Thread 55 - Covid GCSE Cohort - Autumn 25 - Yr 4 Uni and Graduates

[Oblomov25]

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 54:
Thread 54

@craggyrat I hope DS gets some answers re the medical. That seems very unfair. DD had a hairline break in her wrist that did not even need a cast. However, the navy would not accept her until 1 year post-break. She broke it on 17th Jan, her intake was supposed to be 8th Jan a year later, but being 51 weeks post break was not acceptable. It was hardly a broken femur!

Once you are in they really look after you medical-wise. DD is back home soon and has had some great run ashores. She has 2 weeks of exams before a fortnight off in December.

How unlucky @craggyrat Maybe his probing will make them have a rethink? Though Cambridge is not a shabby second choice!

@Cantonet Not being paid for the shifts is appalling. Do these people not have any ethics?

@crazycrofter Pleased to hear she has passed.

@Aslockton Have you got to counting down how many sleeps before she's home stage?

I met an author last year and she had a nom de plume as her day job was ISI inspector.

Thanks @Aslockton and @EwwSprouts . The Forces seem to have a very odd way of looking at medical history- well the civilian outsourcing people do anyway. I thought his appendix issue during A levels might have come up which it hasnt but not something none of us can remember and even if he did have a rash 5 years ago he certainly didn't have any medication for it

Yay found you!! Enjoyed a catch up read on this thread and so much has happened.

Congrats on the driving test pass for DD @crazycrofter- DD is nearly 23 months post test so once she hits 2 years I’ll breathe easier. So do the 6 points still stay on her license and if she was to get any more would that be instant ban again? Thought they’d wipe the slate clean.

Such a disappointment for DS re Army medical @craggyrat and so frustrating it’s for something so innocuous that you can’t even think what was wrong back then.

Tour DD is doing so well @Aslockton and I hope you get to see her soon.

I am so cross at the injustice of those unpaid shifts @Cantonet- I’ve heard of this happening to YP and I don’t know how they sleep at night.
For some bizarre reason my November pay check has not been processed so I’ll be getting it next month with my December one so I’m not happy either but at least I know it’s coming.

How is DH’s BP doing @Shimy and if you don’t mind me asking (I think it was you that said this) what changes to diet made it go down? I have inexplicably found out mine is higher than it should be so I’m trying to incorporate a lower fat diet and up my exercise but I’m not sure if there’s a vitamin or supplement that helps! It has lowered since my last 7 day reading which I’m relieved about. I’m doing the Park Run (when it’s dry) and actually really enjoying it and last time I did it I slow jogged the whole 5k - which incidentally was a few seconds slower than when I fast pace walk and half jog 😲😁Missed last week due to awful weather and tomorrow looks bad too 😐

DD has been driving home most weekends as missing her home and boyf and two weeks ago our beloved floofy family member had to see the vet as an emergency as he hadn’t wee’d in 48hrs and they said he had fluid in his chest cavity and that he wouldn’t recover so DD raced back from uni to say a final goodbye 😢 We miss him so much and he was one thing that kept DD going at uni - daily pics and funny updates.
She starts her final but long placement early January so we won’t see her for 3months or so unless we pop up and visit her between her doing planning paperwork and her dissertation on her weekends.

Congratulations to the poster whose DS has bought their first home - so sorry my brain has forgotten which one at present. Very exciting!!

Can’t believe December is nearly upon us.

Good to hear from you @AnneOfCleavage ! And well done with the park run, that's impressive! So sorry to hear about your pet dying 😢

Is dd on a 3 year course? So she'll be a qualified teacher in the summer? I thought teaching courses were four years? Good luck to her for her final placement.

Thank you @crazycrofter. It’s actually 5 years - 3 years uni then 2 years ECT to qualify (used to be 4 years uni and 1 year NQT) so she still has a way to go yet. Has to start applying for the ECT placement in a few months c. March/ April for a hopefully Sept start 🤞She’ll be looking for a school round here so she can live at home.

Any exercise that raises your heart beat is great @AnneOfCleavage, I have long since stopped mourning the days when I was regularly running a good 5k time, I can barely run 3k these days but do try when I can. I am sorry to hear about your dog too, it has such a big impact on the family dynamics doesn't it.

We're in the throes of medicating doggy heart murmur and arthritis diagnoses. Between the pooch, my husband who has fortnightly jabs for degenerating ankylosing spondylitis and the daughter with throwback shoulder/knee issues from her swimming days, I dare not moan about my ailments!

I do have the odd winge of continued broken sleep to carry pooch onto the bed 3 times each night (we've tried a ramp/foam steps etc). But then she gives me a quick thank you kiss before nestling by my feet (again) and all is forgiven :)

Thanks @AnneOfCleavage - appeal has gone in but I think it will just be a blanket no sadly and we will never really know why. And for an office based role anyway, although he exercises 6 times a week - with no rashes! Oops am ranting again! Good to hear from you and sorry to hear about your furry family member

@AnneOfCleavage dd’s 6 points are definitely still showing on her licence. I really hope the two year period doesn’t start again - I can only assume not, as she’s already got more points than she’s ‘allowed’ as a new driver 🤔

I’ve just started a new job and am currently in that period where I have little clue what’s going on, yet people ask me for my opinion as if I’m an expert 🤣

Sorry to hear about all the health woes @ealingwestmum 😩 I have a dh who is almost permanently ill, with either physical or mental ailments. I believe him, and it’s not easy for him, but it does also make me feel as if there’s not scope for me to be unwell too!

You have jumped straight into unconscious competent mode with no honeymoon period for yourself @crazycrofter! But a huge compliment to you nevertheless. I hope the role works out well 🤞

Hello everyone!

I’ve just been having a little catch up on all the news. Work has been utterly crazy of late, so it’s unusual to find the time (the US are off for Thanksgiving, so I’ve finalise got some breathing space). I honestly think I’ve been deliberately given an impossible workload, and that I’m expected to change the ways of working to make it doable. (Some conversations with senior people suggest this might be the case).

Anyway, enough about me!

Today is exactly 1 month after DD started her new job - and her first payday. She’s really enjoying the role (sales & marketing coordinator). She’s especially enjoying having fixed working hours, fixed office days (Tuesday and Wednesday), and having weekends off. Oh, and finishing an hour early on Fridays (4pm rather than 5pm).

DS has 2 more weeks of term to go. He didn’t come home for reading week, so we’ve not seen him since mid-September. It’s so weird having DD at home and DS away - a bit of a reversal there!

Great news about dd and her job @OublietteBravo ! Not so great news about your workload 😬

I was away over the weekend and dh was a bit low. Dd was due to come back for her driving test on Tuesday anyway, but they both decided to come back for the Sunday to keep dh company and take him for a Nando’s! I was so pleased at their thoughtfulness. I saw dd because she was still here when I got back but I’m a bit sad to have missed Ds. I’ve tried extracting info/updates about him from dh (as he’s useless at responding to my texts) but all dh seems to know is he got an extension for his essay! I’m going to have to ring him!

@oubliettebravo good to hear your update and im sorry to hear your workload is exhausting. Great your Dd is enjoying work. My Ds is much happier as a TA than digging in the trench - he got two paydays this week, one from either job which was nice except for the ridiculous tax code on his new job.

@crazycrofter thats very thoughtful of your Dd and Ds. How lovely

Graduate training schemes - how much would you expect the salary to be if it was a two year scheme? I’m totally clueless so intrigued to what your DC may have got if this is the route that they have taken. DD is looking for one now.

@AnneOfCleavage I’m just the same with Parkrun, whether I slow jog, walk or a mix of the two I get round in about the same time and it’s slow, but it’s good exercise and nice to be part of a community, DS got me started when he came home for Easter a couple of years ago having started doing the one on his uni campus. My BP is a little high too, in fact haven’t checked it lately but my weight has gone up and my exercise regime has taken a hit since the summer when I’ve had to start giving my parents a LOT of support. So I really need to give myself a boot up the bum,

@crazycrofter yay for passed driving test and congrats on new job

@craggyrat grrr to the minor medical issue, that sounds ridiculous.

@Aslockton I’m guessing you might have DD back from local social media, have seen some amazing photos and videos today.

DD has been home this weekend, it has been a busy one and we have been to the cinema twice, she’s going back on the train in the morning. I have had a weekend without seeing my parents for the first time in months (I used to only see them once every 6 weeks or so before the current crisis) and I must say it has been a relief to have a break from them, it’s hard at the moment.

@EndlessDistraction glad you had a nice weekend with your Dd. It still seems odd to us having Ds home all the time after 3 years

@EndlessDistraction Yes, we have DD home! What a fabulous day we had.

DD was on the aircraft carrier Prince of Wales as part of the Carrier Strike Group world tour. She joined for the Middle East and Med leg. The homecoming was amazing. Thousands of people lining the sea front in Portsmouth, a fly past, all the ship's crew lining the deck/towers, tugs with plumes of water escorting the carrier in. We got to see her come off the ship and then we were allowed to go aboard for a short tour. Such a proud day.

@NCTDN
Graduate scheme= Large companies who take on lots of grads. They rotate round different departments for 1-2 years gaining experience. No guaranteed job at the end.

Graduate job= smaller company that takes on a graduate for a particular role. Permanent position.

My DD was offered a few grad schemes and has friends doing them at the moment. One of her best friends got offered the one that pays the most...

Aldi Supermarket: 50k salary per year plus a brand new Audi/BMW company car. She was also offered KPMG at 32k. (she is doing the Aldi one and loves it)

DD was offered NHS Gen management 29k, Atkins (transport consultancy) 33k, XPO logistics 28k, Civil service fast stream (property) 31.5k, Morrisons supermarket 34k.

DD was in limbo for months with the Navy (like @craggyrat's DS). She was all set to move to Cambridge and start with Atkins when 3 months before she got her place at BRNC. The NHS scheme was due to start 6 months later, so she held the place as a plan b if the Navy did not work out. All grad schemes hold a reserve list, so I am sure her decision made someone else very happy.

@craggyrat that's so disappointing from the army, I have never heard of exercise induced urticaria.

@crazycrofter great news re DD but did I miss something? How did she get 6 points on her licence already??

@Comefromaway hope your DS feels better soon.

@Cantonet how frustrating for your DS! Hopefully he'll find something soon.

@Aslockton that's a lovely update on your DD. How exciting to see her come home like that.

Nothing exciting happening here, DS getting slightly frustrated with work as he doesn't feel like he's being given the opportunity to do a bit more than what he is currently doing. I've tried to explain the difference between thinking you can do it all and actually being able to do it all but its not what he wants to hear (nor would I have at that age either!). Meanwhile DS2's UCAS application is still sitting with his school to review 3 weeks after submitting...

Anyone put their Christmas decs up this weekend? I'm not sure I have the mental fortitude to do it at the moment. I feel TIRED.

@Aslockton that sounds amazing re your Dd!

@craggyrat yes, DS and I were saying the other day it still feels a bit weird to both of us having him back full time even after several months now. It was nice having DD back, we went out for brunch together before the cinema yesterday which was lovely, she was in a very chatty mood which she isn't always.

@Aslockton I felt very emotional watching those scenes on FB. I don't have RN connections but having lived in and around the city for many years (I'm further away now but stay in the FB groups) you can't help feeling involved. Also I'm old enough to remember the Falklands homecomings. You must be so proud.

@JustHereWithMyPopcorn I had to sit down with the diary and DH/DS/DD yesterday to try and work out when we can get to the Christmas tree farm - answer is we can't find a free slot together, not even DH and I, but as DS works in a garden centre we'll get one there this year. End of an era though, we have been going to the same farm and cutting them down for many, many years (DS doing the cutting the last few years).

@EndlessDistraction when my mum and also my ILs started not bothering to put up a tree or any real decs I wondered why on earth they wouldn't want to do it. Last night I started thinking about next year when DS2 goes to uni and DS1 is thinking about moving up north to live and work and feeling quite sad about how our traditions will change too and whether i will make as much effort with Christmas as I do now. I've never really felt like that before.

@JustHereWithMyPopcorn she managed to get 6 points within two years of passing her test (passed in Feb 23, got the six points in Feb 25!) so lost her licence. She’s spent the last 9 months applying for a new licence, booking and failing tests (passed theory second time and practical third time!) and she now carries those original 6 points forward..

@Aslockton that homecoming sounds amazing and so emotional! Also, your dd got so many grad scheme offers, including fast track which is v competitive- what’s her trick?! Does she have impeccable grades? Very impressive anyway! Ds will probably be applying for some of those in a couple of years, so I’d be interested in any wisdom from your dd.

@EndlessDistraction @JustHereWithMyPopcorn its a big adjustment isn’t it. Both my kids are in new relationships which seem to be getting serious pretty quickly, and I’ve noticed how much less we hear from them now! It’s natural, they’re busier and have new commitments but it’s made me think about the future, when they won’t necessarily be with us for Christmas 😢 It’s never been an issue for my parents or in laws, as both have 5 kids so there’s always plenty of people around!

@Aslockton I would also like to know how to ace these graduate jobs? Dd1 is a vet & got the first job she applied for.So we have no experience of the jobs market. Ds1 will be hopefully graduating at the end of this year. And has no idea what he wants to to do.
With pretty bad ADHD & dyslexia putting him through more studying seems cruel!