Wimbledon College of Art interview - help

Spendless

littleredhen wrote: »

We have talked a lot about it but the problem is if she doesn't go for interview she won't get offered a place - bit like doing the lottery if you know what I mean
There are student loans and bursaries that she can apply for, we have done a lot of soul searching about this

Completely understand this. I have a DS currently considering Uni. Places that looked 'good' on paper he's disliked on arrival and somewhere that I thought would be a 'not a prayer' he'd want to go to is the current favourite. Unless you go you don't know.

Tabbytabitha

Grumpelstiltskin wrote: »

Has she experience of living in a city?

OK You could live in a busy part of Glasgow or you could live in a village in the Highlands. London can be a scary place for a young woman on her own, could she cope with that?

Wimbledon is on the edge of London and not much busier than a provincial town.

silvercar

These really are things that should have been discussed before application. I can see that it would be totally demoralising to be offered an interview and then not take the interview because of travelling logistics and cost. But both these should have been foreseen before applying.
Better to have looked into things before choosing where to apply than be in the situation you are in now. What was the point of applying if she could never manage the logistics and you didn't have the money for it?

Starrystarrynight1

If she does get a place (in London or here in Scotland) she will be able to apply for Disabled Students' Allowances on the basis of mental health issues. If eligible, she might be awarded mental health mentoring sessions and it's likely the colleges will have their own counsellors, so there will be some help for her, if that helps to put both your minds at rest a little.

Grumpelstiltskin

Tabbytabitha wrote: »

Wimbledon is on the edge of London and not much busier than a provincial town.

Yes but it is in south London and she would need to travel into London every time she went home/came back.

This will depend on where she is living now and is she able to travel on her own for long distances with no problems.

Another thought about travel, have you looked at Megabus? Not the most luxurious but cheap.

BorisThomson

littleredhen wrote: »

We have talked a lot about it but the problem is if she doesn't go for interview she won't get offered a place - bit like doing the lottery if you know what I mean
There are student loans and bursaries that she can apply for, we have done a lot of soul searching about this

Student finance alone is not going to cover the cost of living in London. Is she going to be able to work whilst she is there?

littleredhen

Grumpelstiltskin wrote: »

Has she experience of living in a city?

OK You could live in a busy part of Glasgow or you could live in a village in the Highlands. London can be a scary place for a young woman on her own, could she cope with that?

we are currently not far from Edinburgh and she is at art school in the city

littleredhen

BorisThomson wrote: »

Student finance alone is not going to cover the cost of living in London. Is she going to be able to work whilst she is there?

That is the 64 thousand dollar question, of course I don't want to hold her enthusiasm back but the realities are very different, I am trying to offer a balanced view to her, she does a lot of magical thinking (part of the illness) and that doesn't help i.e "I am going to get a job" my reply is "yes but so far you haven't managed to even apply for any jobs because of the anxiety etc"
It is so hard, my heart is breaking but at the same time I am trying to be practical, supportive and encouraging whilst not letting her get out of her depth

littleredhen

Spendless wrote: »

Has she got a railcard to reduce costs?

https://www.16-25railcard.co.uk/

You can still get cheaper slots with not much notice by using a railcard, though you need to include the price of buying one.

If the relative that wants to help, hasn't asked for the money and I understand that you'd want to pay them, could you ask if they'd accept you paying back the following month to make things a little easier?

How much are we talking about? Is there any cutbacks that can be made to find at least some of the cost?

Thanks I don't want to go into too much detail but my daughter has spent the money she put by for going to Art School, its a long story and yes I have chastised her and told her its not on, however, I cannot for the life of me not support in these important decisions, I don't give her any money other than for essentials, i.e travel etc, have told her if she wants to go out or buy stuff she should have thought about that before spending her savings!
Again its the magical thinking that everything else will be ok!

theoretica

I would hope the Wimbledon college would be able to help at least a little. Some places offer student accommodation the night before open days. Do they have other days available perhaps in holidays when you could travel with her, or with more notice to book ahead? Is anyone else from her present college going?