Only 1 A Level - Music

[BrightBlueCast]

DS desperately wants to apply to college / conservatoire to study music. He's so far only doing 1 A level and that's in Music. Distance-learning. Equivalent of lower sixth so he'll take the exams next year. The idea was to do another A level via home-ed but nothing appeals. It looks very much like 2 A levels are a minimum for all the places he's looking at but I'm just wondering if there's any way at all of getting around that requirement. He's had a lot of bad luck and some bad things happen and he just wants to move on with the next chapter of his life - the thought of having to do another A level (he isn't interested in anything apart from Music) is getting him down.

Other (slightly daft) question is what would be the best A level to do, in addition to Music, which he could half-arse in a year and get an E. He's very bright and always did very well at school until he had a bit of a breakdown 18 months ago. GCSE results are very solid. But fundamentally doesn't like academic study.

On a purely practical level, how is going to cope with an undergraduate course if he's not at school, has poor attendance at Junior Conservatoire and very pointedly refusing most options on A levels other than music (there must be something). It seems like he's been in a very pressurised environment- grammar school- not coped and has not recovered yet.
Could he focus on a year out, volunteering, working a garden centre, something completely different first, helping with disabled people, to help him rebuild himself? It sounds like that needs to happen first before he's capable of thriving in an academic environment

It is a pity things went so badly as he was doing very well at the grammar school. If he gets into somewhere people only go with very low grades he probably won't like the people or the course so it is a catch 22 situation (unless he were a child genius with 3 or 4 grade 8s and getting in before A level stage just to do practical music somewhere). Music degrees are quite academic ( am a lawyer and quite a few lawyers read music even for a first degree).

Does he want to perform as his career? My children's father is a music teacher and says a lot of brilliant performers end up begging for teaching hours at school just to pay the bills. It is not really the easiest career.
Could he do a diploma if not already done one whilst he does another A level or two/
I have not read the whole thread so do not know if we are talking about someone with 3 instruments, lots of grade 8s, a diploma already, in all kinds of orchestras who is clearly going to do well at performing or someone who has had a lot of problems and just looking for anywhere that will take him as he needs to move on to the next stage of his life?
Has he considered studying abroad where A levels might not be so necessary or would that be too stressful for him?

Xenia, with all due respect you don't know anything about the type of degree the OP's child (and my chid) are looking at.

You also have no idea what t is like to parent an autistic child. For many years (despite having gained entry to a selective private school which he left at the end of year 8) I fully believed my son would never hold down a job. He is now thriving at a college with low entry standards (most on his course had to do a level 2 btec first as they failed their GCSE's) and has a conservatoire place for September at a college where they don't just teach you to perform, they teach you the ins and outs of the music business, technology, numerous ways to make a living. Yes, including teaching.

Studying abroad is laughable for such a child.

My own husband failed almost all his GCSE's, scraped through 2 A levels, went to conservatoire and never looked back. He now teaches at a performing arts higher education institution and is completing postgraduate qualifications.

And the main reason ds wants to go to conservatoire to do a degree? Yes, to improve his standard of playing although that is possible with a good private teacher. The main reason is to network, to make contacts. He's already doing a decent job but at conservatoire it goes up a level in terms of who you meet.

Comefromaway I don’t know about music in particular but pupils with EOTAS via their EHCP do manage to complete qualifications that require group collaboration, performances and assessments.

From having read the BTEC music performance spec, in detail, several times over the last two years I just don't see how it would be possible for that particular spec. E11, E12 & E13 would be possible if it was an organisational role but A1 would be impossible.

Comefromaway as I said I don’t know about music in particular but it is possible via EOTAS to do qualifications involving group work/assessments. EOTAS packages are generally quite imaginative in how they work and many people don’t understand how they work and potential possibilities.

Oh I can see how it is possible in many cases. My husband teaches musical theatre and was very creative over lockdown. But in music even with the most sophisticated, expensive software (to get over the lag problems online) you really have to be in the same room as the other performers to fulfil the criterial for Performing as an Ensemble. The entire rehearsal process is assessed, not just the end performance.

My cousin is going through this exact thing right now with her son. She actually got in touch with an educational consultant who did a comprehensive 'plan' for him. It got him right back on track and gave his mum a lot of confidence. It was expensive apparently, but it worked wonders. Could this be an option?

My friend's DS sounds exactly like your son.

He attended a top Grammar (30+ to Oxbridge each year).
He gained grade 8 distinction at 13 years old on a brass instrument.
Gained mediocre GCSEs and decided to go to a local comp for 6th form.
He chose Music, Biology and Maths A levels, but was only interested in Music.
He dropped Biology at the end of year 12 as he had hardly attended any lessons.
He dropped Maths in the Jan of Year 13 (again poor attendance), so only had 1 A level- Music.
He had no interest in anything apart from music and would be composing until the early hours most nights and turn up late for school, if he turned up at all.
Lockdown happened and he had not applied to university and was just composing through the night.
He was given a CAG of 'C' for Music in 2020.

In the summer of 2020, he made a late application to BIMM with his C grade and his grade 8 distinction. He is now studying music and composition in London. He is not enjoying the course and would rather do his own thing. However, he is making contacts, networking and staggering on to the end. If he gets a 2.2 it will be a huge success.

What about this? I was trying to think of where can you join at this age and get paid if you are very bright, messed your grammar school and may not want to go somewhere with people different from how you in terms of IQ and academics. May be a career where you can work your way up without a degree apply.army.mod.uk/roles/corps-of-army-music/musician

You can't currently join the army with autism.

Xenia even if the army would allow the OP’s DS to sign up do you really think a depressed, anxious, autistic teen with a PDA profile would cope?

Xenia, Music Performance BMus at Conservatoires - not universities who offer music degrees - have students with all kinds of academics (and indeed all kinds of musical qualifications and none), because it really doesn't matter how good you are at exams. It matters how well you play.

A musically-gifted and musically-obsessed student will find their peers there, because their peers are not peers by virtue of 'IQ' [useless metric - my DBro with a Physics degree from Oxbridge fails IQ tests every time] or their 'academic' qualifications, but their peers in music.

DS's coursemates range from those with excellent A-levels who meet or exceed the required grades for high-ranking universities, to those who have pieced together enough UCAS points / grades to get student funding - but that doesn't matter one whit. What matters is how they play; compose; collaborate; perform.

The one part of the OP's posts that worries me a bit about his proposed route is that he is failing to attend Junior Conservatoire. While it may be that his preferred course / institution is elsewhere, not managing to attend weekly sessions in pretty much exactly the environment he wants to study, with a taste of his peer group to come, would be a bit of a concern to me. However, it may be that the JD is very classical focused, while his interests lie elsewhere - DS was lucky enough to attend JD in his preferred genre.

I meant for BrightBlueCast who I don't think has said her son has autism (but I might be wrong). I was just trying to find a good career and life for a very clever grammar school child who had messed up more recently. The army will take you at 16 even and people do find it a way to get back on track and rise up the ranks and here he could do music too and be "going away" just like teenagers his friends going away to university. Anyway it was probably an off the wall idea.

We are a family of musicians to an extent and it is my children's father's career so not entirely ignorant about the music colleges etc.

She has said that her son has autism with a demand avoidant profile. Very similar to my own son but perhaps more severely affected than mine is.

And things have changed a lot in recent years from when I did my music degree and my husband did his at a conservatoire. (he now teaches in that sector and has friends teaching music in higher education all around the country.)

There are several of us on this thread with much more up to date knowledge (I know far more about different conservatoire specs, assessment methods and entry requirements that is good for me !!)

Haven't read the whole thread (sorry!) but I think the issue is that you need a minimum of 2 x E grades at A level to do any higher ed, even if that something like a conservatoire which mainly admits on audition performance. Unless the candidate is over 21 and would then be a mature student, or has done a foundation year.

Is A level general studies still a thing?? I did that back in the 90s...

@Bramshott General studies no longer a thing, and unfortunately OP's DS particularly wants to avoid essay-based work.

To be fair to some posters if, like me, they check “read all” to look at everything the OP has said before posting, they wouldn’t realise the OP had name changed and provided further information unless they read the entire thread.

Just to answer the original question, maybe look at an A level that has coursework element to it? Not sure if Geography A level still does, but subjects with NEA’s can be up to 25% of the A level.

I'm sure I read on here years ago that someone who had been home educated had got onto a degree course with grade 8 harp and an Open University course. A pp said something about an open university course so is that worth looking at?

These are the music-related ones but there might be something non-music-related that would work: www.open.ac.uk/courses/music/all-modules

Mine is going to a Conservatoire in September, subject to getting two Es. He had 6 offers to choose from, 5 were EE and one was unconditional so they do exist. The unconditional was at RWCMD although ultimately he's chosen to go elsewhere.

I don’t know if they take older students in Year 12 but you may be able to make a case based on your son’s health. At the BRIT school he could just do music in their sixth-form and wouldn’t need to do A-levels at all? It would mean starting 6th form from the beginning but he would just be doing what he loved. Might be worth asking if they take older students for a fresh start into Year 12?

Having done the forerunners of both level 2 modules, I think the Understanding Music one would not add anything to A-level music - it starts from a very low base (because of the OU being open-access) and then covers similar things to A-level (one of the others doing it when I did it had done science A-levels and was doing it in lieu of A-level music to apply to music colleges). The Music, sound and technology might be a good one if doing Music technology A-level/BTec is not an option. It would be important to check out with places he might apply whether they would accept an OU module in lieu of the second A-level.

It does sound like he might be in need of studying something that will show he can stick at things. Any insititution offering him a place is going to need to know that he has found a way forward after his breakdown and is going to be able to work at their course. Putting in minimal effort to pass the music A-level does not sound encouraging. If that means taking another year or two out, developing his skills informally until he's ready to knuckle down to some serious study, that might be best.