Another path- the first year ......

[chopc]

Apologies if I didn't tag anyone. Hopefully have inckueded all current posters

Chopc - Durham-History
@jano69 -Durham -History
@OnTheBenchOfDoom -Durham - Computer science
@Majaso12 -Imperial - Biochemistry
@bendmeoverbackwards -Bristol- History
@Pumpkintopf -Imperial -Physics
@ChimneyPot -Brown (US) - Open
@Stillcrikey -Bristol -MML
@Tenpastseven - Bristol -modern languages
@Longtimenewsee - Durham - Chemistry
@MidLifeCrisis007 - Durham -History
@BigWoollyJumpers - Exeter- History
@SeasonFinale -Bristol- History
@Notagardener LSE
@Revengeofthepangolins UCL - History
@raspberryrippleicecream ? -Maths
@derekthe1adyhamster Birmingham- Computer Science
@Vargas -Durham -Geography
@AvocadoPlant Exeter -History

Well done to your DS @SeasonFinale

DD had her final 24hr exam last week and she WhatsApp us to let us know that she had submitted two esssys at 2am!!

She is having a great time this week going for brunch, cinema, having old friends to stay and lots of partying! A lovely way to finish the end of year one. Fingers crossed that their exams get marked and that they all get the grades they need to move into year 2.

Such a rollercoaster of a year but I'm so proud of DD and she really is loving uni life. I'm one tired Mum who is desperate need of a holiday and a cocktail!

Most of DD's flat have left now. Mean girls went last week, without a goodbye, nice. But DD and the other two left, are now having a whale of a time. Lots sof group baking being done. Popping down to the beach, walks, coffees, cocktails and dinners. She is also getting some intense one to one personal training down at the gym! We are going to pick her up in a couple of weeks time, and that will be it for Year 1 - didn't that go amazingly quickly?

Lovely to hear all the updates. DS finished his exams today. We asked him to come down for a couple of days before the end of term because we miss him but there is too much going on in Durham!

DS2 also sitting GCSE's. The most chilled student ever! So I have been equally chilled with him as he has stuck to a time table and has managed his time well.

DD3 is having a very busy time with multiple rehearsals for various things to do with performing arts. Some of course clash which is stressful but I guess that's the way it goes with everyone having end of year events at the same time

Im surprised how many have finished exams on here, DD has only done 3 of 9 at Warwick. 4th is tomorrow I think. Finishes same week as DD2 finishes Alevels, around June 22.
Think she's doing OK. DD2 is off to see her for a couple of days in half term.

@Pourmeanotherwine Warwick is doing it as they should!

Good luck to those Dc still going through exams . It’s strange how different unis timetable everything. Some of DD’s school friends at other unis are already home as they finished their exams over week ago.

@chopc dd would definitely disagree- she is loving the post exam fun she is having after a very full on year of study and sees these weeks as a reward i think. I think it’s the first time she’s really been able to take full advantage of her surroundings without hours of work always waiting in the wings.

I fear that she will be disappointed when she has to leave to come home for the summer .. lol- it IS pretty dull back home tbh (I remember thinking this myself when I returned after my first Yr)

She is applying for summer jobs now .. hopefully they won’t all be gone by the time she gets back.

Just found out, 1st June last exam.moving out day not till mid June.

@Longtimenewsee that must be because she is doing a science degree,

I think it’s worth remembering that term dates are different by university.
So Exeter started 17 Sept (freshers 10 Sept), then didn’t break up for Easter until 1 April.
Durham started on 4 October, and broke up 18 March.
So there’s several weeks more teaching that’s happened at Exeter before the Easter break.
It’s reasonable to assume that Durham would still be teaching for part of the summer term before the exam season starts, hence their longer sumner term and the reason so many are still taking exams.

Exeter have a shorter summer term starting 1 May and ending 17 June. Though in DDs subject the exam questions were available on the Friday before term started and then I think they had 2 weeks from that date to complete them so effectively many students started the term a few days early.

Best of luck to those still sitting exams, and hoping all our DC will get at least some time to chill post exams.

Yes maybe Chopc.. I think she feels she’s missed out on the more fun side a bit.

Well Ds has asked us to collect him this weekend so that was a rather joyous phone call. Half his flat has already gone and lots of his friends have returned home for summer jobs. He has enjoyed enough free time up there and wants to be back here where his friends are, some are at Durham but the rest are scattered to other unis but coming home for the summer.

We are a close family and Ds1 and Ds2 are as thick as thieves friendship wise. Ds2's last GCSE exam is 27th June so Ds1 has said he will walk him up to school like old times. There is no sixth form at the school so this will be the last few weeks he heads in that direction.

I cannot believe that this is it, that first year is done.

Aww .. How lovely.. v exciting to get them home @BenchOfCompany 😊
i am briefly seeing Dd next weekend as we are dropping by Durham . I can’t wait to see her

@Longtimenewsee lovely to see them in person as you get to hug them tight. I love face-timing with Ds every week, just nice to see his little face although he does message us in the week too. We all sit together, me, Dh and Ds2 and have a chat.

Exactly @BenchOfCompany We do have a family FaceTime once a week but there’s nothing like getting your arms around them is there . 🙂

Apparently Exeter campus has decamped to Exmouth today. Anyone still around has gone down to the beach. How lovely 😁

Fantastic @BigWoollyJumpers! They are so lucky

DS2's last exam was Wednesday, but he has lots of extra curricular music commitments until the end of June. We do get to see him every 6-8 weeks as he has to come home for orthodontic visits, but the visit is sometimes less than 24 hours! He'll go back down in July to play at some of the graduation ceremonies.

DD is in Scotland and did her final exam mid May. She would be finished except she has a good cause extension for her dissertation, which also means that she won't graduate (fingers crossed) until December.

In July we finally get to go to DS1's graduation ceremony, two years late! We are lucky the uni promised all of them ceremonies when they were able to do so safely.

Lovely they’ve finished exams and can relax!

Dd has been pretty busy with drama commitments since her exams finished. She tried her hand at directing which was a bit different. She had one formal last week and another next Saturday. And she had a day in Bath last week with friends which was fun.

@BigWoollyJumpers beach trips sound great, Exeter is a lovely location to study in.

What are everyone’s dc up to in the summer? Dd will be pretty busy. She’s planning an inter railing trip as they missed out last year during covid. Then she’s got National Youth Theatre in August (2 weeks in Northampton) which was very unexpected given the audition odds. She’s hoping to work a bit too.

How lovely to hear of your DCs spending time productively after the exams whilst having fun. I must admit I am a tad disappointed that DS's extracurricular achievement seemed to be a 6 second pint 🙈.

However he has absolutely loved his college in Durham and funnily enough has made close friends with people who went to his school whom he wasn't friends with before!

He made a surprise trip home for the jubilee weekend and it was so lovely to be a complete family again. Back in Durham for a summer ball last night and will hopefully be back home for good soon enough!

Congratulations to your DD on the national youth theater! Super achievement!

Dd came home for the weekend but with her bf, so was difficult to talk to her on her own.

She’s heard from her accommodation that she has to be out by 10 am on the 2nd July. She has lectures, labs etc right up until 1st July and labs up until 5 pm on the 1st July. Doesn’t give much time! We are going to Ds’s Exeter graduation on 1st July, so we’ll have to leave about 6.30 am on Saturday to be out by 10 am. Don’t know why they couldn’t have made it at least 12 to give people time who have a long way to travel to get there. If she didn’t have in person things, then we would have picked her up the weekend before.

10am is ridiculous there must be lots of people who have long way to drive.
Better check with my DC as was planning to pick up on the last day of her contract in the evening to avoid congestion charges.
Has she had confirmation of next year's accommodation?

I might ring her accommodation today. If they want them all out by Saturday morning, then why have in person things going on right up until the last day. No she still hasn’t had confirmation. Dd said in the email, it said early June she’ll hear.

DD finally home! DH went to collect her and texted me to say he thought he might need to put her on the train as the car was stuffed to the rafters!
Luckily she’s small and managed to sit on/stuff her bedding around her to bag her place in the car.
So lovely to have her home but she’s already missing her friends and boyfriend 🤷‍♀️

Oh no! Apparently this is quite common..... DD's BF may well have to do the same, he has collected a lot of extra stuff. DD on the other hand, seems to have less. We shall see, we are going down tomorrow, spending the night in a hotel and back on Monday. There will be 3 of us in the car, so fingers crossed.

DD grumping though, as her work forgot she is coming back this week, so she has no shifts...... she'll just have to spend more time with me 😉