Going to university (2019/20 academic year) - finance, flat shares, friends old and new and freshers' week to come...

[NewModelArmyMayhem18]

Following on from thread 8 which filled up in just 72 hours.

Just received accommodation email from Exeter - got her 3rd choice out of 4 but still very happy. Will just have cardiac hill to contend with every day

Congratulations me. Just sent my dd for her meningitis vaccine and the nurse told her she already had it in 2016 😫

Interesting about remarks. DD just got an email from her psychology tutor suggesting she has it remarked as she was 5 marks off a higher grade, just wondering if it's worth doing. On one hand 5 marks seems quite a lot and DD has her firm choice anyway, on the other it would really lift her spirits to get a higher grade. Hmmm...any advice?

madhairday we were in the same position. DD has decided not to do it - her original firm is full, she's accepted her insurance - if she should have got a higher grade then she will cope fine with uni - if she goes down she'll be gutted!

I'd do it madhair .

Check grade boundaries first to see how many marks she would need to drop to go down a grade but probably loads.

Tricky decision madhair - if the tutor suggests it you almost feel the dc ought to, but on the other hand, however unlikely, the risk of going down a grade is awful.

Yet another layer of stress for the dc - not enough to work, revise, get the results, get the place, they also now have to decide whether to place a bet! where the stakes (going down a grade) are pretty high!

On the one hand you think 'leave well alone' , on the other wouldn't it be great to go up a grade. Has the tutor got a lot of experience - and has s/he seen the script?

Ligresa us too - school have said consider a remark on 2 of the three - one I think she's too far away but the other one she's only 4 marks off & we're all amazed at the grade she got (B when decent chance of A*). I'd like to have that one remarked but she won't let me - she's got where she wants to go & she's petrified she'd go down & lose her place.

Can I just mention again that this is not the same level of gamble as a GCSE remarks as (OCR Eng aside) the grade boundaries are wider.

To give an example of Edexcel history : if a student had 154 marks, they'd be 4 off an A* . They would need to drop 11 marks to go down to a B.

OCR Lang Lit, if a student had 148, they'd be 4 marks off an A. They'd need to drop 17 marks to drop to the C.

You need to be more cautious at A/A* for most subjects, but it really is worth checking how wide the grades are before writing it off.

The most I have known to be added to a student at A Level was 12 marks once; the biggest drop I have heard of was 4 marks (and did not affect grade.)

Disclaimer : just my advice! Am not accountable for any decisions!

On another note, I checked with my friend who works in admissions. She said once an offer had been firmly accepted, it cannot be withdrawn (subject to some legal smallprint) so if a remark yields a drop in grade, you don't even need to tell them, technically!

I'm awaiting scripts today to email to tutors for their opinions. If there's not a clear indication that they should def go up then I'm not pursuing the remark. Dd is happy with her place.

York accommodation has replied to let me know that the actual room and building allocation is done mid Sept. But the people organising the slots for arrival have indicated which buildings she is likely in due to the en suite allocation she was given.

Thanks piggy, that's a very interesting point about the difference between As and GCSEs.

You need to be more cautious at A/A star for most subjects - does that mean a remark to go from A to A star is the riskiest - is that because the boundary is often narrower?

I know that probably from a strictly theoretical point of view it is fair that the grades can go up as well as down, but in practice I think it's problematic because it means that some dstudents are not getting the higher grade they deserve because they are naturally cautious! Given the recent discussion about accuracy of grades, even more problematic in my view.

Sorry if this isn’t the right thread but has anyone heard anything from Oxford? The day after DD’s results we had an email full of forms which need to be sent back (by post??) by end of August.

Other than that absolutely no communication. Maybe because they have a later start than most universities, they can afford to leave some admin till September?

sooner , yes, caution should be exercised at A/A* because of narrower bands. the A band is normally narrower than all the other grades.

I think you are right about risk aversion !

I've read the posts on this thread with amazement. My ds got into his 1st choice and got his 1st choice accommodation, which he has accepted, but has not asked for deposit money as there is apparently "no rush"! He had certainly had emails from the uni but hasn't even opened them as he has gone off to a music festival. We are going on a short family holiday directly after that so he won't be attending to any of this until less than 3 weeks before he is due to start (freshers). We only have details of when SFE are paying the uni, not when they are paying him. Where will we find this info? I am conflicted about changing his bank account to a student one. He has had a Nationwide account for a couple of years, and the idea of party animal with overdraft facility terrifies me.

Thank you all. I'm not sure if her psychology tutor has seen the script, I'll try and find out. She's very experienced though and I trust her, which is what is making me edge towards going for the remark. If she was marked down it would be awful but I'm guessing she's too close to the boundary to go down a grade, so it wouldn't really make any difference. She's dyspraxic and struggles with exams so any encouragement would be great, but at the moment she's just so thrilled to have been offered her firm place, so maybe it's not worth rocking the boat. Difficult decision!

@simbobs I'm also wondering about student accounts, DD has also had a Nationwide account since she was 16. I'm sure there must be pros and cons, need to look into it properly.

@simbobs. I'm so glad to read your post. I feel like the worst disorganised mother in the world !! DS is very laid back ... nothing sorted yet ( but I have a list ) !!!

@blamethe parents . My DS going to Nottingham and also has accommodation reserved ... do they need the deposit yet ?? He says no !!!

I have just started to compile a list of things I need to discuss/check with ds. For the more practical things like equipment, bedding etc I am intending to give him some of the items used by dd who is on her year abroad. Ds will have a double bed so can have her double sized bedding (fortunately unisex) as I do not want to buy more and we have no double beds at home. When they are both away next year one of them may have a single bed again anyway.

He is so laid back, but I do worry that he isn't reading what has come in in case action on his part is required. Ho hum...

@simbobs My Ds’s letter had information about amount and dates when they will pay his maintenance loan all in the SFE letter, so please check again.

@Madhairday - we have gone for a Psychology remark but she was only one mark off, so minimal risk of going down a grade. The tricky bit was deciding which paper to go for. £50 per paper. I certainly wasn't going to go for all three! We have picked one, and will see how it comes out, then remark a second one if necessary.

Apart from that, DD1 told me yesterday she has "had enough" of uni planning for a while. It's been quite the week. The important things have been taken care of (accommodation, student finance), and the rest can wait a while. I also have GCSE results for DD2 tomorrow, plus DS (who also did A levels this year), who wasn't going to go to uni, but is now wondering whether he should after all. But that's a whole other story.

I'm off to lie down in a darkened room for the next month.

@Alicatz66 - Deposit for accommodation needs to be paid by 7th September. This is for Broadgate Park - DS wanted self catering.
I’ve set a reminder on my phone.

After all the obedient shopping around at Matalan, Wilko, supermarkets, Argos etc, just found a cheap double duvet set on John Lewis website!

What I can't find anywhere is juts ordinary white men's socks!

Piggy just about to go shopping will keep the John Lewis site in mind. You got DS out I have been nagging for an hour now.. sheesh.

Found white socks in the Nike shop in Cheshire Oaks, so maybe try buying online. Do Asda/Tesco/Sainsburys not have any?

I only have Sainsbury's locally . I was trying to avoid all the menfolk having the same socks as each other but today Sainsburys had none!

Will look at Asda online perhaps.

I didn't get DS out. I was online shopping!!