Daughter about to start Uni, having a wobble and thinking she should have gone to a higher Ranked Russell Group Uni!

[WhatsTheStoryRory]

My daughter did her A levels in the summer and got all A*s in 4 STEM subjects.
She accepted an offer to study a STEM subject in a non Russell group uni because that's the one she liked the best when we visited.
The Uni she liked is very well rated and is a couple of hours drive from the city we live in.
She's gone through the whole process of applying for Student loan and choosing accomodation.

She's now having a wobble and thinking she should have accepted an offer she had from a Russell Group Uni in the city we live in.
The main reason seems to be, that she thinks future employers will give preference to those who went to higher ranked Uni's.

She's even mentioned taking a year out and re-applying for next year.
We've said we'll support her whatever she decides.

Is it even possible to change Uni's at this late stage?

If it's not an ex-poly then I don't think it makes much difference to her future.

I went to a huge ex-poly uni based on preferring the campus, amazing facilities and 'vibe'. In reality, the teaching time was shocking (1.5 hours a week) and the facilities were totally inaccessible to undergrads and ultimately it was real waste of money.

I would go based on the teaching time, but it's no big deal to quit after a month, take a year out and try again somewhere else

Not for Computer Science. Newcastle is DD's safety choice in case it all goes tits up in exams. Bath is far more prestigious for her chosen course.

There is one poster on mumsnet who does

I retract my previous statement. Bath is good for engineering

You’re making huge assumptions about who applies for those universities, who is conventionally ‘succeeding’ at 18, and the skills required in employment compared to the skills required to get a first.

People can be tremendous in jobs who wouldn’t have dreamed of applying to a top tier university on leaving school. Their potential should be recognised through their skills-based application for a role, not someone’s narrow idea of what makes you suitable for a job at the age of 21.

Academic ability does not necessarily mean that someone is the best fit for a job.

Lol, you beat me to it...

Plus it's quite possible for students with excellent grades at A Level to have been to a University that isn't at the top of the league tables. So selecting by the University attended doesn't work.

Literally the only thing attendance at a high ranking university indicates is that the student probably got decent A Level grades. It doesn't mean that a student who attended a lower ranking one got poor A Level grades.

Of course in blind recruitment tests, students from higher ranking universities often perform better anyway (but that is because the more able students are more likely to have been to the higher ranking universities).

Meh. I think the kids that do well at interviews are the kids that do well at interviews. Basically the confident, all the answers kids will do better.

I have the opposite, mine is shy. Not ND. He's gone from getting Pupil Premium, through a comp, to a top 10 Uni. He knows his stuff and decided by himself, his 6th form and post 18 choices. He's on a competitive Uni course on the basis of an extra testing all entrants had to take, regardless of A levels.

His lovely confident friend meanwhile is at a middling ex poly Uni hear home because his family couldn't afford to him to leave. I definitely think his Uni experience is very relevant as he had no choice. Employers will see his work experience ( worked throughout)but it's not applicable to his actual course. Although will have cost him in time and effort.

Basically I'll be hacked off if blind recruitment helps the posh kid at a lesser Uni get a job ahead of mine or his friend. Because the stats show private school kids are over represented. Cultural capital is as much as part of success as anything else.

So yes I think employers seeing the both the Uni and the journey is important.

Basically I'll be hacked off if blind recruitment helps the posh kid at a lesser Uni get a job ahead of mine or his friend. Because the stats show private school kids are over represented. Cultural capital is as much as part of success as anything else.

but if that posh kid at a lesser uni gets the job through blind recruitment it means they’re the better candidate

So you actually want someone to get the job simply because they went to a high ranking university. Wow.

My child is at Bath, got 4 A stars and is surrounded by many other students who also got 4 A stars. It's far from unusual there. Bath is an aspirational uni especially for some courses where it's rated higher than many in the Russel group. The whole Russel group thing is a bit of a myth especially now when a lot of graduate recruitment is done 'blind' of such details. Unless she especially wants to work in a niche high end hedge fund where it's still the old boys network at play.
Absolutely loves Bath; the course, teaching and the student experience.

It's quite scary that so many on this thread think that blind recruitment is unfair and that the confident person at interview will get the job.

Many businesses work really hard to provide a fair skilled-based recruitment process, that ensures that all candidates have a fair chance to access great jobs.

These same businesses also offer reasonable adjustments and devise relevant interview questions so that the confident person who can perform well in interview isn't automatically the first choice.

We had a case recently where a candidate was so nervous they had a complete meltdown in the interview. After a half an hour break the interview continued. They smashed it and got the job.

Giving people a fair chance to get a job interview and supporting them through the interview process is the best way to get the right people for the job. Great employers couldn't care less where you went to university. They just want to see whether you have the skills needed for the job.

Nobody has said Bath wasn’t a university that would not be hugely approved of for STEM subjects? It’s always had a good reputation for sciences.

Like most educational institutions, they have subjects they particularly excel in.

OP, this sounds like a pre-university wobble and living at home would feel like a safer option. She has to do what is right for her, not just in relation to her future but right now. If she would benefit from taking a year out / living at home while at university then that is what she should do. Going away to university suits some people but not all. Others benefit from the support networks / part time work they may have in their home town. So be it. Emotional wellbeing is as important (more important) than choice of course / university.

You have to remember that jobs in the modern World, especially for graduate jobs, aren't the old fashioned "interview" style at all. The entire process is now more likely to be computer based with filling in boxes on screen for qualifications, hobbies, experience, etc etc. rather than someone reading a CV. Then followed by online aptitude tests. These initial stages screen out the majority of the applicants automatically, without a human looking at them, as the computer systems are programmed to "select" the profile of candidate they're looking for. Even at the final stages, rather than a formal sit down interview, they're more likely to be candidates videoing themselves answering a series of questions. My son got two job offers with blue chip companies, and didn't speak "live" with anyone for either. It was all done via computer, mostly automated systems, with just the final stage being the "selection panel" watching the recorded videos of candidates answering the pre-set questions. The first real person he talked to at the firm he accepted was at 9am on his starting date when he met his immediate boss on his first day - his boss knew literally nothing about him, other than his name and start date!

Yes they have, jane!

Yeah they said 'ooh she should drop her Bath place and apply to a Russell group uni like Bristol' which would be stupid.

Bath is an excellent uni with good employment stats. She's just getting nervous at leaving home. There may be freshers groups on Facebook, she can check the Students Room as they may be mentioned on offer holders threads.

Encourage her to go and if she is unhappy at Christmas you can rethink.

Well as a hospital consultant of many years, I have never come across this. The university our junior doctors attended simply does not matter. We know that getting any medical place is very very difficult so any junior doctor has already proved themselves.

As an aside, with widening participation, we are definitely getting students from different backgrounds which is a good thing too.

@FlamingoCup There is a poster on MN who insists on only being treated by a doctor who attended one of the Oxbridge universities. She even looks up a doctor's educational credentials before seeing them.

After reading her posts I tried to find out the educational background of the truly excellent surgeon who carried out complex surgery on DH's oesophagus, but was unable to. Quite frankly, I don't care where he did his medical training. He is a very skilled and brilliant surgeon.

And the fact that some of the "lesser" universities have a medical school doesn't make them better than Bath, Lancaster or Loughborough. What a bonkers statement to make.

Agree, it is absolutely not a thing in medicine. A medical degree is a medical degree - they aren’t even graded (2:1, 1st etc), just pass/fail. Because it doesn’t matter, any more than it matters where you passed your driving test.

The GMC sets the standard for all UK medical degrees, and regularly assesses medical schools to ensure their degrees meet the standard. So they are all the same.

I couldn’t tell you where half of my colleagues went to medical school. I have literally no idea where any of my juniors went. I don’t look at it when I score applicants, either for training posts or trust posts - if you have valid GMC registration that’s all I need to know.

@WhatsTheStoryRory unless uout local RG is ranked way above Bath for her subject (that’s unlikely) employers will not care. They set selection tests and also look at skills and attributes a uni won’t give you, eg work experience and personality! Bath is just fine.

Is the bigger issue staying with friends? I noticed my DNs school in a RG uni city sends vast numbers to the uni. Dc live at home for uni and then work in the city afterwards if they can, It’s not very ambitious. Is she just a bit scared of branching out? I’d take Bathbthough and if is RG Plus - like St Andrews. No one sniffs at them,

Plus lancaster has a medical school in any event.

Yes. Thank you, I had forgotten @Ciri

Just found out that DH's surgeon went to medical school in Sheffield then went on to study at Leicester. His manner was matter of fact and confident and not at all patronising or pompous. He was everything we needed for such complicated surgery.

DH is still with us nine years later.

I spent many years working in a large blue chip company where we hired many STEM graduates. Employers really don’t care where students studied - their qualification is just a basic requirement for the job. What I really cared about was work experience, something relevant to the job. Students who had never worked, even as a weekend/summer job in a bar/supermarket were at a disadvantage as they had limited life/people skills to demonstrate. Students who went to Unis (such as Bath) that include a placement year (usually in industry) were at a significant advantage as they were so much more employable. It’s pure snobbery to insist on a RG Uni, for STEM subjects I strongly suggest looking for a degree with work experience and a Uni with strong industry links.