What are the options for failed A’level results?

[Shimy]

And still aiming for uni.

Retake whole year
Retake but different subjects?
Degree Foundation year
Are BTECs possible at this stage?

Would like some advice please.

And I do know children that have redone Y11, but it's not widely advertised, and for special cases only IME (e.g. death of a parent, cancer treatment etc, not for time wasted gaming!).

I’m still unclear wether if you retake yr 13 atanother school, are you allowed to also attend classes or will it just serve as a ‘centre’ for the retake exams?

No state school will allow him just to rock up and sit exams!! He would count in their performance table figures, so no chance on that.

I will reiterate what i said above

DS was allowed to retake 2 A levels at his current school. He did not attend enough hours for funding but they let him come to school everyday and revise and attend classes. He was only a guest pupil so not on the roll. He was allowed to use the school to take his exams but had to pay for the exams. He went from an ACE to ABB
I know someone is doing something similar now at a different school.

apologies misread that .
I was talking about another school.

Oh FGS Im getting myself in a muddle

I was not talking about another school

Can I just add a thought about private schools? They tend to undermark (especially the students at the bottom end of their skewed ability spectrum). This is based on a lot of experience, so not anecdotal. It may well be that those 'disastrous' mock results aren't as far off what he needs as it may seem.

Shimy, what has the school said to your DS about his mocks results and what help are they giving him to reach his potential? Was the BBB prediction realistic, or did his referee have to be persuaded to predict those grades because they were what your DS needed for courses he wanted to apply for? (Apologies if you have already said and I've missed it). I can't imagine that the school is too keen on him getting the grades you fear he might, when he is capable of doing better - or is 'letting students learn by their own mistakes' part of the ethos? (Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad thing generally, in my book, but could be taken as a bit extreme when applied to A levels).

Marching- I have a parents meeting coming up so nothing yet. We had no input on his predictions, no arms were twisted. DS waited until school decided his grades and we then chose Unis based on this, although they did say they were a bit ‘generous’. I’m guessing a grade above what he got end of yr 12.

Piggy - I’ll be delighted if that’s the case.

Can I just add a thought about private schools? They tend to undermark (especially the students at the bottom end of their skewed ability spectrum). This is based on a lot of experience, so not anecdotal. It may well be that those 'disastrous' mock results aren't as far off what he needs as it may seem.

That’s interesting.

Research by the Sutton Trust suggests that many fee-paying schools over-predict A levels. (The Sutton Trust argues that this disadvantaged children at State schools serving working-class areas)

Could it be a compensation for under-marking within the school?

But there’s still time for the OP’s son to pull his finger out. I hoe he finds his commitment soon! But I would still urge however, that there’s a bigger conversation about Why university?

Speaking more generally I’m a great believer in gap years - I prefer teaching young people who’ve made a deliberate decision to attend university, rather than seeing it as the next inevitable step in life without thinking about WHY they want to go to university. I wish there weren’t this middle-class treadmill, and that university were always a positive choice rather than the expected next step.

And it is class-based - this is not a nasty personal opinion - it’s derived from the excellent work of the Sutton Trust (as a professor at one institution i worked closely with the Sutton Trust -wonderful organisation).

According to the information we get, sociologists-economic privilege maps onto educational advantage from about the age of 3. Hence universties’ use of contextual offers.

I think most middle class kids go to uni because they want to, don't they?

Tbh I personally don't see a jot wrong with going to uni with the idea that you'll meet lots of great people and learn a lot about life (as well as hopefully enjoying your course).

Putting off the REAL treadmill - work - for a few years sounds good to me!

"I personally don't see a jot wrong with going to uni with the idea that you'll meet lots of great people and learn a lot about life (as well as hopefully enjoying your course)."

Couldn't agree more. It's about exploring the world outside your hometown. For example, how else could you get to move to London/Manchester/Liverpool/Glasgow and expand your horizons? DS is going to London in Sept after his gap year and will hopefully have an amazing time and will meet loads of interesting people from around the world as I did. Hopefully his course will lead to a rewarding career as well.

"Putting off the REAL treadmill - work - for a few years sounds good to me!"

Not all courses are as easy as you might think. DD is going to be doing a STEM subject when she goes and will have about 30 contact hours a week, plus many hours of self study. I only hope she has enough downtime to enjoy herself as well. She is also on a gap year.

Dd does a 1000 hours placement.
This is her first year and in the middle of 5 weeks placement 9 to 5 plus an hour commute each way from her accommodation.

Greentent - I couldn’t agree more, I certainly wasn’t on a middle class treadmill, I was the youngest of 6 and the only one to go into Higher Education.
I wasn’t that good and my course wasn’t brilliant, but it certainly changed my life in such a positive way.
I know things are different now but I still want my DCs to have some of the experiences I had, my eldest hasn’t gone to uni and I wish he would as I know he’d love it, (who know maybe he will go one day as a mature student).
I’m certainly going to keep on encouraging my youngest to go and it’s certainly not just for the education/course he has applied for its for all of the many reasons mentioned above.

bruffin re-sitting in the school you originally sat in isn't a problem for schools... because the student is already included in their performance table data. Schools can either go with the first set of results or (more likely) defer for a year and use the re-sit results.
The issue here is the student coming from another school.

Research by the Sutton Trust suggests that many fee-paying schools over-predict A levels.
Cowjumping - isn't that over-prediction of results on the UCAS forms, rather than mocks, to get pupils considered by universities that would dismiss them out of hand if their genuine grades were used?

WOOt
I said I misread it.
But ds paid for his exam anyway as a private candidate so not sure they would count anyway

Yes W00t, that is what I meant. The UCAS form predictions are high in many schools, and especially so in high achieving schools with a track record of university admission to top universities. The actual marking within the school (possibly a motivational tactic combined with lack of knowledge of new specs, combined with lack of exposure to full ability spectrum) tends to produce under marking of internal exams.

WOOt
Also as Ds was not on the school roll ie no funding, i would assume his results would not have counted anyway.

How about an apprenticeship or a degree apprenticeship? Get him out working (and being paid) whilst still getting a degree?

I know our big local employer (Unilever) offer an IT type degree apprenticeship . Need a minimum of 2 a-levels to apply.

isn't that over-prediction of results on the UCAS forms, rather than mocks, to get pupils considered by universities that would dismiss them out of hand if their genuine grades were used?

Yes, indeed. So may be appropriate for them to be quite tough in awarding marks for mocks

Will be looking at local schools with sixth forms and their policy or not for retaking. I think a BTEC extended diploma might also be worthwhile looking into including a Foundation degree.

In the end he may not need to go down any of these routes but it’s at least worthwhile having a plan just in case.

Fog - Degree apprenticeship are highly competitive! Their A’level requirements are on par with RG university requirements so I don’t think it will be an alternative to someone who hasn’t done well in their A’levels but I agree that would be a fantastic opportunity.

Agree with your statement about degree apprenticeships requiring higher A level results than many degree courses.
In my area state sixth forms don't take on students resitting who have already completed 2 years of A level study.
You would need to look at FE colleges.