A level results day 2024

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How’s everyone else feeling about results day? I’ve got one at uni already and 2nd dd hoping to go to Kent in September. She seems ok about it at the moment although think that will change as it gets closer. Me I’m so keeping my fingers crossed she gets what she wants, I know there will always be other options but she loved the open day. Going to struggle with this one going though as it has been a real journey to get to where she is.

It's not just the schools who predict the grades - there is often pressure from the child/parent to get the teacher to predict an a or a star for the child just to be in chance of an offer at a prestigious university with pleas of yes I will work harder in year 13 I can do it only to be disappointed on results day.

At the start of sixth form DD’s schilling made it very clear they would not over predict and would not bow to parental/student pressure to change predicted grades. Students who did not get the results they wanted in year 12 end of year exams were allowed to take another set of mocks at the start of year 13 if they wanted to improve their predicted grades.

This is what dd did.

She wouldn't have had a chance of an offer from a course requiring AAA, so hustled a bit to get AAB predictions. Then got a AAB offer. Worked her butt off, ended up with far higher. Then her classmate, also predicted AAB, got BBB and got into the same course.

Maybe the unis shouldn't ask for AAA in the first place if they know they'll accept three grades lower? Then kids wouldn't feel the need to be over predicted.

worried about DC, they worked so hard and were predicted an A* in their best subject and ended up with a D. I really don’t know how this happened as I know my DC tried their absolute best. They got into their firm to do a slightly different course than applied for but absolutely devastated hasn’t eaten or drunk anything since they found out (early yesterday morning so haven’t had anything since Wednesday evening) it’s like their zest for life has disappeared.

A few years back some universities were offering lower grades for some courses and students didn't apply as they thought the standards and chances of jobs would be low and also the international students didn't apply. As a last ditch they changed the offers to 3 A and applications shot up

So if the unis are using AAA as some sort of marketing ploy that doesn't really seem fair, does it.

It’s a complex marketing method for universities. They need to advertise high grades to make themselves attractive and to get quality applicants to apply. This then does lead to a culture of over-predicting. But we see the reality on results day and in Clearing, that they will take significantly lower in order to fill the courses. Quickly this info disappears from websites so the next students only see the standard offer grades.

If they advertised the lower grades they actually take, it woukd be harder to differentiate between students and get at least some stronger ones in.

It is a bit galling for students who met or exceeded the standard offer and worked their butts off to get the grades to find their course is half full of students who achieved far less. At first it can feel it devalues the course and their own achievement. Although that said, the strongest students will usually go onto do the best in the their degrees.

I suppose when looking at course requirements, knowing not everyone will actually have those grades on the course, is worth knowing. But those applying pre-exams can never be sure if they themselves will be the few who exceed and are too students, or those who scrape in by being taken as near miss candidates or even through clearing. The way students feel before they have their grades and after about these things differs.

I suppose that within the very top places and their most competitive courses, there is less variation. There are still courses where if you do t hit the standard offer, you won’t be taken, as they have so many applicants and over-offer and won’t go to Clearing. But these courses are few and far between. And students with the predictions for them can’t be certain they will achieve the grades and often like a safer bet that is more likely to take near misses.

Essentially it’s the issue of applying ore-exams isn’t it. Students and unis are not in full receipt of info that is needed to make accurate decisions. Everyone has to second guess themselves and the other candidates. And some win and some lose through this.

This is a perfect example of over predicting. Dds school never predicts A*

All you can do is keep on about how proud you are of them. They are into the uni they want and within hours of being there his grades won't matter.

It is a bit galling for students who met or exceeded the standard offer and worked their butts off to get the grades to find their course is half full of students who achieved far less. At first it can feel it devalues the course and their own achievement. Although that said, the strongest students will usually go onto do the best in the their degrees

Dd has a touch of this. Although she likes her friend and is happy that they'll be on the course together.

DS got into his first choice despite a dropped grade. I’m a bit worried that this means he’ll be at a disadvantage compared to those who made the offer, and that he might struggle. Although given he’s doing a STEM subject and his dropped grade was in his least relevant A-level (business - he got a B) I may be over-thinking this!

@radiator2 so sorry to hear this. Despite getting in to the university it is a blow to their confidence getting marks so far off what they've expected. Had the school said anything? That seems such a big drop unless there are extenuating circumstances.
Give it time. They need to adjust their self image (that's not the right term but you know what I mean). Not being as good as they thought can be a painful realisation. We know in the grand scheme of things this is a minor blip in a long journey but to them it's their world.

It’s a massive disservice to the students if the school or college genuinely refuse to predict any A stars. Madness.

Yes, they shouldn’t be given out willy-nilly. Yes, it’s not an exact science and staff might feel they can be fairly sure someone will be A star/A but A star feels like more of a mystery. And yes, some centres get hardly any A star historically so are rightly cautious. And yes, the odd student massively over-performs unexpectedly, and given that, the whole nature of ‘unexpected’ means it couldn’t have been forseen. But, all places should be open to predict g A star sometimes when evidence supports it. The thing is, evidence is needed to support it.

It sounds like your DC was unexpected, esp at the point where PGs were set. It sounds like a later boost in performance and that even you and she were surprised. It happens. Schools and colleges aren’t the oracle able to see into the future. So whether they were wrong not to predict A stars really depends on the evidence they had at that point - her current achievement, what GCSEs suggested etc. If there was evidence to suggest A star possible, to have a blanket policy saying no A star would be very wrong. But actually, it sounds like it was a surprise to everyone. And surprises by their nature are surprises.

This happened to me all of 35 years ago.

I got into Oxford but had 3 Bs at A-Level instead of 3 As.

My Dad told me I was stupid for being upset, my Mum told me she knew how exactly how I felt and just let me cry it out.

I had some issues with my Mum - she had mental health issues which meant her behaviour was unpredictable - but have never forgotten her empathy on that day.

Your son will eventually realise that he's done great and that everyone has disappointments in their life. But let him get there on his own - for now just make it clear that you empathise.

These days, obviously 99% of the time I don't think about it but when I do there's still a pang.

I remember the feeling of getting grades lower than I expected. I felt humiliated and embarrassed compared to classmates who did better. It’s a strong feeling. But when I went to uni that all went away. No one knows what you got or cares and it becomes old news. Now it’s positively an asset as I didn’t have such high expectations for my own kids and was delighted for them.

This is a perfect example of over predicting. Dds school never predicts A*

This policy always surprises me - if you have a 3 x A star student and the school will only predict AAA, they are preventing the student from getting offers that would be completely appropriate for them. Seems so odd for a school to deliberately wreck an able student's chance of getting offers from the most prestigious and competitive courses.

Yes, my sympathy. I got almost the lowest possible grade in my best subject (another country) when i was predicted the highest. It was such a shock. We even went into the city to view my paper (which you could do at a cost) because the only explanation was that it had been mixed up with someone else. But it was mine. My teacher asked for an explanation and the answer was that I was so on top of the subject they suspected cheating.

I got into my second choice university and it really dented my confidence. I was an over achiever back then and felt so ashamed and upset. But that second choice ended up being brilliant. I got 3 degrees from that university in the end and it took my life on a path I did not expect but which was undoubtedly more fulfilling for me.

But the shock of it all lasted a really long time. So I hope your DC is okay.

It's a balancing act. On the one hand the university wants to fill its courses. On the other, it doesn't want to fill its courses with students who won't be able to keep up and so end up either dropping out or struggling to graduate because that makes the university look bad in the league tables (Oxbridge etc excepted, of course).

Another big factor is that from year to year A-level results trend up or down. During covid there was a lot of grade inflation - an AstarAA student then might only have been an AAB or ABB student a few years before. No universities were going below their advertised grades in 2021. Conversely, in a year where overall A-level results have trended down, universities are much more likely to drop the grades a bit to compensate.

Agree. A ridiculous approach imo.

Well they have had students go to an array of top unis/courses/Oxbridge so no idea how that works.

I agree - she means left everyone feeling down.
We were in a similar situation - ds got into his first choice but was so pissed off and upset that he was 1 mark off an A in history - he was embarrassed, didn't want to talk to his friends, felt like he'd let his history teacher down, who had been his form tutor and mentor all the way through school. He also missed out on an A in politics by 3 marks, so instead of his predicted AAA he got A*BB.

He was devastated and nothing we could say would cheer him up even though they are amazing grades and we made it perfectly clear we are still incredibly proud of him. We just kept reminding him of how well he'd done but didn't try to invalidate his feelings - he was completely justified in being disappointed so there was no point in telling him not to be.
I'm at work today and haven't seen him yet - hoping the dust will have settled and he can now start getting excited about Uni (when he's over the hangover)

She can always defer while applying to 'higher' schools/programmes if that's what she wants. A year working will also help her financially at uni.

He'll be fine. Honestly. He'll be fine.

Not a typo! and makes perfect sense. You read it incorrectly so be humble enough to admit your error.

How frustrating and just shows what a crazy system it is.

May I ask, what were her GCSEs like?

With all the AI/digital available, I can't believe UCAS/unis couldn't somehow move A-level exams to mid-May (perhaps with a slightly reduced curriculum), then introduce a post-qualification application system. I mean, there seems to be so much movement anyway now with clearing they might as well?