Thread 47- Covid GCSE Cohort - Summer's running away from us!

[OrangeCinnamonLatte]

...it will be Christmas before we know it.

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). 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.
Previous thread https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/parents_of_adult_children/4792342-thread-46-gcse-covid-cohort-searching-for-summer-solstice

Hi all 🖐, I'm a worrier by nature and seeing people already not getting grades for yr 2 is setting me in a bit of a panic despite the logical and sensible comments from @handmademitlove ! I can't help it. Apparently he gets his results tomorrow but the uni have sent out the warning emails..

Thank you all for the Liverpool info, that's really useful. Sounds like it might be worth a visit.

Thanks @Seeline - we went to the UCL open day and DD has decided against London too! Their arts and sciences course looks great though.

Currently on her list are Birmingham, Warwick, UEA, Liverpool evolutionary anthropology, Durham anthropology and biology, maybe Oxford human sciences but she is a bit ambivalent about that. She is finding it very difficult to make a decision (hence interdisciplinary courses probably), unlike DS who chose a niche course very quickly and is now switching to something completely different 😂

@singingstones Nottingham might be worth a look too, and Exeter.

That sounds incredible!!
DD is having the summer if her life. She's been to Greece on a voluntary conservation project with sea turtles and also been away to the Canaries with friends. Two more holidays to fit in as well!!
I'm just so pleased that the first year of uni has gone well and I think after their rubbish gcse summmer, they deserve a bit of a break or in DDs case a lot of a break.

The list called me. The year has gone so fast and DS has grown up a bit, although still lazy. He has got a bar job but like everyone found it tough. He looked for one at Easter when he was back, so maybe got lucky.
Like a few others I have DS2 looking at Uni next year. He doesn’t really know what he wants to do but he is doing well in his A levels so far.
Sounds like there are quite a few having a fab time travelling.

@NCTDN Funnily enough, I spent some months on a sea turtle conservation project in Greece, many many moons ago!
Yes, I agree they definitely deserve some enjoyable downtime after their last few years of education.

Loving the power of the list. Lovel to hear how everyone & their DC are doing.

@Zebracat fingers crossed all goes well.

Well, I can honestly say that dd is more thrilled to have Taylor Swift tickets than she was passing her first year!

Lovely to hear from everyone brought back by the list. I am feeling unsettled on behalf of my two ATM. DS comes to the end of his work placement this week, they may or may not be able to keep him on a bit longer but haven't committed, but if they don't he has possibly missed a lot of chances to find paid work by now, there is very little seasonal here and no fast food joints or similar, its hard for him with ASD, there is no way he'd go away somewhere for work. Also struggling to find him a driving instructor, I'm doing it for now but he needs proper lessons too.

DD is having difficulty deciding on anything uni-related (subject, location) and is reluctantly going to have some tutoring for the subject she did badly in in y12 exams to resit in Sept but isn't over the moon. It all just feels a bit uncertain (I am a planner).

@cariadambyth wow, how’s she managed that?! We’ve all registered but heard nothing yet. Dd would be over the moon to get tickets!

She’s back from Croatia and has three days work this week. She’s also getting a tattoo on Friday! 😩

@EversoDetermined i can sympathise. I don’t think dd is really that into her Psych degree and should probably have done OT - not the end of the world as she can convert. I just hope she manages at least a 2:1.

Ds has no idea what he wants to do and can’t get motivated to work at his A Levels until he has a goal 😬 They’ll all get there in the end I’m sure!

You did well to get Taylor Swift tickets cariadambyth!

Thanks. Apparently she and her friends were all pre registered and one of her ‘home friends’ got two tickets so they’re going together. I knew nothing about it until I came home from work. It’s nice to see her animated, she’s been a bit flat since coming home. She’s used to being busy and having lots of people around at uni so it’s been a bit quiet here for her. She has some child minding lined up and some work experience but not until later in the summer. Hope those who want Taylor Swift tickets are successful. I think there’s a lot of hype, we managed to get Harry Styles tickets on the day a couple of weeks ago so maybe it will be the same for her?

@EversoDetermined a friend recommended a driving instructor who has online courses to help parents who are teaching their children to drive if that would be of interest? It is called "Teach Your Teenager to Drive Bootcamp" 😀PM me if you would like details! I struggled with a teenager who refused to get in a car with a stranger to learn to drive....

Just found you lot again by chance but on reading through realised I didn't get an email notification - just worked out why @Oblomov23 as the Of in Anne OfCleavage wasn't capitalised in your post. Ooops!
It's madness that i am now in most of your position this time last year with a DD due to start Uni in September. Where has this year gone? She is down to just a handful of jobs now as the school based ones have either finished for the summer or just about to this week and next. I know she wants to catch up with her uni based friends this summer so not taking on too much which i am very happy for her to do as she's worked all year and I'm crossing everything she passes her driving test next month.

It's taken a while catching up on the last thread and this one and great to see familiar names and see new ones joining. I hope you and your DC all have lovely summers - DD celebrates her 19th birthday this weekend so it will be fab seeing all her friends in one place again.

I'm sure i'll have lots of queries for you informative lovelies as a first year newbie and DD has been squirreling away kitchen and Uni room bits for a few weeks now but there's still so much to get but we'll get there.

DS has his fancy day in Canary Wharf tomorrow. They are paying for his train fare. This is an alien world for me!

What’s he doing piggy?

@crazycrofter its hard choosing isn't it. DD is torn between history and biology so really quite different! She loves history but she really likes biology too. She has some science work experience coming up which might help her decide. She went to two open days at the weekend and managed subject talks for both at each and still not clear though.

@handmademitlove thank you, I will message you. DS had manual lessons at uni but struggled with the gears (dyspraxic). I have a small auto car and he has taken to that very well, we have been out most nights in the last month but it is quite stressful for me as well as using up all our evenings. So we thought we'd try auto lessons, maybe do an auto test but revisit gears later as he wants van driving to be an option - partly for countryside working and partly because he could do delivery work, he has exceptionally good navigation skills and a photographic memory for routes.

Dd birthday today. We went to a spa in Brighton. She is very testy at the moment and abit aggressive. I'm exhausted tbh. 😩

Re: the list thanks @oblomov for resurrecting. Nice to catch up!

I am of course a breakfast beverage now instead of a French pastry. Dd is no longer doing Music at Cardiff. She finished the year (by all accounts, no results) and is swapping to 1st year Reading (Education Studies).

He's got his day in the office at the newspaper group.

Sounds as though you need a spa day by yourself now@OrangeCinnamonLatte . Glad she's got the next stage sorted.

Hope DS's day goes well @Piggywaspushed

Yorkshire Show starts today at my road end. Ponies everywhere! Am going with a friend on Thursday as she is a horsey woman. I want to see the sheep dog trials and the cattle. Got to love those tiny Dexters.

Hope your DS has a good day @Piggywaspushed . Great opportunity!

Oh yes! Hope he enjoys it @Piggywaspushed .
@craggyrat I love love love an agricultural show … it’s the sheep varieties that do it for me. Oooh and the poultry tent!

We used to have a big agricultural show here, unfortunately it folded about 15 years ago, it was a good day out.

The poultry are amazing @Delphigirl ! They fluff them up so dramatically for judging! Am hoping for alpacas too...they are usually there

Nice. I have very happy memories of an annual summer trip to the Devon show where we would buy tiny mother of pearl handked penknives for whittling 👍🤣