Uni thread : September 2024 onwards - parents uni chat

[sammyjoanne]

Hi everyone have started a new thread since the last one from End of Year 13: Results, Summer and plans for September and onwards has finally got to page 20, and the thread has now ended. To our DC, well done for getting through first year of uni, and hope you are enjoying the summer and hope year 2 is as good one. To all who took a gap year last year, hope your first year is just as fabulous.
Apologies in advance if someone has already created a thread; I couldn’t see one. So if there is one please share the link below

I'm feeling a bit melancholy tonight. DS is heading back to University tomorrow as pre season training for his sports team begins in a few days. Not sure why, but I actually feel more sad about him going back for second year than I did last year. I know he'll be fine. His accomodation is fantastic, the friend he is sharing with seems lovely, and he's doing really well on his course so I have nothing to worry about at all really! I suppose it's because there's not the excitement of him being a Fresher, and maybe it's something to do with the fact that he turns 20 next month so I won't have a teenager in the family any more. Time is going too fast! Hope everyone else is ready for 2nd year, and best wishes to those whose DC took a gap year and are now looking forward to the excitement of Freshers.

Great to hear the updates. Also off back for start of year 2 today. Well rowing trials. Staying a month in a graduate shared house to do those and then term starts second week of October. DD has spent 2 months with us and been lovely to have her home though she's been very busy working in her summer job, camping with friends in the Peaks and coxing / rowing. Been nice to catch up. She's only taking a bit of her stuff then we will take more over for start of term. I was hoping she would sort her room this holiday but nope. Its got the entire contents of Vinted in, she has the biggest room in the house but still has lots of things downstairs when home. We are just back from lovely trip to Isles of Scilly and one to France. Hope the returns and starts go well.

Hello all!!

@sammyjoanne thanks v much for picking up this thread! I always see FE/HE as interchangeable and look at both.

@legosnowqueen such wonderful news about your DS and hope he has a wonderful freshers 😊

@MrsAvocet we had to transfer DS back to NHS England for an op last summer as Scottish referrals don’t work - not 10 digit codes and very much computer says no 🙄
UnMN hugs for missing your DS.

I felt like that with DS at the start of Y2, but can say wholeheartedly I do not feel it with DD who is desperate to get back to uni and is constantly moaning!!! We’ve been back briefly to drop off half her stuff (full length mirror, massive beanbag, double mattress topper etc that take up loads of space in car) and seen her room in shared house. Not quite sure how she’s managed it but she has an enormous room with loads of light and space - by far the best room in the house. She’s now trying to scam me into buying all manner of expensive rugs, throws etc but I’m not having it! It’s a student house FFS. I blame bloody TikTok and posh kids with interior designer mums decorating the gaffs!!

She got a great job over the summer so has some of her own funds but of course wants to spend that on clothes and going out and thinks I’m mean. 🙄

Ready for her to return!! Two more weeks.

A small miracle has happened here. DD came to see me and said don't get over excited as I know this will be the most exciting thing in your life right now but you may be able to order a special collection. I am going to clear my room. 😱

Jumping in even though my DD got her results in 2023 she did an Art Foundation Diploma so started at Durham last year. She doesn’t go back til end of September in time for freshers (I didn’t know it was a thing but apparently many upperclassmen/women go back for it). We moved her winter things in to her shared house in July. Fortunately the agents are doing the right thing and replacing the front door, microwave, a few broken blinds and resealing the shower etc. so should be in good order. I am wondering how five girls are going to deal with having just the one bathroom! I checked and my house contents insurance does cover her belongings.
She is doing a paid internship this summer (Laidlaw Scholarship) and is very busy with that still. I think she’s looking forward to going back but also will miss the comforts of home not to mention the cats!
But one thing about uni is making connections and it has just borne fruit: she is doing Sociology with a particular interest in education policy. She reached out to our nearest primary school asking if it was possible to shadow a teacher for a few days to get some insight into the staff side of things. Well, turns out the headmistress’s DD not only went to Durham but the same college as my DD so the answer was: ‘of course’!

Thank you for all the advice on the pros & cons of changing GPS. We have decided for the time being to remain with the current home GP, who know DS’ history & are very responsive. Same with the consultant (despite his shortcomings) as DS had a brain scan last week so results from that will go to him. Then we will see. We are focussing on putting in support on the ground at Manchester as it is likely that at some point he will have a breakthrough seizure. It is good that the hospital is so close to Denmark Road where he will be living. The accommodation is as suitable as possible but of course he won’t have his parents listening out for him! I’m very nervous about this but trying to be practical not emotional (doesn’t come naturally!). In the meantime my study looks like Del Boy’s kitchen full of stuff to take & we are working through the bureaucracy & form filling! Lovely to read how your DCs are gearing up for year 2! Not sure if @Rollergirlis on the new thread, my DNephew is heading to Exeter so we will have two empty nests in my immediate family…a big change for him as has been living in Hong Kong for five years!

Does he not need regular medication or check-ins with GP? Staying with the same hospital/consultant in secondary care makes sense as otherwise you'd have to go on a waiting list for a hospital near him in uni. However for a GP it's not like that. If he doesn't need regular meds, then see how it goes across the months and change it if needed.

@TheLivelyViperthe GP prescribes what the consultant suggests. No check ins, at least not about the epilepsy. I’d assumed was best to stick with local GP & get prescriptions sent to a pharmacy in Manchester. Could go to a walk in centre for any other minor health problems. Perhaps need to rethink this…

How far away is his university to your current GP? Just because GPs have a boundary/catchment area which you must be in as a patient. Now technically if he doesn't inform them he's going, they'll never know as he can come back home etc but the boundary is typically including prescription limits for what pharmacy's they can send them to.

So if he needs a prescription every month, he'll have to let them know he wants it at x pharmacy and they may refuse to do so, depending on the distance, it's really up to them - some GPs may not mind but most typically do. So it's sort of 50-50 whether that will work out.

@TheLivelyViperwe’re in Yorkshire so not so far but in a different health authority. Thanks again for the helpful information. I’ll look into it further.

On the subject of GPs, we found it easy to swap once we made the decision. As it’s all done online now, it took a couple of days. We have ended up having to swap both DC back to home GPs, and I think if there is an issue locally at uni I’m hoping they can go to a walk in.

Well this morning I nearly jumped out of my skin when DS walked into the house unannounced. Pre season training has finished and he wants to work on his car in the comfort of our garage celebrate our wedding anniversary with us apparently. So the natural order is restored if transiently. There's a load of his washing in the machine, bits of his car are scattered round the kitchen and I need to go out to buy more food. Did I say something about missing him?! 😂

DD is going back to Bristol tomorrow on a train at 8am. I will be a nice mother and take her to the station. She has “mostly” packed and says she’s set an alarm for tomorrow morning. She is currently out - wonder when she’ll be back?

Both DD back at their unis. DD2 went to refreshers at Notts Trent and has had a packed week. DD1 and bf moved things back into private halls at Manchester and settled. 😊

Hope the return / starts to university are going well. DD went back a month early for rowing and that's worked out well for her and us as we have been able to get a new bathroom put in whilst she's been out. Well almost in. She starts year 2 and we move more of her things over this weekend. No exams until finals now. She split with the boyfriend at Bristol but seems fine about it (she's often in photos with lots of 6 foot muscly rowing boys) and hopefully she will do a bit more studying, her boyfriend was lovely but it was party central.

DD is very glad to be back at uni. The summer went on a bit long for her. Unfortunately she couldn't get any shifts with her old part-time employer and couldn't find any other paid work. She travelled a bit, took an online course and did a bit of work experience with a local pharmacy (not hugely relevant to her degree but gave her something productive to do). She is very happy with her new flat and flatmates, but her rent plus bills is nearly £3000 higher than last year when she was in shared-bathroom uni accommodation. Edinburgh is not a cheap city! Fortunately she has managed to find a job up there so isn't having to tighten her belt too much. She will be coming home soon for a long weekend of cuddles as DD1 had a baby girl yesterday (first grandchild 🥰). Like @MrsAvocet I think we miss her more this year than last year. It has been so lovely having her around over the summer and the house feels very quiet without her and various of her friends coming and going.

Congratulations on the grandchild @PumpkinKnitter and glad your DD is enjoying Edinburgh and has a job.

Moved DDs stuff on Sunday and went out for lunch with her. She has university accommodation again and no exams this year.

DDs been back at Bristol for about a month now. I think things are going well for her and she’s been in touch quite a bit which is good.

DH and I are going down there for the weekend on Friday; am looking forward to seeing her 😊

I think we’re getting used to being on our own with DS in the Netherlands this year as well - this is probably the longest we’ve been at home on our own!

Glad to hear everyone is doing well. We were in DS's University city for other reasons yesterday so dropped in on him and took him out for a meal which was nice. He seems to be thriving both academically and socially which is lovely to see. He found some of first year a bit uninspiring as a lot of it was quite generic and mixed with other courses but he is really buzzing about what he's doing at present. Last year's conversations were mainly about his sports and social activities, which is fine and a valuable part of student life, but I did wonder quite how much he was liking the actual study, so it was really reassuring to hear him talking so enthusiastically about it yesterday.
Congratulations on the new grandchild @PumpkinKnitter - I have the same to look forward to in a few months too!

Congratulations PumpkinKnitter, how lovely to have a newborn in the family.

Good to hear all the return to uni stories.

Ds returned to uni this week, joined a new club or two and trialled for a sport team he didn’t get into last year so fingers crossed. He did amazingly well academically last year and received some recognition but hoping that doesn’t translate to putting too much pressure on himself this year.
He’s also really coming out of himself socially too which is lovely to see. He’s still seeing quite a lot of his friends from school as well as his new uni friends.

He’s been applying for internships but no luck so far. He gets to the video interview stage but can’t seem to progress beyond that. My adult dn reckons it’s to do with the AI algorithm - you need to mention buzzwords etc. I really hanker after the days of good, old fashioned personal interviews. It’s such a faff these days.

Congrats @PumpkinKnitter that’s such lovely news. DD 2 has been applying for internships for third year and she’s had a couple of interviews and has got both. So she’s going to both 😂 end of may 2026 she’s off to Oregon USA to work with big cats for twelve weeks. Accommodation included. So she’s staying there. Boyfriend will still be going his second year of his mechanics course to finish in Nottingham and he’s working also so will pay her a visit part way through as will us. Then she’s home for 2/3 weeks and Dd2 and bf will be living in Australia for 11 months until August of 2027, interning at Australia zoo in Brisbane (the one owned by Steve Irwin crocodile hunter). There is a lot to sort out. Uni will do a fair bit, visas, Turing scheme grant towards accommodation costs, reduced fair for the flights. I’m super excited and will also go and visit early 2027, but will miss her like crazy. Because she lives in Notts city, I still see her once a week when she has her driving lesson and blags dinner on a Wednesdays, but half way round the world 🌍 I’m glad bf is going too as he has been amazing and he’s looking forward to the adventure too.

That sounds amazing @sammyjoanne especially the interning at Australia zoo for a year. Will be a great holiday for you too.

Hope everyone's term has gone well.

DD is back for Christmas next Friday, she went a month early this term to Oxford for a months rowing so its seems ages since we've had her home and looking forward to it. Will be home until mid January. Ordered cakes for the day she is back. We've done a lot of work on the house recently so will need to make sure all rooms are ready for her return but on track for that and been useful to be able to get a new bathroom in with one less person here.

She seems to have had a fun term with lots of rowing, a ball, dinners and parties - not sure how much work has been done but no exams that count now until finals. I'm not sure if she is planning on doing her job over the holidays, possibly not as she's not back that long and its weather dependent.

Glad all has gone well MrsP. That all sounds like lots of fun.
We won't be seeing DS until nearly Christmas. He has exams that run until Dec 18th if I recall rightly. Then as we are all going up to spend Christmas week with my DD we will be basically passing his front door a few days after the end of term so he's decided to save money on his travel and wait for us to pick him up on the way. Sensible I suppose! I'm not sure how much we will see of him from now on to be honest. Now he has a 52 week tenancy, a girlfriend who lives locally and hobbies in the city I don't think visits home have quite as much appeal as they did in first year. I'm simultaneously a bit sad but really pleased!

we will collect Dd on 15th December. Dd has secured a placement with a biopharma company for next year which she is very excited about.