A'Levels EPQ - Is it worth it?

[Shimy]

Those of you with dc who did or are doing an EPQ with their A'levels, would you say it was worth it in terms of offers they received in the end? I noticed quite a few universities on their websites saying they'll get a reduced offer by one grade if they get an A. It just made me wonder wether it was worth all that additional work. Dc1 has not done an EPQ but dc2 is the type that might rise to this kind of challenge. Of course there is benefit in just doing the work for the sense of achievement in itself but would like to hear peoples thoughts. Also what did your dc do their EPQ in?

Zanda that would certainly be one approach encouraged by many schools. However ‘structured’ EPQ reading limits time for exploring more widely including for a new subject such as in the case of goodbyestranger’s DD.

Of course some students prefer targets and structure or may be fascinated by a single topic that is EPQable. That’s fine.
IME for those who are inclined, a free rein in reading and the time to do it during school increases the ability to make interesting connections beyond what has been taught or researched for an essay etc.

Hopefully all students who are thinking of doing a degree can handle targets and structure.

The converse of your comment is more of an issue for students Fazackerley. They find it difficult to read / study without a target and being signposted, especially beyond their immediate subject. Results in ‘straight-line’ thinkers.

There is no need to be so snippy goodbye

There is a tiny bit Lonicera!

Lonicera and Zanda . Too much belittling on Mumsnet no matter what your knowledge of EPQ or Oxbridge is you should be respectful of others and the fact that Dc's work at different paces and have different strengths and weaknesses and indeed different backgrounds/education.

oneteen I think I'd prefer to do my own public service announcements if that's ok. This is at least the second occasion on which the previous poster has done this. Given how freely she talks about other people who may not have given permission I really do feel it's fair to call her out on this one.

Can we all just calm down a bit please? Whatever the EPQ's worth is, it certainly isn't this.

The education boards always get filled with snarkiness and stealth boasting.

Shimy if you'd read the comments which were withdrawn by the posters in question you'd know that none of us were actually not calm. We were all completely calm as it happens.

Yes the education boards are pretty toxic. After you've filtered out the snobbery and showing off there's some quite nice posts, but it's amazing how some posters can manage to rubbish anything that's not Oxbridge and Durham and 4 a stars. It's sad really as the kids who are actually getting these great results are probably much more accepting than their parents.

I started a thread a while ago about how dd had ploughed her as exams and was going to repeat a year with a different a level and a btec. There were some helpful posts but the recoiling of some posters was pathetic and hurtful.

If you need to show off through your children it's time to get a hobby!

Oh and dd did her Epq presentation yesterday and it went brilliantly. Im just going to reiterate that she's had three reduced offers on the back of her epq, if anyone normal is still reading.

Well done to your dd Fazackerley :)

I agree Fazackerley. Hence my objection to another poster commenting on the ability of my own DC. Six DC emerging from the EPQ over a recent nine year period with a shared view of it - significantly less positive than that of your own DD - is completely valid, especially since that view was shared by a very large number of their peers.

Unfortunately you got that wrong goodbyestranger as I was riled by the tone of the comments you made to a post, which was within the context of the thread, before Mumsnet saw your comments and took them down. The reason I asked my comment to come down was that there was then no relevance to it as this is a thread about the EPQ. The EPQ is basically a long essay which could get you extra points/reduced offers for university - as someone else said, doesn’t need the strife!

Which I am glad this thread is back to being focused on. Well done to Fazackerley’s Dd!

Just a quick tip: for the reduced offer, my Dd has to upload the EPQ certificate to UCAS before 30th June so I’ve made sure, seeing the current state of my Dd’s bedroom, I have acquired it and kept it in a safe place!

You may think comments about other people's DC are 'in context' Zanda. I find that sort of comment out of order, and especially when the same comment - which is generally made to render the DCs' experience somehow invalid - pops up on repeated occasions. By contrast, my posts are all bang on point.

Zanda the EPQ is not necessarily a long essay and I think it is misleading to those less clued up who may be looking for advice.

DD1 researched, designed and produced a prototype artefact for her EP (she was awarded a distinction so must have done something right). DD2 has just done her presentation; hers was more of an essay but she chose her subject carefully to embrace her loves of BioChemistry and Politics. At school, whilst I have been involved in started the EPQ journey in previous years, I am not a supervisor. However, chatting informally to those students has revealed a huge array of activities and interests.

I can also confirm that based on the results of their EPQ a number of youngsters have their offers lowered, so they are valued by a number of HE institutions.

Malbec I agree it’s not just a long essay - I was simplifying it, in trying to breakdown the arguments and say in the big scheme of things it’s not something for posters to get so het up about.

My Dd got a lot out of the EPQ which I have detailed in my previous posts.

The last thing I will say on the EPQ that I haven’t mentioned, that might be useful to others, is to consider the EPQ rather than AS level in Year 12 if you have the same situation as we did. My Dd was supposed to do an AS on top of her 3 A levels and EPQ. Many parents, us included, argued this AS was extra pressure that wasn’t needed. Dd had a good idea of what she wanted to do and all the universities, for the courses she was interested in, said they would not consider ASs but would consider EPQs. After a term, Dd got out of doing the AS but the school did not like this and she was in the minority. In the end Dd’s year have ended up doing a mish-mash of things. Of those I know, one girl studied for her AS so much that she decided to drop another subject and carry the AS one in instead which affected the subject she wanted to study, one A grade student got an E for her AS as she didn’t want it to compromise her work on the 3 A Levels. This E had to be put down on her UCAS form. Some pupils gave up on the EPQ and did well on the AS.
I am hoping the school will drop the extra AS by the time my other Dd is in sixth form. ASs seem to be dying a death. In our research last year, the only one that took it into account was Cambridge.
If universities like EPQs and the pupils can do them, preferably in Year 12, without impacting on their A Levels, I would say go for it.

Slightly old but nevertheless relevant:

www.theguardian.com/education/mortarboard/2014/mar/28/extended-project-qualification-sixth-form-students

The distinction is for the associated baccalaureate qualification rather than the EPQ itself. I made the mistake of misreading D on the first relevant results day for the EPQ and saying wow that's bad :) (The HT and Assistant HT were there at the time and laughed, explaining it was D for distinction).

Goodbye I think that is an excellent article that looks at the EPQ from both sides. I like the fact it talked about alternatives to the EPQ and examples of different styles of EPQ's (for want of a better word) which is why i asked if people could say what their dc had done for their EPQ in the OP. One can gain similar skills but spend less time on it. Basically as i summed upthread, for the right person its a great asset to add to the CV but its not the be all and end all.

Haha goodbyestranger, DD1 did exactly the same thing! She was a bit put out on results day with her D until her mate's mum said it meant Distinction.

I have seen our students write a children's book, create artworks, compose music of various types, make and launch a rocket and all manner of other things. If nothing else, it gives them something to discuss in their personal statement and at interview.