pass at A level

peachyprice

I agree totally ymph. The entire 5 years of statutory education nowadays is aimed at keeping children in education with very little encouragement for those who would rather work.

Certainly at my son's school the expectation from day one is that the vast majority will stay on a sixth form. They have 180 places, same as every year group, only 30ish go to children from other schools and of those 30 who leave, many go to other 6th forms or college to do A Levels.

Back in the 80's much more focus was put on finding a job at 16 with only the minority expected to stay on for A Levels.

Seanymph

I think it's also a pyramid thing - no one in my family had ever been to university, no one mentioned it to me, knew how to get me there, or was interested - and certainly wouldn't fund it!

I am better educated (now) than my parents and grandparents, and talking to my daughter at the weekend again about her going onto Uni in september she said she'd 'never considered anything else' that it 'was just expected' from her school, from her teachers, and from me.

So socially we are very different now - my kids will go, and then I suspect their kids will all be expected to go too.

So expectations are different, and university and information about going, is much more accessible.

onlyroz

Seanymph wrote: »

All universities have open days - you need to start dragging your poor self around them this spring. His application to UCAS must be done next October/January - and Universities offer on first come first served, so he needs to be organised and know what he wants to apply for AND have his personal statement in hand before October.

Universities have several open days a year, but if he's like my eldest you'll find yourself doing one every weekend in October after it was supposed to be submitted!

Isn't it normal for kids to get themselves to open-days?

RAS

Person_one wrote: »

Its not rubbish at all.

Most courses start making offers to outstanding candidates long before the deadline, so its pretty obvious that you have a better chance of getting in if you apply in October when there are say, 100 places left than if you apply right at the deadline in January when there are only 30 or 40 left.

Universities are required by UCAS rules to give equal consideration to all applications received by UCAS by January 15.

They are not stupid - they have worked out what offer to make to fill their courses. Some may only make offers to applicants whose grades are projected to meet that requirement, so they take a little time to process them. Others will make all applicants the same offer automatically so they respond really quickly, knowing the offer may be unobtainable for a percentage of their applicants. Another university may make quick offers to those with very good grades and then take time to respond to the second tranche whose projected grades are lower but still meet their requirements.

it has nothing to do with when you apply and everything to do with the different way the universities process applications.

Others will be more selective because the subject has special requirements; like music, art, some technology courses and many of the health professions. They take a lot longer to respond and may interview first.

As a rule it is only when a particular course has massively more applications one year than the previous one that they might get full before the deadline.

Even so, a good applicant who applies very late might get a place because there are a few unexpected vacancies and all the applicants who applied before the January deadline have gone.

onlyroz

wendyl1967 wrote: »

He wants to be a computer programmer so I assume that is computer science. He is taking physics, maths, ict and computing at A level

As a general point, you don't need a degree in computing to become a computer programmer. Infact it might be more advantageous to do something like Maths, Physics or Engineering - because you can then get into an extremely wide range of careers, from software engineering, science, teaching, and to any number of careers in the finance sector. I am a software engineer with a background in Physics, and many of my collegues also have science, engineering and maths backgrounds.

Seanymph

I visited about 9 last year with my daughter, and never saw one child on their own. I've shared breakfast with other parents at various b and b's with our children (met them at breakfast obviously) - and spoken with endless other parents at my daughters college who are on the same trail.

My anecdotal experience is that parents always accompany their child - to drive them, pay for the accomodation the night before, and to be able to offer informed advice to their child to support their decision.

As a parent I wanted to see the options, look at the acommodation, learn about the fees, see the campuses and the environment around them. I can't imagine any parent not wanting to see them, this is where your child will live for three years.

So normal? I'd say for parents and children to do it together would be 'normal'. Although I have to say you don't often see both parents, just one (seems we take turns) - and on a second visit my daughter went by herself to one university - she went with a friend who was also considering that particular university. She also went with another friend and their parents to one.

But generally? I went with her.

onlyroz

Seanymph wrote: »

I visited about 9 last year with my daughter, and never saw one child on their own. I've shared breakfast with other parents at various b and b's with our children (met them at breakfast obviously) - and spoken with endless other parents at my daughters college who are on the same trail.

My anecdotal experience is that parents always accompany their child - to drive them, pay for the accomodation the night before, and to be able to offer informed advice to their child to support their decision.

As a parent I wanted to see the options, look at the acommodation, learn about the fees, see the campuses and the environment around them. I can't imagine any parent not wanting to see them, this is where your child will live for three years.

So normal? I'd say for parents and children to do it together would be 'normal'. Although I have to say you don't often see both parents, just one (seems we take turns) - and on a second visit my daughter went by herself to one university - she went with a friend who was also considering that particular university. She also went with another friend and their parents to one.

But generally? I went with her.

Fine, but certainly don't accompany her to any interviews.

thegirlintheattic

onlyroz wrote: »

Isn't it normal for kids to get themselves to open-days?

Some students go on their own but the majority go with a parent (usually just one - noone wants to be the family that brings everyone including nan and granddad!). This is for both open days and interviews. I've had students and seen students who have gone to the first on their own because they don't think it's cool to be seen with their parents but they soon change their mind.

Some universities even offer separate tours/talks for parents and students - the uni I went to did. The student tour focused on social facilities, accommodation and the labs plus a talk about modules. The parent's tour included a talk on applications/fees and lots about the curriculum, then a tour of the department. It was a very good system.

Seanymph

onlyroz wrote: »

Fine, but certainly don't accompany her to any interviews.

Well thanks for the instruction (I won't say advice because it wasn't phrased like that), however whether or not I accompany my child to a city some 7 hour drive away to be with her overnight the night before and wait for her to be interviewed in order to drive her back is my business.

She drives, but her car is not that reliable. Some universities are out of town campus ones - all are in areas she is unfamiliar with - and all bar one involve a night away because of the distance from home.

I certainly wouldn't 'attend' the interview - but I would travel with her had she needed to go and spend a weekend away as a bonus.

Fortunately she has received her four offers so far with no need to attend for interview.

However if she needs to attend the last one I'll certainly be travelling with her.

onlyroz

Drive her there by all means, but I really do think she needs to enter the campus alone. It seems like things have changed a bit since 1997, but in my experience it was unusual for young adults to be ferried about the country for university interviews and open days. I visited maybe 5 universities - and the only one my parents took me to was Cambridge, because the train journey would have been a nightmare. They dropped me off close to the college and then went and did some shopping until I was finished.