State vs Private school A levels

[TAB22]

hello, does anyone have thoughts on state vs private when it comes to Uni and offers and employment. would a smart, but not exceptional student (7s and 8s at GCSE so hopefuly As and Bs at A level) actually find it easier to move on from a state school.
As background, My DD has just completed GCSEs at a private school. She doesn't use the privileges that come with private schools (great facilities for arts, science, sportsx extra curricular etc) and nor is this school strong academically. BUT she is happy there.
Given all this, plus the huge financial pressure of school fees, and I think I want to move her to the state sector.
PS - i strongly agree with the idea that privately educated kids have more to prove - they benefit from smaller classes, better facilities, more attention etc.

Contextual offers vary massively - some look at where you did GCSEs, but lots just look at the current school. The most seem to look at current postcode for POLAR data (progression to higher education), POLAR 1 will almost guarantee a contextual offer for those universities that do them, POLAR 2 will sometimes. The other postcode criteria is about living in an area of multiple deprivation. Lots of universities have a postcode checker where you can input your postcode to see if you would eligible. (The only reason I know all this is from having two applying to university this year).

I don't have any experience of private school but I would probably leave her where she is if she's happy, obviously if money is an issue you may have to rethink but I wouldn't move her just because of contextual offers.

There are many opportunities relating to HE and other post-18 pathways eg. degree apprenticeships which exclude independent school students. For example, taster days at magic circle law firms, webinars for Oxbridge application support, work experience, mentoring and networking with some companies eg via Speakers for Schools, summer schools at universities. Reason being is that they assume private school candidates already have the support and networks. However, not all independent schools are equal! You know your school, your contacts and your network: is there a network of old girls or boys who can help? What are your family connections like? Do they have well connected staff in school? …

If you have an idea of what/where she might like to progress onto, it could be worth doing some research. Contextual offers for HE are as PP mention often more complex than just being at state for sixth form (some look at GCSEs, FSM entitlement, post code data etc) but most schemes do exclude private school students so if you want to be in with a shot of these for whatever reason then don’t opt for private. Especially for the competitive courses Medicine etc.

It’s also worth remembering that many uni courses are not overly competitive. There are a lot of bums on seats courses. I would never assume a contextual offer and, by the sounds of it, this school isn’t Eton.

Im always surprised that people think the well off aren’t also pretty bright. Look at the IT guy who has just died. Intelligent and ultra rich. Is it surprising his DD was privately educated and was going to Oxford? There’s plenty of very bright parents who pay for education because they can. It could be their DC do tick boxes for elite unis. I’m not surprised.

@Panicmode1 why are you surprised? About 70-75% of students at Oxbridge are state educated. It was as high as 30% private but they have made a concerted effort to reach out (summer programs etc not open to privately educated students) in order to get more to apply. Plus if privately educated children have (generally) better results is it any surprise there are more of them at an elite uni that doesn't do contextual offers? I bet most if those international students are privately educated though.
OP uni are well aware of the moving from private to state for sixth form. They don't discriminate against private, but do try to level the playing field.

Universities are so desperate for students (aka money), I really wouldn’t worry - unless she is interested in a very competitive course.

But what does your daughter want?????
She's old enough to have the conversation with and let her participate/make the decision.

In your situation with a badly bullied ND child who is now happy I'd be making the sacrifices you need to keep her where she is. (Unless she's convinced she wants to change schools again).

I'd keep the tightening your belt financially aspect of the situation out of it as you seem to able to afford otherwise this thread is pointless.

She sounds like she's been through a lot and mental health is way more important than going to a marginally more prestigious university.

I doubt gaming the system will work, certainly not worth the gamble of your Dds mental health.

ND people struggle as it is, for the whole of their lives, why make it harder for her?
Chopping and changing her school (based on her having to move school not long ago) when she's only got 18 months to go seems nuts to me. Who cares if she uses the facilities or not?

I'm assuming you only have a small shortfall in £ and so can just tighten your belt/go without a couple of Hols/get a loan if she thinks it's right/she would prefer to stay in her GCSE school.

I'm voting for keeping her at the private school if she's happy there and has been bullied in the past. That would be worth everything to me

It might be true that unis look at where you got your GCSEs but there was a study that showed students with GCSEs from private school but A-levels from a state school were more likely to get offered a place at Cambridge than any other type of student. It was quite widely reported last year. Wouldn’t surprise me if it were similar at other universities.
So gaming the system does work sometimes!

Most contextual offers are based on your postcode (Bristol being a notable exception). My dd got four out of five contextual offers due to where we lived. One also required her to be at a state school, which she was for sixth form. It didn’t seem right really, but in the end she didn’t need them and met the standard offer.

She really wants to stay at her school, and all this has been very helpful in helping me understand so thank you.
Just in our defense, the fees really are crippling us. I would have switched her years ago but for the ASD and associated struggles. She is so much more at peace now, i thought maybe it was good timing. But I agree it's not a risk worth taking.
For further clarity, the state school she is (possibly) going to is far superior academically to the private school she currently attends. The private school gets around 30% A/A* at A level, while the state school gets around 55%. But the state school had a chaotic change of hands about two years ago, and results this year have crashed by 20%.
so while i was struggling knowing we are really struggling financially paying for a worse education, i guess now they are on a par. She has always said she wants to be a lawyer, so results do matter for her.
Also, i know the state school is stricter and more challenging in teaching and I do think DD will thrive more like that.
But again, she is an ND teenager who is finally at peace, so...

If she’s happy at her school and you can afford the fees one way or another for two more years I wouldn’t move her. If you have to, you have to but I wouldn’t choose to

My Dd moved from private to state after GCSEs. She got mainly Bs at GCSE. A couple of As, a couple of Cs. State comprehensive had many more subjects on offer. The ones she took weren’t offered at her private school at all. She got all As at A level.

I agree, not worth the risk. I'd re-mortgage/take a mortgage holiday if I had too.

Mental health is way more important than the potential of slightly better teaching/schooling.

You took the decision to send your DD private a long time ago, you have to have the integrity to not move her when she is finally happy and settled.
It was your choice originally, she shouldn't have to pay for the consequences of you now finding the fees difficult (difficult not impossible)

I moved dd1 from private small single sex to alarge state 6th form with excellent results. She went absolutely mad, partied all the time and ended up with CC and having to retake. She got what she needed in the end and now has a great job, but if I'm being honest I wish we'd never moved her as it was all so stressful. I got loads of encouragement on Mnet at the time but I wish I'd listened to my gut and factored in the bias towards state education.

For further clarity, the state school she is (possibly) going to is far superior academically to the private school she currently attends. The private school gets around 30% A/A star at A level, while the state school gets around 55%.*

What are the schools' entry criteria?
If the state school has much higher entry criteria than the private school (which sounds likely based on the high proportion of A/A star) then this doesn't prove anything about the teaching and support there - it just shows they have a more able cohort.

@TAB22 Are you serious!!! Many private schools are not exam factories. You chose the private school so you must have known how it sat in the academic landscape, The few private schools near me get around that result for A level results. We are in a grammar county. The majority of the brightest are in the grammars. 30% is very much ok. What’s Astar to B like? What A levels are dc taking? What unis anrs they going to? Unless they started with high Sats scores, 30% is good enough. Did they all start will stellar sats results? What’s the value added? I bet most were not high attainers.

Also what others get isn’t what your DS might get. So you have to compare the facts behind the results and most dc do better if settled. I just would not rock the boat.

I looked at the opposite- dc currently state but I could at a push scrape together 2 years private for a’levels.

mine is bright, but massively affected by Covid. The transition from primary spoon feeding to secondary self directed learning never happened, and study habits weren’t there.

they knocked the exams out the park after pulling it together in y11, but unfortunately too little too late and got a bunch of 4-6’s. Which is why I thought private may be a little more intense and help with the catch up to reach their potential.

anyway many people have pointed out that at 6th form the difference between private and state is less marked. Classes are naturally much smaller and more personal, and there’s more assistance. The school does afterschool learning groups as well for those who want more help.

we’re going to stay with state and pay for tutors from the get go. It helps that a couple of our local 6th forms outperform the privates anyway.

I would definitely leave your dd where she is happy.

Personally, if she is neurodiverse I would not move her. I also have a daughter in the same position ie not using any facilities but the fact she is happy is what counts and I think she will be overwhelmed moving to a new school.
But really it comes down to what she wants to do if you have the funds.
I have twins one in private (SEN) and one in grammar - I have not had the impression it makes a difference with the applications. She needs a min level of grades for her uni course.

If she is happy where she is I wouldnt move her, ND children tend to not like change do they ? she may look low support in the context of her private school that works for her... with smaller class sizes, friendly teachers and lots of communication and structure, but this may well change in a different environment.