Thread 44 GCSE Covid Cohort - Countdown to Christmas & New Year

[OrangeCinnamonLatte]

This is a support thread for our young adults post GCSEs 2020, regardless of their educational setting, and their results ( or life updates for those who went into work or have had results earlier). It is respectfully requested that all are supportive and helpful to each other. If you want to start a debate, e.g state vs private, uni vs employment please don't within this thread.

Some of us have been here since first thread back in yr10, some will be new. Everyone has been friendly and helpful in the past. Everyone is welcome. It is hoped this will continue. We were previously on the secondary board and then further education, now we shall be here in 'Parents of Adult Children' gulp

Our DS/DD may continue down various pathways ( employment, apprenticeships, higher ed). Be warned there might be lots of 'Uni Freshers' chat this time of year. My experience is that everyone is welcomed wherever, whatever their child is doing we have some in work, gap years , apprenticeships etc too. Lots of contributors with different experiences and always sympathy and advice to be had

@EspeciallyD they can be on the electoral register for both locations. They can vote in both local elections (assuming the uni address is located in a different Council area) but can only vote once for general elections. They can choose which location is best if into tactical voting. Just need to remember to change their registered address for uni when moving into second year accommodation.

Oh dear Crazy.
Thanks Heifer, not looking forward to those road works.

@EspeciallyDetermined they can be registered at both addresses. I am fairly sure they can vote from both addresses too. But only in local elections. A general election they can use one vote. I've no idea whether Ds has registered at uni. He has here.

Wasn't expecting this at all!

Personal Statements scrapped from 2024

Yes, DD will be the last year of them. The questions sound like a much better idea, the idea of them having to send in a video as some papers have suggested would be awful for my two.

Thanks for the replies re the electoral roll, I will tell DS to register at the uni address, as he is planning to stay in halls next year he won't need to update (his address is just the uni, it doesn't specify hall/room).

I'm not sure how they say PS advantages the middle classes but then suggest applicants send in a 2 minute video instead? surely that flings the door wide open for bias. Oxford uni will be sticking with the PS though not sure about Cambs.

Well quite, which ones will have the tech help and coaching I wonder. And it would disadvantage shy and some neurodiverse students.

In other news from me, I put in the application for school governor that I mentioned a few weeks ago and my boss has been asked for a reference. Gulp.

Ooh! that's exciting about the school governorship, hope you get it. What kind of school is it? is it a struggling school? our local school is in special measures x2 and I've always to do something like join the board but health has meant I haven't the capacity for now. Is there anything specific you're hoping to do if you're accepted?

It's an independent special school (DS's old school). It is an amazing place and means a great deal to me. The particular challenges are around safeguarding because its a boarding school and the entire student body is extra vulnerable due to SNs.

That's sound like an amazing place to be school governor and being an old parent means it's even closer to your heart. I hope you get it, I can see you being there for a long time.

@EspeciallyDetermined Wow good on you for going for it. Fingers crossed.

Interesting story a couple of days ago about Edinburgh making so many offers to widening participation applicants last year that there was no space left for ANY non contextual Scottish applicants for law and a couple of other subjects. www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-64247475

I thought the replacement of PS with videos was the confirmed plan, but it would be just as biased as PS. I wonder if more subjects might go back to doing interviews now that the technology makes remote interviews easy. Some medical schools use an element of "non-sychonous" interviews where the applicant downloads the questions and uploads the answers.

@crazycrofter sorry to hear your DD is so poorly, terrible timing but it is good that it happened whilst she was home where she could be looked after. Maybe she should see your local GP as a visitor, if she got dinner antibiotics the prescription might be enough evidence.

Is there any substance to this video thing at all? Facebook WIWIKAU was losing its mind over it but there seems to be nothing from UCAS indicating it’s their plan. The questions seem reasonable, more accessible than a finely tuned essay in which you just happen to address certain points.

It's The Times spinning it, as they are wont. There's a small bit in the UCAS release about 'future consultations about a range of approaches including multimedia. Thread on MN too. Apparently this arose from their consultations with the young people.

Form my pov , losing the pointless , tortuous, workload heavy school references is the best bit!

Hello all - I can't believe how quickly the days are flying by!

Condolences to @AnneOfCleavage  on the loss of your mum. What a tough time you've had 

Thinking too of @Zebracat and others who are going through it at the moment.

We took DD back to uni last weekend in readiness for a week of exams. She seems to be doing OK with essays - getting 65%+ so far. The feedback has been very helpful. Hopefully the exams will also be going OK.

DD has booked into private halls next year. It's costly but as she doesn't cope well with being cold, the fact that bills are included was a big factor! There is also a free shuttle bus from the hall to the campus which is a plus, and means I can stop worrying about her walking home from lectures alone in the dark. The group she's going to be living with are all doing different subjects so they will all be coming and going at different times.

DS has gone back today but has not been able to get any dinner as all the dining halls are shut. He tried to go to the shop and use his card to buy something to microwave and they are closed too!! I asked him yesterday if he wanted me to get anything for him but he had his meal bites card to use up so said no. He’s now there with no food and nowhere to get any unless he leaves campus and finds a takeaway. I am not impressed!

I really dislike the idea of the video instead of a PS. DS2 will struggle with that and I can definitely see that more open to bias than a PS.

Good luck with the school governor application @EspeciallyDetermined

I am all in favour of dropping the PS, but I would be even more in favour of moving A levels a month earlier and apply with the grades in hand!

@KingscoteStaff Agree. It is the most transparent option.

That's awful! Is that Nottingham?

Yes @NCTDN according to DS there has been chat on the hall WhatsApp saying that’s been the case all week? He starts back on Monday, why wouldn’t they have food available for people moving back this weekend? He’s on a 39 week contract which should cover the holidays.

@JustHereWithMyPopcorn

https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nottingham.ac.uk%2Fcurrentstudents%2Fnews%2Fopening-hours-over-the-winter-break%3Ffbclid%3DIwAR3MgMcmBNUiPgLin2zHdTPDbG4YCjug9ulHTXkkQMwOKFdphfzYEptIxo&h=AT3tz5fuqrH0pcISBPDDZwkUeFHxqpee7DkZ0jim6tm-ECZq3IKcYYPsblI6Nkar7Y8sT1uNyBVCHlj7w-nyUUkp3_d2xA9zcJd9Yzj4OfCWSVvOV0QfzDnQme1ae4RQbt9850BXfn-&s=1

This gives details of what's open and when. It's disappointing that not much open from 23rh jan - 15th Jan but more looked open before then. I had been impressed that they had offered free dinners Christmas Day and New Year's Day for those student in and off campus that were around.

Scroll down the linked pages and it mentions catering outlets during holidays

Thanks @heifer I can’t see anything there that shows evening meal places open at all.

But they are all/shops/outlets open now, 15th Jan. I'm assuming Rutland catering breakfasts will be open as from tomorrow Monday?