Year 10 - GCSE result today and Oxford dreams

[Cinnamon73]

My DD(15) got a B in the one and only GCSE she took this year (Latin).

She is pretty much an allrounder with a keen interest in Science, has had all A predictions and has already got one A she took in year 8.

Since earlier this year she has her eyes on Oxford to do Natural Sciences, wants to do Biology, Chemistry and Maths A Level.

I didn't think she did anything enough for her Year 10 GCSE, and the result did prove that. In the four modules she got A*,A,B,B.

I read on the board that for Oxford it's 6A* plus rest A. Does that mean she can forget her Oxford dream?
Should I ask for a remark for the Bs?

In my heart of hearts I thought this might give her the kick up the backside to sit down and learn.
On the other side, if she needs that, should I support her dreams? She is currently on track with all other (10) GCSEs next year.

Any thoughts on this welcome, she is my eldest and it's all new for us.

well, Cinnamon, if its any help, this time last year natural sciences was my specialist subject .....

there are lots of different courses available - my DD is likewise wanting to do biology and chemistry (and no physics) so we researched all of the courses called 'natural sciences'.

you need to to look very carefully at the structure of the individual course and the options within it. Some courses simply didn't suit DDs interests and some have compulsory physics, and i think they all have maths to a greater or lesser extent. and you need to look all the way through to year 3 or 4 to see if the flexibility you (your DD i mean!) wants is there.

in the end, she only applied for NatSci at Cambridge and the rest of her choices were Biochemistry as they matched most closely her subject interests. its interesting that the grade requirements at eg durham and Nottingham for NatSci are so much higher than for their BioChem courses but in the end, if the structure isn't perfect for you its better to apply for the course that lets you do what you want to do.

Thanks B&C
I think I've been sticking my head in the sand a bit on the uni topic. We will start researching now, and I would appreciate any info you have on the courses, because your DD's interests sound just like my DD's.

She's looked at Biochemistry, or talked about it with the career person. I think he said Queen Mary's or Imperial or UCL. You see I'm not clued in at all. Maths is not a problem, it's always been her strongest subject (runs in the family, my dh is a mathematician) if anything she would probably like to do maths at uni but she doesn't know what she would do with it.

Will do research now and find out what she really likes.

With degree in Maths she can do lots.
My nephew followed his maths with masters in financial economics in city university and now works on a trading floor of a small investment house in London. He is developing algorithms there.

Someone else is an architect in software company developing betting software.
Another is a data mining specialist.

I think degree in Maths is one of most versatile degrees someone can choose.
Would she consider Further Maths to keep her options open?

antimatter, she is not interested at all in economics or finance, at least at the moment.
Dh is working in finance. She's talked about maths with him, and he explains stuff she didn't understand. Even he thinks she should not go down the finance road.
Genetics is her field of interest, she reads a lot about it. I realise that can change, but this has been consistent for about 9 months now.

I have started reading through the Cambridge NCT courses and my head is buzzing. She and I will go through everything together and find out what appeals to her. 4 year course with Genetics as specialism (MSci) sounds right up her street.

Do you mean Further Maths at As Level to keep her options open?

yes, that's what I meant
but if she isn't interested in economics, finance or computer science then I would agree that going Maths route is not for her

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