How many AHs is it usual to take?

[WankersHacksandThieves]

DS1 thinking about what to take next year for 6th year.

He is doing Higher Maths, Physics, Engineering Science, Computing Science and Graph Comm.

He is still undecided on whether to go down a Computing or Engineering route.

He wants to do Maths, Physics (as it's good to keep a science) and also Computing and Engineering. As he didn't do English (or an English based subject), he is thinking of picking up that for Higher in 6th year but I'm not sure if he'll need it - he got an A at Nat 5 English.

My thoughts were that that seems too much but he seems to be finding 5th year less pressured than 4th.

Neither DH or I stayed at school for 6th year so not sure at all what it'll be like.

The 4 choices might not necessarily be 4 exam courses. Though I can only go by where I work and DDs' school. It might be possible for him to do his 3 AHs, Sports Leader/Peer Mentoring type course and a self directed study option. Nat 5 Hospitality is a practical and popular option for S6 too as the realisation that their culinary repertoire is as extensive as pasta and posted and toasties begins to dawn on them.

Re Prelims personally I don't think there is an ideal time. With no old style appeals it is exam hall and preparation experience and a tool to support our professional view that a young person might not be coping at that level.

Thank goodness early presentation has gone as some Jan/Feb birthdays had Dec prelims when they were just 13

Thanks lidl, I'd be happy for him to do something non academic, sport would be out as would being any kind of mentor though it would definitely do him good. The school hasn't had a full time home Ec teacher for many years so cooking is out too which is a shame.

They are able to offer what they have teacher capacity for I guess which is working to his advantage n terms of the subjects he is doing. In fact when I looked at the student deadlines for the coursework elements of the subjects there is very little difference between Nat 5, Higher and AH. A couple of years ago, 6th was the largest year in the school.

I guess he and we also need to consider that he may need to do resist in S6.

Just a thought, if your DS enjoys engineering and computing and art / design, have you looked at courses like Product Design Engineering or Product Design and Innovation at Strathclyde?

Those sound good, he could do some extra work experience with DH at some point, he does computer animation and 3D modelling ( and his studio is where you live!), He was good at Maths and Art at school. You probably don't want him tempted over to the dark side of the creative industries though, DH is rare in earning a decent income!

Thanks informal those are good ideas. It has been suggested before but I forgot and he's not mentioned. I do get what wiggly says in terms of reducing career options though.

And wiggly if you meant that about extra work experience, that would be amazing if it could mutually fit in :) He had architecture in mind for a while and got a drawing board and kit but drifted away from it when got fed up with his Art portfolio stuff.

I will warn DH, he would need a bit of advanced warning so that there would be something useful he could do. It's by no means a,glamourous set up, it's an old workshop heated by a wood stove with cables dangling everywhere!

Lol. I wouldn't warn him too soon. :) According to the school timetable he's to organise a placement for next June. The BP thing may or may not fall on the required date so he might be looking for a placement then.

Basic suits him fine, he's a scout :of

On the other hand if your DH is ever looking for a spare pair of hands at any point, I am sure DS would be happy to help

I need to find a vaguely Geography related placement for DS2, the boy who once announced that he wouldn't mind working at the office for national statistics as he is very good at doing graphs! Sometimes being an arty freelancer is a bit useless.

Meant to ask if you have been on Student Room?

Not been on Student room - should I?

I'm not involved in any geography related business unfortunately. We looked up the tenant list for the enterprise park and innovation park at the Uni etc and then googled the companies to see what they did and took it from there. Most didn't reply but an email out doesn't do any harm. maybe places related to Forestry/fisheries etc.

Does your school link into WorkIT or similar? Anything on there? There was nothing that suited DS1 but there was something with the Uni as a lab assistant testing water samples but that went pretty quick.

There are often threads asking the sort of question you have just asked and discussions about grades and subjects required for offers etc. Just like Mumsnet you have to take some of the posts with a pinch of salt but there is some useful info in there ( it is for High School students too).

Thanks, maybe I'll take a look - I thought by the name it was really just for students just like mumsnet is just for mums I suppose...

The most placements on WorkIT this time seemed to be working in schools or nurseries, a few with horses, some shops/cafes. very few offices or Science or Maths etc. there were a couple of construction (plumber/electrician) ones but nothing with Computing or engineering etc. It's a shame but most of DSs friends have managed to find something to do. At the end of the day, doing any work for a week even if it isn't related is good experience.

My DS2s placement fell thru last year and he ended up spending a week helping out in an old folks home - that's all that was left. He had a blast. So I agree anything can be good experience.

DS' school no longer does work placement weeks. Neither did DD's.

Oops. Can I take that back please - I see from the school newsletter that they are doing placements again this year.

You certainly can take that back rogue :o

I think it's a good thing even though a lot of them won't be working until they finish Uni...

Most schools will have a mix of kids who already work, ones who don't yet but will while at Uni, ones that will be looking for a job after school, ones who will slide into an opening at the family firm, eternal students who are still doing some Post grad course at 40 without ever having worked etc etc etc.

I think it does all of those pupils good.

Thank you very much.

YES. Great idea. I think my DC' schools stopped placements a few years ago and are restarting now.

If it's any help to your DS, there's a little bit of leeway after starting uni. Usually three subjects are studied in Y1 then 2 in Y2 then the main one in Y3 and 4. Provided you do well enough you can usually choose which to continue even if they're not the subject you were originally accepted for. Sorry if you already knew that.

I didn't know that rogue. Thank you :) DH and I are both from deprived households. I went to work straight from school and did a bit of day release from work. DH did the same but then did a few stints at college and then an OU degree and then a nursing degree. We are both reasonably bright but haven't done a normal further education thing. It's all a bit of a mystery!

We just want our children to have the opportunities that we didn't but also make it clear that it's possible to do things differently and still be happy and successful.

I just feel sometimes that everyone seems to know what to do as regards Uni etc and a bit scared that DS1 ends up missing something because none of us knew the score - that's probably very silly and reveals my own insecurities... :o

I had been going to say what rogue has just said. In Scottish Universities you tend to be accepted to the Faculty and as long as you do the pre-requisite modules you can change your degree later on. However, I think that Engineering tends to have a more prescribed course, like Medicine, where there is less chance to study extra subjects. If he was swithering between Physics and Comp Sci it would be easier for him to do both in 1st year then decide or depending on the University do joint honours.

Yes - physics and engineering both require students to do maths as a first year subject so there's less leeway than in some other subjects.

I find it boggling that there are so many very specific courses right from Y1 electronic engineering, electrical engineering, chemical physics, chemical engineering etc. How are you meant to know whether you like it until you've started?

I do have a degree WankersHacksandThieves but I'm amazed how much HE has changed. actually it's not that surprising I suppose seeing as I graduated 27 years ago My memory of applying is picking the uni in the city that was most convenient (I'm a teuchter), spending an hour or so filling in the form and then assuming I'd get a place.

Now that student numbers have increased more and more people seem to do postgraduate masters degrees either in the subject they studied or an offshoot of it. I think the unis are happy to take masters students as I think they get good funding for them.

rogue I think where, 30 years ago, a bachelors degree would have been entry level to many jobs, entry level is now a masters degree - hence lots of 4/5 year undergrad masters degrees.

My DD is doing 3 AH and a crash higher and it's a full timetable and quite a lot of work .

Four AH would be too much , it's likely to adversely affect his grades . No uni will give a conditional offer on any more than 3.

Also you say he is quite immature so would probably benefit from doing voluntary or paid work and contributing to his school community more than doing another AH in a very similar subject .

He needs to look at the entry requirements for the types of courses he is interested in and see which AH they require or recommend . And also which universities will accept him without H English . AH maths will be very useful for most engineering courses , even if not required.

Most schools will also offer a range of vocational courses at local colleges. Don't dismiss these as being for less academic pupils, some are at SQCF level 8. One of these might be very relevant to his career options.

Many schools require Pupils to choose S6 options in February or early March so he need to start thinking about this now .