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A-levels, postscript

Woodface

pfm Member
In a bizarre twist my son had his paper re-graded to an A so he now has 3 As. This is in line with the offer from his first choice (York) however, they no longer have a place for him. Pretty shitty system all round, now trying to pick son up who feels cheated.
 
Sue the examination board for the cost of a gap year (to be spent doing something CV-worthy) and reapply for York next year?
Don’t know how the course and system in York is structured, but I changed my degree course after the first semester at my place. Maybe see if York have a place for an acceptable alternative course, and try to change during the year? There may be people dropping out, or who don’t actually take up the place, or they may decide to squeeze in one more person who is already there?

A crappy way to arrive at the grades, but congratulations to your son on getting three As!
 
He has a place at Newcastle to study law so he will be fine but he has been done over twice really, once by York for being inflexible & again by the examination board. Very proud of him as you would exoect
 
Two of my friends have kids who are still waiting on regraded or properly issued results.

My one daughter got her B paper upgraded to an A, but she is still goimf to her first and original uni -- just got he kudos of the extra A. I did not realise that if you get upgraded, you get the regrade 'fee' returned! Got to trek into school to get it!
 
Got the place OK but have just been told no space in UEA accommodation so will have to rent privately or in a student guest house off campus. Sucks for a first year, I remember how much reassurance my daughter got from being in hall with lots of other newbies.
 
Congrats to those with some fantastic results.

If Woodface Jnr is likely to carry a bit of a disappointment through Uni, surely worth looking at a gap year? I’m sure York would consider awarding a place for next year if approached?

A year earning some cash, maybe in some admin/clerk legal position would be no bad thing.
 
Congrats to those with some fantastic results.

If Woodface Jnr is likely to carry a bit of a disappointment through Uni, surely worth looking at a gap year? I’m sure York would consider awarding a place for next year if approached?

A year earning some cash, maybe in some admin/clerk legal position would be no bad thing.
This. Depending on where you live, maybe a role in a quasi-legal department in the public sector. Various regulators have lots of legal functionality, and a junior position there could usefully soak up a lot of knowhow in a year.
 
This. Depending on where you live, maybe a role in a quasi-legal department in the public sector. Various regulators have lots of legal functionality, and a junior position there could usefully soak up a lot of knowhow in a year.

And some understanding of how business really works pays dividends!
 
I don't think he wants to do a gap year, it will put him out of synch with his peers. He has already done work in a Solicitors & a mini pupillage with a Barrister. Fail to see why he should fit around York when they have been very inflexible. Ultimately not my decision, I think he is now pretty excited about Newcastle. Needless to say I will support whatever direction he takes.
 
I don't think that he'll go wrong with Newastle, it's a good place to be a student. Lots going on, accom not too costly, decent redbrick uni all round.

Up to him to gap year or not, it's one thing that I would change, I didn't and I was still very young when i went to London. A year of growing up would have been very useful, and probably more fun than the 3 years I served in London. The only person I saw waste a gap year was a kid in the year above, or maybe 2, he fancied himself as a bit of a politico and just hung around town without getting a job. He was often to be found "just passing" school at tipping out time so that he could find people to talk to. Everyone else I knew did well out of it, even my pal who dropped out of Oxford after a term and went on to Imperial the next year. His dad, a farmer, said "you needn't think that you can sit around here rent free doing SFA" and put him to work on the farm at the appropriate rate of pay. He and everyone else came back a lot wiser. The rest of us, who were all Thatcher's children, were on the conveyor belt of school-university-job-marry-house and we all believed that if you took any time off you were a fool who would be left behind. No you won't.
 
I don't think that he'll go wrong with Newastle, it's a good place to be a student. Lots going on, accom not too costly, decent redbrick uni all round.

Up to him to gap year or not, it's one thing that I would change, I didn't and I was still very young when i went to London. A year of growing up would have been very useful, and probably more fun than the 3 years I served in London. The only person I saw waste a gap year was a kid in the year above, or maybe 2, he fancied himself as a bit of a politico and just hung around town without getting a job. He was often to be found "just passing" school at tipping out time so that he could find people to talk to. Everyone else I knew did well out of it, even my pal who dropped out of Oxford after a term and went on to Imperial the next year. His dad, a farmer, said "you needn't think that you can sit around here rent free doing SFA" and put him to work on the farm at the appropriate rate of pay. He and everyone else came back a lot wiser. The rest of us, who were all Thatcher's children, were on the conveyor belt of school-university-job-marry-house and we all believed that if you took any time off you were a fool who would be left behind. No you won't.
Yeah, I know what you mean but it has to be his choice. He has the opportunity to do a year placement within the course so I think that is a good option. He has had far greater opportunities than I had, this summer he has been to Barcelona with his GF, rented a cottage in Derbyshire with his mates, been to Lanzarote with us & just come back from Leeds Fest. He has also picked up some work at Tramlines Festival & a recent Ed Sheeran gig in Leeds.

I think he will have a great time at Newcastle & there are good legal opportunities. As ever you just want everything to be perfect for your kids.
 
Absolutely it's his choice, and if he feels that he's lived enough life to go to the next stage then that's up to him. The last thing anyone wants is for him to feel that he is dossing about and wasting time, like the kid from my school all those years ago. Provided he's had the conversations and he's choosing with his eyes open then that's all you can do. I agree that a year placement is a great opportunity, I have worked with a number of placement students and in many cases they do better work in that year than some who go straight through and appear as "completed" graduates who have never been anywhere beyond school and university. I have every confidence that they go back to the final year's study with a much better idea of what they are doing it for.
 
Absolutely it's his choice, and if he feels that he's lived enough life to go to the next stage then that's up to him. The last thing anyone wants is for him to feel that he is dossing about and wasting time, like the kid from my school all those years ago. Provided he's had the conversations and he's choosing with his eyes open then that's all you can do. I agree that a year placement is a great opportunity, I have worked with a number of placement students and in many cases they do better work in that year than some who go straight through and appear as "completed" graduates who have never been anywhere beyond school and university. I have every confidence that they go back to the final year's study with a much better idea of what they are doing it for.
Know quite a few clients who started off as interns & went on to have good careers.
 
Newcastle is great for students. Although rents are rising as they all want to live in Jesmond! No longer want to rent in the cheap areas. Is he in Halls this year?
 
Newcastle is great for students. Although rents are rising as they all want to live in Jesmond! No longer want to rent in the cheap areas. Is he in Halls this year?
Yes, he has guaranteed accommodation. I wouldn't want him in some ares of Newcastle to be fair.
 
Newcastle is great for students. Although rents are rising as they all want to live in Jesmond! No longer want to rent in the cheap areas. Is he in Halls this year?
Same in Leeds. They pay a huge premium to be in Headingley, very few live in Meanwood, few in Kirkstall, both of which are nice, and none want to live in Bramley or Armley (which I can understand, but if you select your street you can do well). I don't understand why when it's 2 miles to the Uni by bike (a trip down the canal, if it's light) and you can have a whole 2 bed house for £500 a month, when students in H'ley are paying that for *a room* in a shared house.
 
I don't think that he'll go wrong with Newastle, it's a good place to be a student. Lots going on, accom not too costly, decent redbrick uni all round.

Just don't live too near a river! My niece, who works as a schoolteacher there, has just had 18" of water in her ground floor flat. My brother has gone over to help her sort things out.
 


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