lack of common sense some exhibited was extraordinary. I think my favourite was the Oxbridge student who couldn't understand that maybe when we carefully drafted, printed and signed letters we kind of needed the top copy to go to the addressee and not into the file. Yet he was well into his degree and coping fine at university.

OK, I was being polite. Keeping all your passwords and online information in one book is certainly contrary to normal online security advice.

no it isn't. Its fine.

Thats hilarious

Never mind folks - school holidays will soon be over.

It may be that some banks are better or worse than others for students. Perhaps someone should start a thread recommending / shaming .
It's a couple of years ago now but both of mine had some kind of junior current account with Lloyds which converted very smoothly into a student account.
However they then switched to Santander because they give interest on the first £2000 to students and new graduates. They also got 4 year railcards free.
Some students will have different priorities. Mine went for accounts paying interest. Some of their friends went for the maximum overdraft.

Finally (my bug bear) many modern IT systems are set up to make you unable to claim

We rented a flat for a year through our company as the job we were doing was too far away to commute. The local council wanted us to pay council tax by direct debit, but wouldn’t accept direct debits from business accounts . It took 6 months to sort out.

You'd think transferring to or opening a student account with the same bank would be a simple process, right?

We did think that. In fact it was so complicated we ended up with a building society account, where his savings were.

Clairetree, you know what, just writing "No it isn't" doesn't advance the argument and doesn't change the facts.

Two of our DCs have 1sts in quantitative subjects from high ranking universities. One of them has a Masters in a quantitative subject from Cambridge and a very good job. That did not immunise them from Kafkaesque bureaucratic malfunction!

Clairetree you actually think that Thirds very clever but slightly overwhelmed by an avalanche of admin ds is going to listen to some random stranger advising that he won't cope on the basis of a single thread venting at the ludicrously convoluted systems that have been set up?

You know nothing about him and rather than easing things, you decide to add to their stress further?

Maybe think about the impact you have on people before airing your opinions so forthrightly to people going through a massive change in life.