Applying for Uni 2019 entry, parents support thread

[Decorhate]

Now that they are back at school, working on Personal Statements, doing the final Open Day visits, I thought we could do with a new thread...

she's already got an A at AS in a 4th subject & has been predicted an A in the EPQ which will put the offer down to ABB. Fingers crossed this will be motivating!

Justanonthermile, Manchester is this Saturday, anybody know of any others on?

Derby and Lincoln : I know this because DS is (obviously) declining to attend either...

Laniakea it sounds like DD has everything in place and you have to do your best to try not to get wound up by stupid things an individual at your school is doing, annoying though they are. You could e-mail the admissions people at Southampton to ask whether it would make any difference if her predictions were higher, my experience with medicine is that they have all been transparent on how they view predictions, and some just want you to be predicted at least or close to the usual offer, and others give credit in the selection process for higher predictions even though they still give the standard offer.

Piggy - sorry to hear that the frustrations are going on. Maybe your DS needs a bit of a chance to grow up before he is ready to find his niche. I think you said he is young for his year. I find it odd that my DS does not talk about any of this stuff with his friends, it seems that it is just not the sort of thing boys discuss.

Boys just really haven't evolved , have they? Bless them.

sorry what is deferred entry?

Dd told me today they're not even working on their personal statement at school. I'm shocked ... should she be? she's not started on it yet. Anyone recommend a good site for guidance? She's no experience, hasnt worked due to anxiety and wants to study English literature.

Hi fish deferred entry is when they apply for the place but at the point of application put it as 'deferred' for a year or, wait until they definitely have their place post results, then ask if they can defer for a year. It's a good way of having a stress free gap year. All the UCAS nonsense is done whilst still at school and their place is sitting waiting for them. This can be good if you're really picky about accommodation or just not ready to go.

UCAS have good PS advice but best we got was on open days. Tell your story. Why this course. Why you. What can you bring to the course and this uni.

Not just the boys who don't communicate. Went to a ucas parents evening at DDs school last night. Their deadline is 15th November despite the national deadline being Jan (earlier for certain other courses). They believe Jan is too late.

So they were talking about all the students having created a UCAS account at school and currently working on their persons all statements. Fab I thought, all under control.

I get home and discuss it with DDs, one is on it, totally aware of the deadlines etc. The other DD just gave me a blank look, hasn't set up an account, not started personal statement ... yet still thinks uni is a good idea!!

I think deferring a year could be the way forward for her

BigSandyBalls2015 - deferring generally means applying now for 2020 entry, so she still needs to "get a wiggle on"! Otherwise she could just take a gap year and apply during the year, but it is generally easier to do it whilst you have some sort of support from school.

BigSandyBalls2015 - I should have said that there is a great variation in whether universities even read PS, so depending on the thinking which has already taken place, it may not be that much work. DS applying for medicine and 4/5 of his courses will not read the PS before interview, 3 will not look at it at all. The rest of the UCAS form can be completed in an hour or so - she just needs to know all the Boards for the exams she has passed and is taking. Any idea what she wants to study?

A general browse through DS's school website suggests they want Personal stements and applications to be with thme by half term (becuase apparently it takes half a term to write references, although I can't see why they need the PS to do this!). This seems awfully early, especially given that (despite what MN can assert) there are still lots of Open Days after half term (we have one booked late Nov...)

There is no way he will have sorted himself by three weeks from now.

Have emailed school this morning with my cri de coeur..

Piggy DD’s tutor wants her PS so she can make sure bits of the reference match to what she’s said in it. That’s only my understanding of it though!

November the 1st is dd's school deadline (she's planning on doing the PS in half term)

@FrameyMcFrame
DD going to Sussex saturday

Thanks Monkey, I agree it is far better to get it sorted now with the support of school, than trying to do it alone next year.

Our school's references are basically lifted from year 12 reports. I am guessing our students then fill in a questionnaire for form tutors (who invariably barely know them!) detailing hobbies , work etc.

I know at my place , tutors do not always see PSs. Not sure about more senior pastoral staff.

Hope the open days go well guys, will be interested to read your thoughts on Manchester, Sussex etc.

I know little about Manchester and Sussex, but in the same vein, I'd be very interested to hear your opinions on Edinburgh University as it seems to have particularly low student satisfaction on the league tables.

Specifically for Scots Law.

TIA

So the teacher who said he would up ds's predicted grade if he did well in this week's assessment is now saying he won't on the basis of one assessment. How many more does he think there will be before the forms have to go in?! An email to the Head of 6th form will be whizzing off next week...

It seems to me, having perused the NSS ratings, that the 'best' unis often have lower satisfaction rates. I wonder whether that is simply because those students expect more from their studies?

decorhate, that's just really annoying. I am quibbling far less this year about Predicted gardes, given how many students got unconditionals last year! Why not just give students a fighting chance??

Dd has finally managed to see HOY and sent the application off today. So now we wait ...

Oh LIZS Fingers are crossed and I'll be interested to see how quickly she gets replies. Aiming for week of the 8th Oct here. Tutor knows and is happy with that aim.

The great thing about boarding school is they sort everything - UCAS submitted yesterday! Pretty sure she won't get shortlisted for Cambridge because of gcse results but she has A's at AS and predicted A*'s so you never know. So different to my state educated eldest who applied privately as a mature student so it was me subediting her personal statement (she got in and started this week). (PS youngest has 75% bursary, don't want anybody thinking we pay full whack!)

Maybe the higher ranking universities don't set much store by gathering student satisfaction data?