DD changed her mind about degree choice

*zippy*

My DD is 18 and just about to sit her A2's in RE, Sociology and Psychology. She is dyslexic and has struggled so far with Psychology, but she had set her heart on taking Psychology as a degree and has 2 conditional places for uni. We knew it is going to be tough as she needs 3B's to get into her first choice, I think RE & Sociology will be ok, but Psychology she is predicted a C. She has done quite a bit of work experience with mentally ill patients and loved it so we hoped that would in her favour if they weren't just looking at grades.

I got in tonight and she dropped the bomb shell that her Psychology teacher had said to her today she thinks she will find it too tough to study it as a degree and she has gone off the idea of doing it anyway because it's too hard for her.

I'm completely thrown and we have no experience what to do next, she has no idea what she does want to do. She insists its not last minute exams panic and I don't understand. Obviously we wouldn't want her to spend years studying something she hated, but this has just come out of the blue. I have to add i've met this teacher and she is lovely and I don't think she would have said it unless it she really thought it, rightly or wrongly.

Can anyone offer advice what we can do to help, her A levels were picked with Psychology in mind. I presume she would have to go into clearing now if she does decide on a different course. I'd appreciate any advice on options, what to do next, re-motivating her or experience.

Thanks x

The_One_Who

Unless she was planning on entering a university that offered degree flexibility (such as a Scottish university, unsure about the possibility of doing it elsewhere), then she would need to go through clearing. However, I would suggest taking a gap year so that she can figure out what it is she wants to do, if anything. Applying with grades in hand also takes off the pressure.

I would count it as a blessing that she has decided against a course before university.

dmg24

Don't panic, and don't show her that you are panicked. Give her some time to think about her options, there is no hurry. She could go into clearing, or even take a year out if it meant her getting on to the course that she decides she wants to do. Even if she starts the course and then changes, it is not the end of the world. I am sure she will make the right choice, but it does need to be her choice.

MrTomato

She might not even need to use clearing. Search on UCAS Extra http://www.ucas.ac.uk/students/offers/extra to see if any courses that she wants are still available, and if they are, she can decline the offers she has and apply again.

Obviously there's a chance of getting rejected and being left without any university, but it's worth a look.

*zippy*

Thank you all for the replies..i'm trying not to panic honest

I've just been googling and saw a link to UCAS extra, that does look a good option if she does decide on another course. I think i'll leave it a few days to settle down before suggesting anything, i'll just gather as much info as I can until then. I'm not sure, but there may be a option of contacting her first choice uni and asking to move courses, i'll look into that as she really did like the one she chose. She has a part time job and the school will accept her back if she wants to stay on and do resits. I've just been looking at local foundation courses, I thought it might be a good way to see if she is up to studying to degree level, offer up some more options and she if she likes the subjects.

Fire_Fox

I believe only a small percentage of Psychology graduates actually stay in the field, so I'd imagine competition for jobs is fierce. Has your daughter considered social work or nursing or a mental health foundation degree? She might need a year out to get experience or add to her qualifications but that is certainly not the end of the world.

jd87

Are you sure the teacher knows what they are talking about? The university wouldn't have offered your daughter a place if they didn't think she would be able to cope with the course.

Any degree course is easy if it's something you love, and it sounds like it is something she loved until the teacher trapped off.

C_Mababejive

jd87 wrote: »

Are you sure the teacher knows what they are talking about? The university wouldn't have offered your daughter a place if they didn't think she would be able to cope with the course.

Any degree course is easy if it's something you love, and it sounds like it is something she loved until the teacher trapped off.

Universities just want bums on seats to generate income....

Thats how we have reach the current lamentable situation.

Voyager2002

C_Mababejive wrote: »

Universities just want bums on seats to generate income....

Thats how we have reach the current lamentable situation.

That is an exaggeration, but I agree with the advice.

Anyway, now is a very good time to re-think her plans in the light of her strengths and weaknesses. If she decided that she would like to do a different university degree, I suggest that she contacts the universities that have already accepted her and asks about the possibility of changing course. However, it is worth taking the time to find something that really suits her rather than rushing into something without adequate thought.

*zippy*

Thank you x

Her AS Psychology year, her teacher was on Maternity leave and they had a supply. Every student failed and it was admitted by the school they hadn't done the work they should of. He present teacher came back for the A2's and this is when we met her, she clearly felt awful over it and she tried to have lunch time classes to go over AS work so they could all resit, but it wasn't ideal and I do think this is where her problems are now. All, but one girl in the class are having problems.

She has been totally focused and had it all planned out. If she has changed her mind thats fair enough, on looking there are plenty of options, but if its just because its too hard because she is still lacking knowledge and skills from this AS year we could look into rectifying it. I know only she can answer that.

Oldernotwiser

I'd encourage her to make an appointment with Connexions and to ask if she can see someone who's qualified specifically in careers. This should give her the opportunity of discussing her options with someone who's able to be objective and help her to investigate her options.

If she wants to work with the mentally ill, her best options might be to look at studing Mental Health Nursing or Social Work and this would have been the case anyway, even if she hadn't previously thought of Psychology.