Choosing DC's Degree Course & University

[MessyandLost]

DS's school will support him with A-levels and applications for university. However, they don't provide any direction or information about the courses and universities so basically we have to do all the research on our own.

His prediction for GCSEs is all 9s. He is very bright. So I believe there is almost nothing he cannot do but only if he knows what he wants to do...DS has no idea what he likes to do and what is available out there yet. He definitely needs help from experts.

How does your DC know/decide what they want to do at university? Does their school invite people from universities and experts in wider areas so DC get to see and hear their stories? I feel DS needs this kind of experience...

We are of course thinking to visit some universities but DS needs to be more informed so could narrow down his targets... I am seriously thinking to move him to a school with better support after GCSEs but if other schools are equally rubbish about providing information and experiences the move would be just a waste... I don't know if his school's attitude is normal or outrageous...

I feel totally lost... Any advice would be greatly appreciated...

Music A level is anything but a soft subject.

Also the school aren't wrong. It is a good idea to choose a favourite subject but you need a combo of what you like and are good at and what unis will want. I'm not being a snob at all. I did humanities which lots of people think are easy because I always wanted to study English. So did both siblings. But my brother also decided he wanted to do maths and it was a nightmare for him because whilst he enjoyed it, it was one of the weakest subjects.

Start visiting a few unis in lower six, so you know what to expect properly in upper six, even if it’s the nearest two or three. Choose a campus and non-campus variety, town and city.

With a- levels, think about careers and work backwards. Ie. If he wants to study economics or business studies, what a-levels do you need to obtain a uni place.

Also consider apprentices as a viable option.

Ah ok, I think music can be dropped. He did say music or language would be the one to go. But maths and one science subject (biology) sound odd? I know usually people take two or three sciences plus maths...

Maths, Bio and a language are a great combination! If he adds in FM he leaves open the possibility of a maths degree, biology degree, economics degree, computing degree and a load of others. Plus he can look at degrees with a year abroad (if you can afford it - thank you Brexit ) which are a fab opportunity.

If you want a career that combines the lot - Bioinformatics.

Interesting mix

Apparently there’s a link in your brain for maths, music and languages.

I would suggest looking at computer science/ coding to begin with. Start there then look at other options too.

There are lots of coding courses aimed at young people. Consider getting a raspberry pi (the govt gave every year 7 one about 7 years ago as they wanted to encourage more coders

Agree with these too

I think it’s a decent combination. Focus on 3/4.
Music is a tough A level.

I disagree. A steer can be helpful. Not leave it to them entirely. There is so much info out there it can be overwhelming. Disclosure. I work in HE

Prospects.ac.uk is a good resource. He can see what careers he could go into from eg a maths degree and compare to eg biology

Thank you! So much reassurance... And bioinformatics sounds very interesting...

Support to do the research and analysis is helpful. Loads of interest and support to attend open days. Discussions aorund how to choose, what matters to the child etc.

But a steer is overstepping, it is not appropriate for a parent to steer a child into things that affect their whole life.

I think you are overthinking the use of the word “steer”.

I disagree, we steer our children constantly by the example we set. How many medics have doctors parents for example. Everything they see at home and in their social circle ‘steers’ them.

Maths + biology plus music or a language works quite well and keeps options open. Maths degrees want maths plus further maths, biology degrees are usually okay with biology plus maths (counts as a science) though Edinburgh is an exception. As others have said then there are options such as bioinformatics, genetics etc.

If they know what they want schools and colleges have all the answers. However careers are changing all the time. For example computing skills can be cyber security, website design, marketing games design, video screens for theatre…endless stuff.
Ideally finding out what’s important to them is key. Do they want money, an easy life, travel, something to help people, something to help themselves?
It’s more than than “this is a good career”.

It’s more than than “this is a good career”.

DH’s priority when choosing a degree was travelling the world at on a company ticket and a decent salary.

You know someone who is a careers advisor? Do you know if they are any good or are you basing it on whether or not you like them?
Do you know WHY careers is often poor in schools? Let me list all the reasons for you.

Advisors are lucky if they get an hour 1:1 with students. In that time, they are meant to contract, build rapport, have a meaningful discussion about interests, aptitude etc. PLUS impart some careers education. In an hour.

Students often don’t WANT to have deep and meaningful conversations with a stranger with an ‘office’ which is really a cupboard in the back of the library.

At 14 /15 do you genuinely think students know enough about themselves, their values, and the world to make an informed decision? But career advisors are meant to discuss this with an often unwilling 15 year old. In an hour.

Careers is constantly getting trimmed back. Yes, at the moment there are Gatsby benchmarks and it it a Good Thing. However, many schools don’t invest in the service, or do so minimally. This all too often ends up in jobs that are very poorly paid. For a job with requires a degree and a post graduate qualification. People left the profession in droves when Connexions was dissolved and there is a lack of qualified, experienced practitioners.

People like having someone to blame, and career advisors often get it in the neck. Somehow they are supposed to know that an individual will watch a documentary which ignites a love of art restoration, or their grandmother will get ill and they’ll want to go into healthcare.

OP- look on Career Pilot or check if your school has a subscription to eClips. Both those sites has a function where you can search for careers associated with a subject.

Well quite This is what my DH does too. But my DS has no interest in travelling. We put him off I think with all the short breaks He hated it whereas I saw it as a privilege because I grew up with people who loved home. DS he wants money and stability.

My DH career costs many a marriage because of the inherit travel. Literally all of them are in second or third marriages.They are off doing amazing things every week with “ amazing” people then home for a few weeks., Great money versus shit home life

I just don't get people instantly jumping in to say I'm making all the decisions etc. DS came to me for some advice and I am just trying to be a mum. No crime

I find people's reactions odd. I would have loved for my parents to have supported me the way you are trying to for your son. It's really tough- these kids are only 16 and are making decisions that will affect their entire lives. I had no idea what I was doing. I also did 5 A levels, which I realised later was kind of pointless!

OP, a language sounds like a great option if he's interested - being trilingual is amazing.

Why does your post make it sound like you are chosing too? It's up to your son to do the deciding and research not you, are you going to be following him to uni to do the course for him too? If he's as bright as you say and actually wants to go to uni he will do his research and work this stuff out, my college didn't spoon feed us, it was up to us. I used to help out with the open days at the uni I did my PhD at, you'd often get parents where it seemed like they were looking for a uni and their son/daughter had come along for the ride, some were clearly not deciding for themselves.

To be fair kids do need guidance on this. Ds2 is just choosing his A Levels and we’ve all sat down to discuss the options. He’s making a mistake with one I’m sure and so I’m hoping to persuade him to change it over the next few weeks.

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Great subjects, he sounds really interesting. I'm glad to see there aren't many voices saying 'drop maths' - maths and FM are great subjects and keep lots of doors open. Music and maths is a good combo. I'm guessing too that your first language isn't English so perhaps his language is as a native speaker? That makes a difference as it's harder now to get good grades in language A levels without some level of fluency. It might be a big choice not to do Biology; not having any sciences other than maths does push him in a particular direction.

I don't think the school sounds impressive in their careers input. But yes you can replace a lot of it. Ds ended ended GCSEs thinking he would study chemistry but has ended up doing computer science, and that's just a process of growing up and understanding his own wishes. There are private psychological testing places that do lots of tests and then interview you - in my view they strongly follow what you say! But it can be an interesting process to try.

To me one of the most important factors is style of work- whether you are someone who likes planning and completing big projects, or whether you like starting fresh each day and tackling a brand new workload. I assumed always that I was the first type, but I'm absolutely not. I've ended up in a front line hospital therapy job where I just pick up the work for the day and get stuck in - I have to be flexible and adaptable. I didn't actually know that jobs existed that are a reasonable pay level but also don't require you to grind away at completing goals over months.

I like the person but I also know they were an awful careers advisor because (a) they had no training (b) they had no clue and (c) they were moved on to a less demanding job pretty fast.

My DC is also in Year 11 and considering similar subjects: she definitely wants to do maths and a language, possibly further maths, then either biology or chemistry. She doesn't know what she want to do either! I did arts, so I am not much help on STEM degrees. She is under the impression everyone else knows already what they want to do in their careers and is choosing A-levels based on that.

They have had careers talks at school, but so far it has been more about whether to follow an academic route or apprenticeships. They have had employers in to talk to them about jobs straight from school, and they also had uni students come and talk to them about what it's like to go to uni. I think the focus has been on people deciding what to do after Year 11. About half the year leaves to go to college or apprenticeships, but my DD already knew she wanted to stay to do A-levels and go on to uni, so while it's great the school has provided this, it wasn't particularly relevant to her. I imagine once they get to Year 12 there will be more targeted career information.