Another path ....... the journey begins

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Hello @321zyx @AvocadoPlant @bendmeoverbackwards @BigWoollyJumpers @Braveheart35 @calculatorqueen @ChimneyPot @Dobbyisahouseelf @Eastisup @jano69 @Majaso12 @MidLifeCrisis007 @NCTDN @Notagardener @OnTheBenchOfDoom @Parsonage63 @Pumpkintopf @Peaseblossum22 @quest1on @Peaseblossum22 @SATSmadness @SeasonFinale @Tenpastseven @Vargas @Xenia

Apologies for anyone I omitted to tag

Thank you Dobbyismyabsolutefav.

Thanks for the tip MidLifeCrisis007 we have booked to eat where we are staying-a pub with rooms-so hopefully that will be ok.

I remember the days when I stayed up until 2.30am now I can barely make it past 10pm

I keep following everyone on this group because I feel invested in all your offspring and how they're doing. I don't post really though because I'm aware that DD is on the other path. But it's lovely to see how everyone is doing and I'm glad people are enjoying themselves after such a tough year last year.
I noticed there was discussion about history at different unis. It does seem so different everywhere. I can tell you what DD is doing - she has to do one essay a week (approx 3000 words I think). She is expected to do minimum 24 hours reading before starting the essay. Contact time is relatively small (about 4-6 lectures a week - face to face thankfully - I think and a couple of seminars that haven't started yet plus one hour supervision to discuss the essay). What I think is really interesting is the fact that she has absolutely no way at all of comparing herself to any other student or to expected standards. Her supervisor doesn't have any other first years (and I guess wouldn't discuss them anyway) and they are all writing totally different essays to each other. Her exams after Easter will be the first time she gets any sort of "mark" or "grade". That may well be the case for all students everywhere doing history (as a medic I felt as though we were constantly scored and assessed) but it feels very weird after school. She says it's better like this because she couldn't work or try any harder so it wouldn't help her to know how "successful" she was being.
Hope no one minds me updating. (I'm also watching you all as dc2 is likely to be applying to Bristol, Exeter, etc next year - and possibly Durham and Cambridge as well - so it's very useful to get all the inside information!)

@Chilldonaldchill are we nicer than the other group 😆?

So I don't understand- the essays your daughter is doing on a weekly basis dont get marked or nothing is fed back? What happens in the supervisions then?

@MidLifeCrisis007
Walking around colleges exhausted after a night out is probably a good way to get a real feel for what it will be like to study there.

DD has gone back
I got to have breakfast with her yesterday and to chauffeur her, her bestie and their dates between the various drinks parties before the ball so I did get to hear loads of gossip as they were tipsy and completely forgot I was there. I always volunteer to drive them because you get to hear what is really happening.
I was talking to another girls date at one of the drinks parties. He is Irish but studying history at UCL. He seems to have very few contact hours but history is always like that I think.

@Chilldonaldchill Lovely to hear an update on your DD - we are all part of the same gang!
On the feedback, I’d say at least someone is looking at her work, and requiring her to do it (not that she needs to be required, but I guess I mean, if student was struggling and dropping out of sight, they would quickly be spotted). The work load seems to be less on other history courses, but so is the safety net. But I do agree on the marking thing - big change from school.

Anyway, hopefully it all comes out in the wash and they all manage to stay on top of things as needed.

Ans do keep visiting!

[quote chopc]@Chilldonaldchill are we nicer than the other group 😆?

So I don't understand- the essays your daughter is doing on a weekly basis dont get marked or nothing is fed back? What happens in the supervisions then? [/quote]
Oh no there's lots of feedback which she says is really helpful and interesting. But it's obviously not standardised so she gets told "this is good" or " you misunderstood this point" etc but doesn't know if that's good, average or poor in terms of the cohort etc. I guess it's just different from school experiences. And I assume actually she would be told if she needed to pull her socks up.
And the other groups are perfectly nice but I'm not sure that having a child at Oxford or Cambridge means that your experiences are more shared than having a child starting at uni this year!

@ChimneyPot - yes, you are quite right. Walking around Durham blottowed at 2.30am does give one a good taste for what it's like to be a student in the City. Only trouble is, Durham don't have a Med School so she hasn't applied there!

I hope your jet setting DD gets back to Brown safely.

But struggling around Edinburgh with a hangover is equally good preparation

@Chilldonaldchill Lovely to hear what other universities are doing. My DD didn't seriously consider Oxbridge so I only joined this thread when offers were coming through. I've found it really helpful especially the rest of the Exeter crowd who are very on the ball. So when my DD mentions something I can confidently help or occasionally give her nudge if a deadline is looming.

I love hearing everyone's news, highs and lows, and chuckling at some of the stories.

Afternoon. Just checking in as I’ve not been here for a while.

Lovely to hear everyone’s news.

DS is currently on a coach travelling from Bristol to Liverpool as he has a gig there this evening (playing, not watching). It was arranged before they left for Uni! Thankfully he has a friend studying at Liverpool so is staying there tonight (along with the drummer, his friend and DS’s girlfriend - it’ll be ‘snug’ I imagine).

I’ve avoided going to the gig (too bloody old for that nonsense - and I’m a bad parent) but I might take the train into Liverpool tomorrow and buy them all a coffee. It’s only an hour on the train from here and I can shop whilst there.
Happy weekend all.

Hello everyone, so lovely to hear updates and hear how everyone is getting on. Ds came home last weekend for a family party, got the train home but we drove him back on the Sunday, we are in Yorkshire so a very easy trip back to Durham. Took him out for a late lunch too.

It would seem his flat is a bit fragmented so he is learning to navigate passive aggressive arseholes but I met the two lovely flat mates who were in the kitchen at the time. Plus we talked about how to deal with the said arseholes - that was to all 3 of them as they were discussing the behaviour that had occurred plus 2 other students who were there as part of a study group weighed in on how to deal with it too. Ds has been proactive and sort of played them at their own game without him being a passive aggressive arsehole so hopefully it has taken the wind out of their sails a bit. I have suggested to Ds that they as a three go to their college bar and just spend an hour together just for a bit of solidarity.

He has made plenty of friends from other flats and colleges but I feel it is important for him to feel supported by his nice flat mates.

He was struggling with one of his electives, the whole class was, and they received an email basically telling them all to shut up moaning and get on with it. Several complained to their personal tutors about the tone and the university realised they were supposed to have pre-reading stuff and that the university never provided it or told them about it. Whoops. So they have all been playing catch up.

Apart from that he seems to be doing okay.

@OnTheBenchOfDoom
Your DS seems to be learning valuable life (people)lessons.
@Chilldonaldchill 👋 Glad your DC has settled well and lovely to hear different experiences at all the various universities.
My DS has another cold(not Covid) but all the health stories have made me quiz him and check on him more than usual .He seems very tired at the moment.He doesn’t have reading week for his subject.Hopefully he can home for a weekend and rest up soon.
Have a lovely weekend everyone.

@MidLifeCrisis007 glad your ds has been seen by a dentist, fingers crossed they can save the tooth.

@ChimneyPot yes what a whirlwind couple of days for your dd! Not sure if her party was yesterday or today but hope she has a wonderful time and everything goes to plan.

I’m excited to see my dd who is coming home on Monday lunchtime for reading week. Slightly concerned that she says she’s a ‘bit behind’ with work but she seems to have it under control and will catch up next week at home.

@Chilldonaldchill lovely to hear from you and glad to hear your dd is doing well.

Engley, that's interesting, DC who is at LSE has reading week next week. I thought it depended on uni whether you had reading week or not .( My undergraduate degree is from abroad)

@Notagardener Unfortunately Economics students don’t have reading week 🙁
But Politics,History etc do have reading week.So it depends on subject.My friend DD at Nottingham uni.doesn’t have reading week,she does computer science but most other degrees do.
So I think it’s dependent on course at university.

Both my DS studied engineering and they didn’t have reading weeks either. As you say, definitely subject dependant.

Oh well, DC just txt me to say she has a meeting with her tutor or someone in the middle of reading week...

@Notagardener oh no - does that mean she's not coming home?

How's is everyone today?

@Pumpkintopf

How's is everyone today?

Ok thank you .

DD came home over the weekend, from Thurs to Mond - it just happened like that, but she felt she would have liked longer. Would definitely come back for the full week next time, and looking forward to Xmas. She had quite a lot of work to do, spent an afternoon with BF and his mum, who adores her, and we went out for a lovely dinner with DH for his birthday. Train journey back briefly stressful, as she had to change her train due to the derailment at Salisbury. Hopefully she will get a refund on the other route.

Mid bathroom makeover, drilling, noise, dust, lack of washing facilities. Lots of men in the house. Gave us all the mega cold, thanks lads. Was like a TB sanitorium in here last week. Can't wait for it to be over. They have just accidentally broken through to a next-door bedroom wardrobe . It had stored clothes and ironing in it . Dust everywhere.

DD having a wobble about next years accommodation. As on other threads, she is finding the pressure and speed to sign up too much. She likes her flat mates, but obvs only known them a short time. They brought in another girl, who no-one really knows, but they don't want DD's BF. I think DD and her BF may end up sharing a "proper" flat in the town, rather than a student flat, which will be way nicer, but of course, not the standard student experience, and might be a bit isolating?

The university is holding an accommodation fair early December, but it seems most will be organised by then - crazy.

Lots to think about for her this week.

@BigWoollyJumpers how did DD feel about not having her previous room?

Yeah such a shame about the accommodation stress for next year already :(

@BigWoollyJumpers My DD is trying to slow the pace of jumping into accommodation for next year. She really likes two of the girls that have asked her to join their group but sensibly asked to meet the other girl before agreeing. From what I understand a couple of boys are now joining the girls which my DD is happy with as she is finding boys, in general, easy to get along with as she is a bit of a geek!

It's so difficult as I don't want her to be left out but they have only been at uni 7 weeks so hardly know each other.

[quote Dobbyismyabsolutefav]@BigWoollyJumpers My DD is trying to slow the pace of jumping into accommodation for next year. She really likes two of the girls that have asked her to join their group but sensibly asked to meet the other girl before agreeing. From what I understand a couple of boys are now joining the girls which my DD is happy with as she is finding boys, in general, easy to get along with as she is a bit of a geek!

It's so difficult as I don't want her to be left out but they have only been at uni 7 weeks so hardly know each other.[/quote]
I would much prefer there to be boys in DD's group too. Like your DD, she does get along with boys better - again, because she is a bit of a geek! Our two should get together. The boys in her flat didn't believe her, until she showed them pictures of her room at home, with Marvel, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and The Hobbit, much in evidence!

DS came home for reading week for days but had to return for rehearsals for a show he's in. It was lovely to see him, but too short .

@BigWoollyJumpers - my DS would DEFINITELY get on with your DD - Marvel, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit are his passions too! (I wonder if they have already met??)

DS is in the process of signing up for an 8 bed student house with 2 other boys and 5 girls. It does sound as if a lot of the houses (especially the bigger ones) go early to the second years who are able to orgnaise themselves at the beginning of term.