Giving university advice to sixth form BTEC pupils - help!

[Chrissam]

I teach BTEC and Cambridge Technicals to 6th form. How well trained in giving the latest university advice to pupils do you feel? My school wants all 6th form teachers to play a part in this, but it is a large area. Things have changed a lot since I went to university (20+ years ago) no training is being given to us. Is it me, or do other teachers feel out of their depth on this topic?

What degree programmes would students passionate about your subject be likely to choose? Media/film? Design? Business? Sport? Technology? Google best unis for X degree. Read the websites and look at the suggested a level/qualification preferences. See which schools are happy to accept btec. Think of what extracurricular activities might look beneficial. See if a portfolio etc might be required. This should take 20 minutes of your life.

Also look into unis in different geo regions, big city and small, etc. Kids may have diff preferences and you can guide them on these things, too. Some programmes may be more practical and some more theoretical. It's all described on the programme websites.

This should take 20 minutes of your life.

I would be hugely disappointed if I learned that the teacher advising my child on university had only spent 20 minutes informing themselves of all the possibilities …

But yes, it’s a shame neither money nor time and resources are being made available to the relevant staff.

There are a lot of good resources on the UCAS website about helping students make informed choices.

www.ucas.com/advisers/guides-resources-and-training/tools-and-resources-help-you

I would expect a Btec teacher to be able to advise on university courses etc within their subject area.

I agree, Comefromaway, in that we are in a position to be able to advise on degree courses and - for example - help pupils compare content of different courses. University guidance covers a wide range nowadays (for example, student finance, studying at home or away, degree apprenticeships, foundation degrees), and I was curious if there were other teachers on Mumsnet who might be able to share the extent to which their schools keep them up to date with training - or are their schools like mine and just hope that people 'get on with it'. Thank you for your contribution, however.

I don't think any school advises on Student Finance other than to point them to the relevant website and I always suggest to parents that ask to look at MSE too.

Does your college/school have an exams officer or UCAS adviser too? If not a good start is to get them to put their potential qualifications in to whatuni.com and search the degrees they like and it will give suggestions.

Indeed you could do the same and plag around with a range of grades to give you some ideas of what unis may be suitable for your pupils.