Dropping out of A levels

[shiningstar2]

Has anybody any advice or kind words about teens dropping out of A levels.

Our dgs hasn't gone to school since half term. He is in Year 13. Before this year he had a 100% attendance record right from year 7 and used to talk of completing his whole secondary school career without a day off.

He was projected BCC for his A levels. He wasn't enjoying school 6th form and wished he had gone to the local 6th form college, but until half term he was determined to finish and wanted to go to university.

He got a nasty virus at half term, then an impacted wisdom tooth. He reacted badly to the penicillin and had to be rushed to A and E. However he is fine this week but says he is finished with school and isn't going back.

School like him and have said they will support him catching up but he is determined not to go back in. His parents are really upset to watch him throwing his chances away and there have been megga rows at home.

We are really close to him and have offered to drive down the theirs in the morning when his parents are at work and drive him in as his mother can't get him up for school before she leaves. We thought if we offered it would get him over the first awkward week when he can't face going in and we could keep it going until Christmas.

We all think that his mind set has changed because he has a part time job in a local store and is enjoying the money. The original plan was for him to do Saturday or Sunday, leaving evenings and one weekend day free for homework and sociializing, but he is taking every shift they offer and hanging out with his mates at night.

We've all tried pointing out that leaving school with just his GCSEs isn't great. That pocket money is one thing, but there wouldn't be much progression where he is working and future prospects not good. We have pointed out other BTEC courses he could do. Suggested getting through the A levels and not studying for a while...but he seems determined to leave and go full time in this shop. The manager really likes him and when dgs quotes him it's all about not needing qualifications to get on ext.

We keep telling him that if he could go untiil Christmas, its basically just one more term as its more or less revision time after Easter then exams in May and June. Seems so sad to leave at this stage ..but he is 18 in February ...an adult ...so not much anyone can do about it if he's decided to give up now.

Has anybody who has experienced this any advice? If your teen gave up A levels what happened next. Did they do another course, get a good job...or what? Thanks for any advice/observations anyone can give.

I dropped out of college at 18 after falling pregnant. I worked in care for years and did the all the level 3 qualifications they offered and then did a degree in my 30s and I’m now a healthcare professional.

basically I was fine.

but i don’t think it’s quite like that now as almost everyone does at least until 13. If he doesn’t want to do A levels (and who can blame him seeing dds work load) then how would he feel about an apprenticeship? He can earn and learn at the same time, it might appeal to him more.

Thank you for replying. DD and I blame ourselves to some extent. He wanted to go to 6th form college and we (both teachers) persuaded him to stay at school. He has kind of grown totally out of it at just the wrong point. If he had of decided in the Summer break he might have moved on to do an apprenticeship or BTEC. It's too late now or this year and he feels he has wasted two years. He says if he leaves, and it's looking likely, he will just work and not 'waste time' doing anymore study. We are hoping that after he's experienced being full time in the work force he might start a new course next year
It is encouraging that you have done so well. We will have to hope for the best and of course his parents and ourselves will support him whatever he chooses.

I think school sixth forms are in many ways better than sixth form colleges which are often like railway stations - with students passing through. Our local sixth form college seems to have cut teaching hours over the last few years so less time for A levels. The teachers at the school sixth form are far more supportive and actually know the students.

It is very difficult and very frustrating but ultimately it is his life and you might have to let him make his own mistakes. There are lots and lots of opportunities for further study now as and when he decides it is what he wants.

DD did this. She got herself a job and eventually went on to do an Access course and now has a degree and is a qualified teacher. It was a longer and probably harder route but she doesn't regret it.

my daughter dropped out of sixth form college after completing the first year to work her part time job, full time. after 6 months she got a level 3 apprenticeship, so she could continue earning money but also get a qualification that will allow her to go to uni if she wants (or do a higher level apprenticeship)

look here for apprenticeships www.gov.uk/apply-apprenticeship

He sounds burnt out. He’s old enough to make his own decisions. If he wants to return to academia in a few years time then he can. Unless he is motivated to do it, there’s not much you can do.

I dropped out of school sixth form between years 12 and 13 - got a ft job and was convinced that was it for me and education.
8 weeks in full time work and I was back to school - the 9-5 was so much harder than I thought it would be. School were great, let me back in a couple of weeks after the start of term, I finished off my a levels and went to a good RG uni.

Aww, @shiningstar2 I feel for you and his mum. I've got one just the same, 17 years old, albeit without the current choice of working. Don't feel bad first of all, you and your DD advised what you thought was best (and I am sure he was in agreement, thinking of Uni and all) and it isn't working for him - unfortunately, they are too old at this point to "drag out of bed". Our local sixth form school is treating my son like a lower school pupil (sanctions) due to lateness and no shows. I don't blame them at all for the sanctions, and it is sort of working, but I suspect it won't for long. College can be better for some, as there is a bit more freedom, but it doesn't work for all either. Whereas some absolutely thrive on the education that is offered, and the chance to go to Uni, and are prepared to put in hard yards, whether at sixth form or at a college, it doesn't work for everyone. It also doesn't result in a good job for everyone, some end up with a huge debt, little life experience, some risks around partying and drug taking and STILL not going in to study, and a saturated job market once they come out. As @Pebstk says there have never been more opportunities to re-enter education if this is what they want to do, once they realise they are going to be on minimum wage for a bit longer than they would like. I've always thought that one of my four DC (aged 17-25) would follow my path straight from school to Uni, to a corporate and accountancy qualifications, then into a a Big Four, but have come to realise that that is not going to happen, and to be fair, they seem the happier for it. Sorry, I have rambled on, but I suppose I've finally realised that the world has changed. Whereas my older three are not going to set the world record with their salaries / wages currently, they do OK. Try not to worry xxx

Ultimately it is his decision and I would be very careful about loading too much pressure on him

Yes! My DD dropped out of A-levels towards the end of the first year, I had a thread on here asking about apprenticeships, and I got lots of comments that she was going to ruin her life and she should just stay and do A-levels! She worked in a café for a while, then she got an NHS apprenticeship, and now she is doing a foundation course at university studying nursing, which she can convert into a degree with an extra six months of study. It's worked out fantastically for her so far, she got 18 months really solid work experience, and that led her into what she wanted to do at university when she didn't have any idea before. She really wasn't into her A-levels despite doing really well at GCSE. I was fine with her finding her own way in her own time because I knew she had a really good work ethic and got on well with people as she'd been working part time in the café since she was 15. She was really unhappy at sixth form, although if she only had a term to go I might have felt a bit differently.

My DD dropped out of school during Covid, (Jan 21) and started a retail apprenticeship. When it became obvious that this was just a way of hiring cheap labour, she applied to 6th Form College in Sep 21. We were ready to pay but because she was under 19 it was fine.
Looking at A*, A, B predicted grades now, she would not have worked for those at school.

I did the same. College is a bit too flexible and relies on the child to do it off their own back when they may still needs little push. I think his parents need a meeting with him where they ask him for his long term plans. If it's continue working then he needs to be working full time and paying rent. Hopefully school won't seem the bad option then. But if he really does want to go into the working world then he needs to take responsibility for it.

What does he actually want to do in the future? Does he even know? There can be a lot of pressure in sixth form to get ucas forms in, commit to another three years. I don't know how much you know about higher education but it is now really hard to go back and do another undergraduate degree, you would need to entirely self fund the fees. Most people get a substantial debt too. As long as he isn't getting into trouble with his work mates and if he is paying rent/ saving his money then taking a couple of years to decide what he really wants to do makes sense. He might be able to do an access course later or a degree apprentiship. There is no point in him being somewhere he doesn't want to be.

I also hate the infantlising of sixth formers. He might be able to talk to the college about whether they would take him at this stage, probably depends on funding and similaity of the courses.

My sister dropped out of school after the first year of sixth form. She worked for a while, then did a couple of A-levels herself with a tutor, went on to get two degrees and is now doing really well professionally.

If his behaviour is otherwise okay (not being moody or getting into drink/drugs) and if his parents are able to support him leaving school and going full-time at the shop, that might not be the worst thing.

It seems that he hasn’t had much control over what should have been his own life choices. Parents should have respected his choice to go to 6th form college rather then school. No wonder he’s had enough!

Personally I’d get him some professional careers advice. He needs a professional knowledgable about the wealth of opportunities available and questionnaires to work out his strengths and interests career wise. Parents and grandparents are generally not armed with the relative information.

What do you know about your DGS? He prefers working and earning. What else? What makes him tick? What brings him joy? What are his hobbies? This is a good starting point when looking at opportunities.

He might prefer an apprenticeship. There are plenty about. If interested he can gain level 3,4,5,6,7 in the work place, giving him degree and postgraduate qualifications while earning and without university debt.

it might be that your son opts to work in the corner shop for a year or two or three. He will learn lots of different skills there (responsibility, reliability, dealing with tricky customers, restocking processes, security etc) and these skills will make him more attractive to future employees.

After a long break he may want to return to education, refreshed and focused with clear career goals. If this is the case, a level 3 qualification is likely free to him as he doesn’t hold one already. An access course might be the preferred route to a degree? This can be part time or full time.

He'll be fine. Let him find his own way in life.

I'm not sure there is much you can do to make an almost 18 year old go to school, how frustrating. I can see it would be psychologically hard for him to walk back in now with all the questions, and only 2 weeks left of term.
On the more positive side, if he does drop out and refuses to return after Christmas, this does not mean he has ruined his chance of higher eduction forever. There are Access courses he could attend from the age of 21 or 23 that would give him access to unis again if he starts to see that a degree would be advantageous for him career wise.

I think often children and parents are on auto pilot assuming the only route is moving from GCSEs to A levels to degree, often without s gap year or wider life experience. This can sometimes make finding work post degree quite difficult

Thank you everyone. Every post makes very valid points and I appreciate that. I will point my daughter in the direction of these posts as I think they will help her. They are definitely helping me. In the end he will make his own choices and mistakes, as many if us do at that age. He is fortunate to have four supportive adults in his life and as everybody says there are many ways to gain further education if he wants that at a later date. Thanks again to everybody who has contributed.

I dropped out of my A Levels due to
severe mental health problems. After taking some time to recover, I worked a couple of hospitality and nannying jobs. The following September I started a foundation course (well a Certificate of Higher Education - I was too young for an access course). I then used this course to get onto un undergrad degree and I’m now in my first year of an Education degree and much happier.

Honestly, dropping out is not the end of the world. There are other ways to get a degree if that’s what he wants in the future. As long as he’s doing something productive (job, volunteering, apprenticeship etc), I’m sure he’ll be absolutely fine :).