Don’t necessarily aim high with uni choices!

[Operafanatic]

My DC had four RG offers and got Astar AA at A-level. They knew they didn’t want to go into law (where uni status still matters) so chose their uni based purely on the course and lifestyle they liked the most. We supported that - despite their prestigious private school's objections (they advocated RG unis only - mainly, I think, because that was/is a performance measure for schools). DC graduated from Swansea last year with a First and is now working in civil service fast stream. If they had gone to another uni, I am not at all convinced they would have got a first - being top of the pack (rather than middling as at school) gave them confidence. More importantly, had the time of their life at Swansea - such a super uni with very high student satisfaction! So question the advice to aim high - sometimes it is better to be a bigger fish in a smaller pond! Am mentioning this because my DD in year 13 (predicted all A stars) is about to do the same - Exeter rather than Imperial or Warwick in her case. Eldest DC found that every grad scheme he applied to was university blind anyway!

I don’t think the vast majority of state school parents give a flying fuck about private schools either way. It is something for the powers that be in Westminster and very irrelevant.

Well I guess that is why many employers don't practice uni blind recruitment.

I'm on both sides of this. My daughter is likely to go to Exeter next September. She has an unconditional offer as she finished school in last September. I however went to Oxford Brookes and loved it. No it was not an RG uni, actually it's a new uni, but it was groundbreaking in its support for dyslexic students in the early 20's and I felt properly validated for when I went there.
I work for a ftse 250 company in something I love.

I don't really care about any of this. As long as whatever uni your children end up in they don't carry nasty judgemental views on state school students who have worked really bloody hard to get in to there choice of uni.
My nephew has a top scholarship at a public school. Given his parents can't afford uni, driving lessons or even a house at the moment I do wonder what its all about.

More often it seems the other way around with state school parents/students judging those who went to private school or who chose to send their children to private school, for example when their child got a scholarship and the opportunity to attend a top private school and people judge them because they can’t afford driving lessons or a house…

My Mum went to private school and my Dad went to Grammar school after passing his 11+. My daughters step-mum is very high up at a very well known public school.
My opinion is that we have a good state school down the road (5mins walk) and I wanted to put funds in to other things like driving lessons, sport etc. I'm pretty sure when you add it all together she hasn't had much less than the average private school child it's just funds have been diverted elsewhere.
She has absolutely been told though by my exH, exMIL and my exSIL she's not academic enough and she has to accept her cousin will always be cleverer than her - I have been in the room when this has been said and have got very cross.

Family gatherings must be fun with you all judging each others choices like that.

It’s not my family. It’s my ex husbands family.

For some, what you see as ‘aiming high’ is just the right level for them. Ds is in his final year at Imperial and on track for a First. He’s also just won a chunky cash award from the uni for his noted contributions to extra curricular. He’s an editor, heavily involved in climate change awareness, works across departments at a high level on projects and just did a summer UROP. He reserves a lot of time for hobbies on top of this and is often away from London for full days pursuing these. He got 4 A stars in his A levels and the same in his EPQ, all 9s in his GCSEs and if anything he seems more relaxed at uni than school. Getting the fit right is important and maybe that’s a better message than ‘don’t aim high’?

@CosaFareAPasqua Most firms now test like mad too! They don’t, on the face of it, care about unis, but guess what, like the Civil Service fast stream, who mostly gets the jobs? Yes, Oxbridge and RG (and RG plus) for the best jobs. Of course others get good jobs but the biggest payback is Oxbridge plus the elite unis. So uni blind has not changed much for the civil service and has merely confirmed who is best at recruitment rounds. The same people who always were!

I don’t think the best are the ones with privilege. They are just the ones with privilege .

But that’s because the people at RG and Oxbridge have a higher aptitude in general

Mine got 5 As at higher and offers for “better”/prestigious universities. Hated the one he went to and left after a term, much happier at a next tier down one now. I’m also not sure it matters for the bulk of legal jobs these days, at least not up here, I did go to one of the “better”/RG unis too but work with plenty of people who went to former poly ones

It tends to be a good plan to aim high. However if money is not important to the teenager or something else is (eg they want a religious university as my son's mostly home educated friend did) then that is fine too. I am happy three of mine went to Bristol and have done pretty well.

@NotMySanta Not according to the op. Stats don’t lie though.

Law? Most dc studying law don’t get qualified to practice as a lawyer (barrister or solicitor). They can get a job but not be a registered professional.

@Ritasueandbobtoo9 How do you know? Firms aren’t testing background. Although being engaging and dressing appropriately helps - but anyone can do this. Why does 70% at Oxbridge from state schools say privilege to you?

70% isn’t reflective anyway but on top of that percentage of students coming from certain state schools. If they were serious about levelling participation they would offer places to the top students in every area of the country.

Don’t be daft. Do you really believe aptitude is spread evenly round the country?

Furthermore what about St Andrew’s? Royal College of Music? Shouldn’t they be under the microscope? How very dare the RCM demand prowess on an instrument!

@Ritasueandbobtoo9 They do. The students need to apply though. “Not for the likes of us” is still a mantra and aiming local is very much a thing - as many will do according to MN. As this thread indicates - just as good?

Well yes, it would be quite reasonable to say that aptitude is spread evenly across the country.

They can only offer to those that apply

@Ritasueandbobtoo9 Except we know it’s not! Big difference between London and NE for example. Dc need the exam results and need to apply. For various reasons exam results are lower and applications too. Probably not for the likes of us and not wanting to be down south. Also believing the north is just as good. So whatever makes dc happy is what dc do.

Why are there lots of students from the same state school getting in? If Oxbridge really wanted to take these best from around the country they would level the playing field properly. They won’t though because then Oxbridge wouldn’t be so elite.

The majority of Oxbridge state school students attended selective state schools.

Only 20% of law graduates work as lawyers (solicitors or barristers) - it is pretty much at the bottom of the list for going on to work in a related field, alongside computing.

@BrokenSunflowers And what universities have the 20% attended? Mostly the high ranked ones.
@Ritasueandbobtoo9 Which state school? Maybe they have many exceptional students? Is this a London comp? The playing field is level enough but maybe London pupils want it more and some immigrant families definitely do. Maybe more than former pit village residents?