Medicine 2021 - Part 4

[MaddieElla]

Fingers crossed for those final offers coming in!

Hope no one minds me starting the new thread...

@Iamsodonewith2020 I hope your DD is okay and that she hears something soon. The waiting for a first offer is really horrid. I don't think anyone really knows what's going on with Manchester right now but, if TSR is (a bit) representative, it doesn't feel like a large number of offers have been issued, given the size of the med school.

God, I must be older than I thought 😆

I swear I remember it as being a thing.

Ds is firming today, he seems pretty sure where he wants to go and wants to get it done and focus on exams in mid May. What are everyone's dc doing over Easter? Ds is struggling to get motivated, exams are 4 weeks away and he's had assessments throughout the year and is really burnt out. Same for my year 11. I'm hoping they both find a little extra in the tank to get to the end of the year. School have said the exams count for a lot of the final mark so they really need to focus.

That’s exciting @Powergower - where has DS decided on? (Don’t say if you’d rather not )
It’s good to get it done if he’s come to a decision. It means they can stop thinking about it doesn’t it?

Easter here is going to be pretty much 100% revision as DD has a couple more mocks straight after and then assessments in the week of 3rd and 10th May. She’s also quite tired and I think just wants to have a break from the constant tests and so on.

Hopefully they can all see it as the “final push” and then they can have a rest and hopefully some fun over the summer

That is exciting @Powergower
I asked DD what she plans to do over Easter and her response was sleep and revise. She figures she has a few more weeks to work hard and then she can have a long summer with her friends. My youngest is also revising as she is Gcse year so I think The holidays could be very quiet!

At least they are both in the same boat @redtulip12 and revising at the same time.
A long summer with friends sounds so nice doesn’t it!

Mine will be full of revising and homing in on the areas she needs to. Mocks went well but she has a few areas in physics that she can improve on (and will need to).

Foot on the pedal not happening for some time yet. Although she did have the weekend off from school work after mock week.

*full on

*foot off the pedal

Can tell it’s Monday.

It is sounding more like normal times for those with exams coming up. It is good for them to finally know where they stand and the silver lining of this year's assessments is that as long as they put on the effort, they are less vulnerable than they would be in a normal year to having a bad day, these might be the fairest results ever. 🤞

Ditto...revision, sleep, repeat...It's not long now and the stakes are still very high.

@Monkey2001 I would actually rather mine were sitting their GCSE's and A Levels. At least the outcomes would be objective. This all feels a bit too subjective for my liking, with so much resting on it.

I'd much rather DD was sitting real A Levels too 😔

Could be a bit of "grass is greener" - I know several students who underperformed significantly at A level who would have strongly preferred teacher assessment. At least you don't have the arbitrary algorithm.

Same. I do understand @Monkey2001's point, and agree there is opportunity there to have a fair result.

But we have had quite high stress levels since September really, with it moving up a gear in January. Usually they would be preparing for a peak in revision/workload/stress in early May but it seems we've been on this stress train for so long and with the disparity between schools and how they're coming to grades decisions and exam content, I'm not sure it will be all that fair.

DDs school aren't using the papers that will be issued, they're formulating their own. And as I mentioned in the last thread the help given even in the same 6th form is wildly different.

There was never a right answer to the problem though. And I concede DD hasn't missed any content which isn't the same at all schools by a long shot.

Yes I'm glad we don't have the arbitrary algorithm. And luckily they scrapped it in the end last year. No "grass is greener" here. Mine would both rather live with the risk of their own underperformance than the risk of what seems like very different interpretations of what's required depending on which school you are in.

Totally agree @MaddieElla that there is a never a right answer to such a complex problem. We too have been very lucky with not missing content and there has to be a way not to penalise the DC who have. It doesn't stop me wishing it was just a normal year though.

Firmed and insured here too
I'm so pleased it's done
Will look at accommodation and finance later in the week
Now just the A levels 😂😂
2 of them will be fine I think but the maths is making me lose sleep tbh. She's doing tons though so I'm keeping positive for her and keeping my worries to myself

Manchester update email today. Seems that these are going out at different times so just wanted to update thread. Says usually they have made the majority of decisions by this point but not this year. Large volume of applicants that they interview makes decision-making complex process and they are working to a different UCAS deadline this year. Says not to worry about not having heard and that the next batch will be after Easter.

No news for DD at present although there's only 2 more days left this month but more post interview rejections for other medicine applicants at her school apparently.

Next door neighbour knocked at the door at the weekend to let us know that things might be noisy (and messy) for the next couple of months as they're starting work on their house renovation/extension project next week. They're massive DIY-ers (he's a builder by trade) who work on their own house evenings and weekends if the last project is anything to go by. Just what DD needs outside her bedroom window for the coming months !

SATSmadness - where is waiting to hear back from?

@SATSmadness that would tip my DD over the edge it really would. They have all summer after exams are done, would be so much better if they could wait til then. They might think you unreasonable to ask but the worst they can say is no.

Hope she hears some news this week.

@SeasonFinale I've PM'd you

I've been a bit subdued on here lately, slowly I was giving up hope that DD would be packing her bags in September. But, she got an offer late yesterday.... so we are back on track. Wow, what a truly awful selection system in a truly awful year.

Ah milly what fab news!!! Congrats.

Massive congrats @Millylovespuddles and fingers crossed for your other irons still in the fire too.