Thread 15 - Corona Cohort Year 12, 2021 Lateral Flow & Driving Tests

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DS’s school is upfront about Oxbridge entry early on from YR9. Similar for applications for medicine. Expectations are basically 8/9’s at GCSEs - preferably mostly 9’s as a starter which rules DS out! They sent 7 to Oxbridge last year - all of those had straight 9’s. This was in line with previous years which vary between 7 - 10.
There is quite a lot of support/pressure to do extra work/reading/prep which puts many off. Saying that, it’s self selecting really if the message is don’t bother unless you get mostly all 9’s at GCSE.

We have been looking at degree apprenticeships but he isn't really cut out for the corporate world, doesn't want to work in an office, not interested in business, science or technology and as we are in a small town some way from anywhere there's bot much locally. He has poor social skills too . He loves sport and likes the idea of working in the countryside so some sort of outdoor apprenticeship would be good, but he is weak with poor fine motor skills so tree surgery for example probably wouldn't be a good fit.

I went to uni as a way of deferring a decision too, but there wasn't so much at stake in those days, in terms of student loans etc (I am very old so avoided those completely). I don't want him starting a course half-heartedly. He really doesn't want to leave home - there are probably half a dozen unis that are just about commutable from here but it's not the same as living away. There was someone on my course who lived at home and IIRC he dropped out, he was too far away for socialising - nowhere to go between lectures and nights out so he went home and didn't come back out. Sorry, brain dump, it helps to write it all down.

Agricultural college?

Does he play golf at all?

National Trust?

ols.kmc.ac.uk/WCFWebSite/KMC_OnlineServices/coursedetail.aspx?id=1000032000586
This sort of thing ?

sansou if pupils want to go to Oxbridge they don’t need all 9s. 8s and 9s are treated the same. The one I know who most recently went had a couple of 7s too. However I think the next couple of years will be interesting for all universities after all this disruption (especially with the CAGs and TAGs and whatever they are called).

@ExponentiallyDepleted yes we are on Norfolk/Suffolk borders, there won't be degree type apprenticeships locally to us either. Ds would happily move away from home though. I can't imagine ds in an office all day but he's not that outdoorsy either. So no clue what he will do.

DH has recently retired from farming and neither of the dc's really showed any interest in the farm. DS1 was the most interested out of the 3 dc's, he's at university studying biology. He had thought of doing his biology degree at Harper Adams, it would have been more focused on agriculture, food and crop diseases etc. There were lots of interesting outdoors type degrees to do at Harper Adams. I think ds1 would have enjoyed it, but not enough people signed up for the course as it was a new course for them. So he didn't go there. Ds2 isn't interested in science or agricultural type degrees.
All Ds2 wants to think about is what degrees will lead to earning the most money. He likes history the most. But as I said on an earlier post, he's now decided he won't earn enough if he has a degree in history. He's now thinking if he goes to university he will do something business. Yet he's moaned all the time at how boring business studies is.

Agricultural college is a definite possibility degree wise, we are looking into those (there are two fairly close to us). Both quite animal focussed though and he's not all that interested, he prefers countryside management to animals. Another problem though is that DS is very weak in science .

He doesn't play golf much although he does like it, groundkeeper type work is a definite possibility, we are in an affluent part of the country with lots of golf courses, sports grounds, private schools etc.

History is another strength, he's doing well at A level, but not really seeing a career path with a history degree.

I am following the FB pages of lots of outdoor organisations (we are close to the South Downs national park for example) so hopefully something will come up. NT is a good suggestion, combines history and countryside.

If he doesn't move onto degree level study I will want to maintain his EHCP which is another complication.

If you keep an eye out and have a proper golf course near you, they do advertise proper apprenticeships for greenkeepers.

We do also live near an agricultural college. My friend's son goes and they have been great with his EHCP.

ICanBe Friend's DD did history graduating a couple of years ago. Straight on to a graduate programme with Highways Agency, which has sounded fab.

Oblomov Students will sit exams in all of their subjects when we return after the May Half Term Break. I did know this, but Good. I'm pleased. This'll be the 1st time our lot has sat 'formal' ones for ages.

We had a Zoom and here there will be yr12 assessments but they aren't going to look like formal exams. Short assessments in own classrooms. The main similarity will just be if more than one class for a subject, they will sit it at the same time.

Degree apprenticeships. They're fairly specialist obviously since they are tailored to a specific company's needs. DS & I took a look but decided that the more generalist path/university experience was more suitable - not only because he had no clue what he wanted to do 2 years ago,

@icanbewhatiwant - BT offers degree apprenticeships all over including east England. Also look at insurance and finance firms in the region.

Minimum requirements are relatively high - guessing that it will be extremely competitive if some of them are requiring AAB! But I've also seen ones at BBB. In a pandemic climate, having a vocational job and no debt is attractive to say the least.

DS is doing some online IT work experience this Easter - starting to generally look at Computing/IT degree courses now. (quietly cheering at some focus at last).

Making money - well, getting into Finance would be the well trodden route....

I am finding it very interesting the range of graduate schemes and apprenticeships there are available (though not underestimating the competition to get on one)

Could I ask for thoughts on 3 v 4 A levels please? Maths, FM, physics and computer science. They have been told to decide if want to stay with 4 next year. Looking at maths after. Also has a project currently which is finishing soon then one next year plus a few bits of a super curricular type thing next year - more modules of that if goes to 3.

Seems to be coping, isn’t sure whether to drop computer science. I can’t help feeling might be better to concentrate on 3 but as he seems ok maybe he should stay with 4. Have firmly sat on the fence so far but he’s called me on it and I need to say something actually helpful so looking at you lot please ! Thanks 😊

No unis offer on 4 A Levels but FM always seems to be a grey area.

@FoolsAssassin my friends son took 4 A levels. For his first choice university he needed 3 A stars. He got 2 A stars and 2 A's so didn't get his first choice. In hindsight he said maybe he should have concentrated on 3 but they push for 4 at that school. He may have had the 3 A stars if he'd only taken 3. So I guess the answer could depend on how your Ds is coping with 4.

@sansou yes, thanks. I've seen BT advertising in Ipswich. Grades needed are AAB preferably maths. Ds is predicted ABB and isn't taking maths. But it does say a maths exam can be taken. Ds really enjoys maths and considered A level. But he was put off by their maths teacher in year 11 saying A label maths is only for grade 8 or 9 students. He got a 7 but thinks

Damn...pressed the button. Was about to say thinks he may have had an 8. Not sure how he'd get on with a maths exam for BT. But he would have a go.

Not sure @Foolsassassin. Is your Ds doing an Epq as well? How much is the workload for Computer Science? Is he forecast equally good grades in all subjects? Does he enjoy all the subjects equally?
Dd2 is doing 3 only, as one - Art is very time consuming if done right. Plus an Epq. My eldest did 3 plus an Epq and extra projects. But they both know where they're going & doing & 4 doesn't/didn't benefit them in any way.
Does your Ds know where he wants to go/do next?
Dd2 will have formal exams I think as her school still do As exams. They have formal tests under exam conditions in a hall every Saturday normally ( in non-covid times) and these are re-starting again after being online for the rest of the year.
I'm in envy of all of you who have kids with a straightforward academic progression. Because my kids have consistently thrown me curveballs. I can never predict anything, So I've totally stopped planning. All I can do is give them the best education possible, encourage them and hope for the best !

It’s not an EPQ, a college set project . His predictions for Maths and physics are good, computer science currently the lowest but his teacher feels he can get a grade higher but it’s whether he would want to put himself under pressure to do so. No further maths prediction so far as they haven’t done much. I think he is finding it a hard decision as had to wait so long to actually get to do computer science.

Ffemy DD chucked in loads curve balls along the way. DS less of a worry academically but I worry about him socially. You’re right, support and encouragement is all we can do .

Exponentially..I was going to say Landscaping/ Estates if keen on outdoors.

Re 4 A levels, I would say you should only do it if FM is one because I think Maths/FM/Physics have so much overlap that they are not really the same workload as 3 separate subjects. If DS is considering Maths or Engineering some places require of have a strong preference for FM, but it is difficult, so probably easier to get a good grade in Comp Sci than FM. For medicine lots of places will not allow both Maths and FM to be included in the 3 A levels, I don't know whether there are other courses which do the same. I would say stick with 4 if he is happy to continue, but look at the summer exam results and UCAS predictions and make sure he knows that if he is struggling to get the grades for whatever he wants to do next, you are happy for him to drop FM. My DS has dropped FM as it has no value for medicine, but has started an EPQ, which he is aiming to complete next term, and picking up Y12 Chemistry in September. His school says that 3 A levels do not give you the required hours of learning, so they have to do something extra - EPQ, core maths, GCSE re-sits, volunteering all acceptable.

Re only applying for medicine with 10x9, that is nonsense in itself. If strategic, you can get a medicine offer with nothing over a 6, but you do need to be good at learning and have a good work ethic at university to survive the course, so if you worked really hard for GCSE and got all 5/6, it would probably not be a wise choice.

Re DC who don't know what they want, I am a great advocate of gap years. Taking 1 or 2 years to decide whilst working in a supermarket worked for a couple of people I know. You only get 1 chance for a degree with a student loan, and if you take a bit of time before deciding what to do, you may be able to start with a more mature attitude and get more out of the degree.

@ExponentiallyDepleted has he looked at army? I think we may have discussed this before, but DH's godson is training to be a paramedic in the army after drifting through school with dyslexia and a dislike of the classroom, and is now thriving.

Thank you all. I have been thinking and feel it’s a bit early for him to decide right now. The letter does they can change their minds later, subject to timetable.

He can’t drop FM and wouldn’t want to, it would be computer science. I think unless he suddenly decides he doesn’t want to continue with 4 i’ll suggest he keeps going for now and look at June results and review then.

I am a fan of gap years, though acknowledge they aren’t that easy at the moment. Had a gap few years myself and went in a completely different direction over the course of those years.