Thread 51 - Covid GCSE Cohort - Summer 24 - End of Uni Yr 2

[Oblomov24]

2024 Summer, end of year 2 for those at Uni.

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 50:

50

Hello to all. I ve been trying to catch up, but I’ve missed too much. Barely seen our girl this Summer. She still has her overseas boyfriend and spent most of the vacation with him. She is due back next week, which is annoying as that’s the week we have people staying and need her room.I’m sure saying any time except the 26thor whatever just fixes that date in their heads! Her last 2 day visit coincided with our 1 other guest this summer. It will be chaos as usual.
She did well on her course, she won a prize. No part time job though, and she really needs one, so we are still supporting her. My kids keep telling us to make wills. They seemed really surprised to hear that our little foundling would be included in any provision. Maybe we will just leave it to Battersea Dogs Home.

I was thinking about you the other day @Zebracat! Glad dd is doing well; I always had a feeling BCU would work for her. I hope she starts thinking about a part time job soon.... and I hope talk of wills isn't causing drama in your family!

I was thinking about a few posters we haven't seem for a while since that link to the first thread was posted last week. If anyone is lurking it would be lovely to hear from you.

Glad things have settled for your girl @Zebracat and that the studies are going well. It's hard finding pt work sometimes, my DD has got nowhere really this summer, just some pet sitting and a week of proper work.

Ha, shimy, someone foolishly started a backpack thread!!

I’m still lurking now and again but I’ve been a bit focused on DS his A levels and uni - all good, great results and off to Lancaster in September. I joined right back at the start of thread 1 with DD who left her course back in October at the start of year 2. However she has been working in a job she loves, saving hard and is now starting again in September in year 1 after successfully getting an additional year student finance. She is now older, wiser, more resilient, on a course more suited with much higher student satisfaction and closer to home. Hoping it works out this time but equally it’s not the end of the world if it doesn’t and her job have said she is welcome back if she ever changes her mind.

Lovely updates @Zebracat and @PuddingtonPuddington , though I can’t comment on the inheritance queries!

Hello again @Zebracat and @PuddingtonPuddington!

DW and DS got home from camping yesterday evening. They dropped DD off at a station en route to make her way back to Cambridge. Unfortunately there was a broken rail (!) and she ended up sitting at a station for two hours waiting for news before deciding to bail; I managed to find and book a hotel, which was a good call as the rail wasn't fixed until around midnight. It was very stressful for DD; she had her first panic attack for around a year (they used to be much more common), but luckily only once she had arrived at the hotel, and we could talk her through it on the phone. I hope that she makes it back today!

That mist have been so difficult for her Photodad, relieved you sorted out hotel and was able to comfort her remotely.

🤞 for a better day today

Great updates @Zebracat and @PuddingtonPuddington . Hope things work for your DD this time round.
Sorry to hear about your DD @PhotoDad . Unfortunately trains are never reliable. We try not to travel with our DD as her trains always go wrong!!

@PhotoDad DS was caught up in the same rail chaos yesterday on his way to catch his coach to France. He had to get an Uber from where his train abandoned him, across to another line into London and then pray the underground worked in his favour. He made the coach station with one minute to spare, many phone calls and a lot of stress. His coach then departed 45 minutes late 🤦 These things always seem to happen to him too but this time he coped really well.

He phoned me from Paris this morning whilst waiting for his connection - we're going to have to have a chat about time differences 😂 He was really impressed with himself for asking some girls for directions in French, realising they were Dutch and therefore thanking them in Dutch. I'm not sure how impressed they were. I'm just happy to see his old confidence reappearing, even at 5.30 in the morning!

Well done to @mummyinbeds ds and @PhotoDad dd for dealing with travel woes. Trains are a bit of a nightmare - usually when you need them to be on time!

@PuddingtonPuddington good to hear from you again and glad that your DD has been doing well. I will take advantage and ask a funding question though, as she had started year 2 did she count as having had two years funding and then you had to plead exceptional circumstances to get another years funding or was it just the usual extra ‘gift year’?

I am asking as DS left part way through year 2 (well the repeat of year 1) and so if he were to return we would have to fund everything for the first year, but he did leave with a depression diagnosis and we may be able to apply for an extra year funding but not sure how hard that is? Not that he is currently showing any signs of wanting to go back to study but it is handy to understand options.

Good to hear your news @PuddingtonPuddington ! Good luck with two uni starters in September!

Thanks @crazycrofter it will be very quiet with both off to uni but as much as I will miss them I’m looking forward to the next chapter.

@273NewNamesagain yes DDs 10 days of year 2 counted as her second full year in the eyes of SFE despite no tuition fees being paid and paying back the maintenance loan. So I helped DD to write a letter saying why she had to leave attached a copy of her withdrawal form and doctors fit note which she thankfully got when she left, plus a summary print out from her medical notes as evidence. Sent it off special delivery and 6 weeks later SFE agreed to an additional year (plus the gift year). I thought it would be more difficult and would need a doctors letter which our GP charges £100 for or to have to go back to her previous provider but thankfully not. Hope your DS is doing ok.

@mummyinbeds hope he's settled.

Thank you @PuddingtonPuddington, that’s interesting to hear. I’m so sorry you had to go through that even though effectively there was no funding for year two for your DD. Sadly we don’t have a fit note or anything apart from one GP appointment and then subsequently being approved for DSA which never materialised before he left. We still have the formal complaint to uni to put in about the complete and utter lack of support given which may in time help. Currently no sign of him wanting to go near study again though so it may be a moot point.

Thanks for your input and I’m glad it’s worked out for your DD.

@NCTDN thank you. He arrived at about 6pm and is staying in a hotel until his uni accommodation is ready on Thursday. He seemed happy but tired when I spoke to him, and said it was a tad warm 🥵

I'm receiving Snapchat videos of DS sunbathing by the river. I'm a tad jealous. He's making the most of the few days before uni starts, talking to strangers, finding his way round the city. All the things he should have done in Nottingham two years ago. I'm so happy that he's happy and can't wait to see him on Sunday.

How lovely

Such a great update @mummyinbeds

Confidence, maturity, academic/personal achievements, overcoming challenges etc etc, the line is not linear for our DC (inc mine). Your DS is coming into his own, fresh start and using his own initiatives to integrate. Long may his positive start to French life continue!

Nice to see updates from Pudding and Zebra.
Mummy I am so very pleased to hear your news of Parisian ds with his french swagger back. so pleased.

Great to read, @mummyinbeds, good luck to him!

Brilliant @mummyinbeds , really pleased to hear how proactive and confident he is being! He will have learned a lot from the last two years. Hope he makes a good start to the uni study too 🤞

Fantastic news @mummyinbeds , sounds like he'll have a great time :-)

Lovely news @mummyinbeds! Greetings from France all, having a lovely relaxing holiday with my DH and my sisters family. All my chickadees are back home working hard - big 2 at their new proper jobs and little two as a barista and in a pub before back to uni/off to gap year. My ds1 is enjoying his first month of his grad job in strategic comms and has just excitedly texted me that his job are sending him to the labour conference - he’s v excited! So glad that is working out for him.