Another path ....... and it goes on

[chopc]

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Hi @AvocadoPlant DD had two out of the four. It seems very lecturer dependent, even in the same modules, some have their marks, some don't.

Oh wow @KnittedCardi - crazy isn’t it? Hope your DD got the results she wanted,

DD is very focussed on medieval/early medieval period in her work, guess she will just have to continue waiting.

Thankfully as 2nd years the results are less critical, however there will be students who have failed and need to prep for resits, or even need to re-sit a full year. Heaven only knows how they will get on.

How lovely to read updates as always. Many congratulations to your DD as well @Jan069. It would be amazing to have a job offer from the big4 for both yours and @SeasonFinale DC.

DS's Durham experience has been interesting. He is house sharing with an old school mate and the rest of his housemates are from another college. He said he hardly sees any people from his original college anymore . I think this is a real shame as he so enjoyed being a part of his college last year.

Luckily he has had his work marked although he said that some people on his course have not due to having different tutors who were striking. Oh and apparently he hardly knows anyone from his course either as they spend so little in person time together.

He said the feedback on his work has also been too vague to use as a base for improvement.

Honestly I have enough going on with my year 12 and 10 kids so am leaving him to just get on with it.

We also have two of DS friends staying with us whilst they attend their internships in London. I am always happy to help a young person progress.

That is very kind of chopc letting the young people stay.
Jan069 good luck to your son with the PGDL results and on the SQE course in September. I has been a complicatd few years for future solicitors with the old and new system and transition from one to the next but now the new SQE exams are in place and everyone coming through will be doing them it should be simpler and he has a training contract which is very good news. I wouldn't worry about other trainees going to US firms in London etc, I am sure he will be fine. All the studies of PGDL and SQE results so far show that the higher your A level grades and university exam marks the more likely you will do well on the SQE (SQE1 is entirely multiple choice and closed book if I remember correctly).

My twins are fine and qualify early next year as solicitors. Both are currently seconded to in-house legal departments at the moment for 6 months. ALl exams are finished for them as of last year so they are in the home straight (or very start of career depending on how you look at it) now. Good luck to all those graduating or trying to (given the strikes ) this summer.

it seems so unfair on so many. My twins' 2020 Bristol graduations were in2022 (delayed through covid and they didn't get the last term at university as the state sent everyone home) and the cohort just graduating now will be having ceremonies which are fake for degrees they do not have as work not marked (in some cases) and did not even in many cases do A levels due to lock downs. Let us hope the next few years can be more back to normal.

DS at Bristol has had all of semester 1 marked (obviously) then 100% of one module from this past semester and then 2 x 50% of the other two. Currently sitting at just above a First so he is torn between wanting those exam marks back or them just going forward with his current average 🤣

Re missing grades-
Dd has had 7/8 modules marked. Unfortunately the missing mark is the main 40% credit module. She’s done ok on the others but would like to know overall grade
She doesn’t think it will be marked for some time . It’s annoying but minor inconvenience compared to the marking upset / potential repercussions some third years are contending with

Dd is applying for summer jobs - no luck yet. We are off on a UK holiday, so am weather watching …and it’s not looking good is it ! 😖 🙄

@Jan069 Just chipping in to say that my DD knows a lot of young corporate lawyers. They do not necessarily stay with their first firm. One of her closest friends moved to an American firm for big bucks a couple of years ago. He works very very hard. It seems to suit him but it would not suit everyone. Another is just starting with his American law firm (he completed a second law degree here as he’s international). If DS wants to join this type of firm, opportunities will exist later on. Other friends of DD are happy at a variety of firms. They seem to find where suits them.

My DH is very unusual as he is still at the firm that gave his training contract. The landscape has changed so much. Whilst getting a training contract is more competitive than ever, not all young lawyers want to climb up the career ladder. I think that's OK as work-life balance has become a priority for people which should absolutely be the case.

@Jan069 shame the "competitiveness" never seems to end. However, your DS is good enough. He needs to believe that. It is also OK not to pursue cooperate law which can be cut throat. Although the most financially rewarding , it's not everyone 'a cup of tea and there are other platforms for practising law

Whilst I was shocked when my junior colleague asked if he could go home a little earlier to do his child's bath time, I applauded him for asking as I would not have dreamt of the same.

DS has had his transcript of marks back now. In one module they were told at the beginning of the course that the balance between practical/ essay would be 70%/30% and this is written on all the materials and on the uni intranet.
On the transcript however a 60%/40% split has been applied and on the university website (hidden away in course details) it seems this is what is listed for this module. So it looks like the tutor got it wrong?

For him it negatively affects him by 1% so he 'doesn't want to make a fuss' and mention it. But it could affect others with less good essay marks (perhaps taking a gamble on a 'lesser' part of the course?) much more.
I think he should politely report the mismatch.
If he misses a 2.1/ 1st next year he'll be kicking himself!

If he misses a 2.1/ 1st next year he'll be kicking himself!

I meant if he misses it by 1%

I've mainly stayed off these threads as DD took a gap year. But it's fun to dip in now and then! She's just finished her first year at York (English); sounds like most of her work got marked eventually? What's been super is that she managed to get a summer internship locally, work from home is an option when she wants, and the odd day there's something in London she gets her train fare paid :) Her gap year job did contribute a lot to her getting this one it seems.

DS is now awaiting A level results and I'm planning to sit down with them together and say, right, DD what does DS need to know how to do to be ready for uni? ....

DS has a First for year 2 (results in today , one unconfirmed grade but has been told it can't go down but may go up) so let's hope he does the same next year!

@SeasonFinale congratulations to your son, that is superb news, I bet he is delighted. Ds has had unmarked work just abandoned by the uni and he and a lot of others are completely pissed off because they worked harder on that exam and a paper because as a cohort they all performed lower than their usual standard on that module. New weighting has now been applied to the other components of that module giving more weight to the one he didn't do so great in an a lesser weighting towards the one he achieved a 1st in. So frustrating.

They know that there is more work to be either marked or adjusted so he hasn't got a definite grade for second year which is just miserable. They have a grade but have been told this can go up of down so it is more like a guideline (feeling very Pirates of the Caribbean when I hear guideline.) The good news is his chosen modules next year are a lot more in line with where his interests lie but it is all exam based next year, no papers/coursework. Let's hope the marking boycott doesn't continue on.

He has been doing his summer internship with has lit him up like a Christmas tree, he is in his element putting the theory to actual day to day working processes. Feedback on him has been really positive. How is your son's internship going? And your daughter @Jan069 ?

Ds2 has now completed all of his uni tours and is on a summer school course learning about S&P, bonds and investments. He is loving it.

@BenchOfCompany Great to hear your DS is enjoying his summer internship. DD is enjoying hers too and unbelievably is now in her final week. There is a chance of a job offer but we'll have to wait and see. Sorry to hear your DS still doesn't know his second year grade. If it's any consolation, neither does DD but seems nonchalant.

@SeasonFinale Many congratulations to your DS. A first is a fantastic achievement!

@Pythonesque Great to hear your DD enjoyed her gap year and has also secured a summer internship.

Thank you @chopc and@TizerorFizz for your supportive words re DS's PGDL struggles which definitely provided perspective. He is due his results this week so keeping our fingers crossed.

DD is off travelling next month to Southeast Asia with a uni friend. I'm envious. We've just come back from our first holiday abroad since covid and I'm feeling the urge to get out and see more of the world myself.

@BenchOfCompany He is liking the firm and the people but not feeling the type of work the department does. So we will see what happens!!

@OnTheBenchOfDoom is your DS2 on a course from investin? My DS2 had no idea what he wants to do after sixth form so have booked him into a course to see if it would give inspiration

Nice to read everyone's updates

@SeasonFinale ah, not so great then but it might get better if he has a few weeks left. In the first week Ds was constantly pulled into internship meetings away from a team he has been working with. But now he is shadowing someone to see how they approach the work and is loving that part, actually seeing how it is done and chatting about it.

@chopc no not that one. It is just an economics summer school course we paid for on capital and financial markets. He has another one booked for growth and inequalities and then he is on a short summer thing for one of the Big4 which he went through a recruitment process for.

I think it is great for your Ds to dip his toe into something and see if he likes it. I think the US university system where they get to try lots of things is a good idea. Ds is doing economics A level and just fell in love with it. He has watched lots of guest lectures on Youtube for LSE etc read a load of books and papers. He finds the whole thing fascinating which is great because a lot of my friend's children have no idea what they want to do.

@Jan069 I would love to go travelling especially some far flung places, I hear South Korea calling me. Dh and I have all sorts of mad plans for after next year when Ds2 will be at uni and we can travel without the children.

Not having to think about Dc or pay for them whilst you go on holiday is wonderful! It’s great just to think of yourselves for a change. I value time with Dc but also my time on the planet too!

@TizerorFizz sorry not following... what is this in response to?

We are currently in a motorhome holiday with the 3 DC. I thought it will be a nightmare but I am loving the time with them as term time is so busy and during the holidays they are out and about.

I have also developed some patience so am able to tolerate their moans and digs a little more than usual 🤔

Just the notion of travelling without Dc! Ignore me!

Sharing of all thoughts welcome @TizerorFizz . From other threads I gather your DC are grown up and working?

Yes. That’s right. I’m just musing about holidays and the freedoms we enjoyed after feeling we had done the education job! Although dd2 retrained and finished that course a year ago. They actually liked going on holiday with friends post 18. Ws would go away as a family now but we all have differing views on a holiday!

We travelled around SE Asia for a few months when DH took redundancy when the kids were 11,9,9 and 3. We had 5 carry on bags between 6 of us.
We have done motor homes with them for festivals but any longer than a weekend in a motorhome with all of them would be too much for me and them!

DD1 internship have offered an ongoing internship 10 hours per week working remotely when she goes back to college.
She likes the work and the money is better than being a Teaching Assistant which had been her original plan.

DD2 has chosen some of her classes for Barnard and is going to start looking at what she needs for her dorm. She has been approved for a single room in her dorm on medical grounds as she has ADHD and is prone to sensory overload.

DD3 switched musical theatre foundations in June so will be in Peckham not Woking as originally planned but we found someone to take her room in halls there and she got a place off the waiting list for the one closest to her new drama school.

So lots to organise for the twins moving away and then will be very quiet with just DS at home.

How interesting @ChimneyPot

Where is Barnard?

Your DT are 16 right? So entering sixth form? Is the one doing MT doing the two year BTEC or the three year Diploma?

Your DD1 and @Jan069 's DD sounds similar - real go getters in life! Good for them!