Results Day - A Levels

[Dogtrousers]

Spotted something here. Both I and DCLane have said 'study' - we both work in Uni's. No-one calls it 'read' these days. Only 'old fogies' call it read

Even I, a right old fogey, find "read" in this context old fashioned. I associate it with Oxbridge and maybe University Challenge.

"Oh, he read Greats at Flimbim". You are assumed to know that Flimbim is actually a college at Oxford/Cambridge, and that it's spelled Funglingspoons. And WTF is Greats?

 

[fossyant]

Even I, a right old fogey, find "read" in this context old fashioned. I associate it with Oxbridge and maybe University Challenge.

"Oh, he read Greats at Flimbim". You are assumed to know that Flimbim is actually a college at Oxford/Cambridge, and that it's spelled Funglingspoons. And WTF is Greats?

I'm an old 'fogey' too !

 

[geocycle]

Even I, a right old fogey, find "read" in this context old fashioned. I associate it with Oxbridge and maybe University Challenge.

"Oh, he read Greats at Flimbim". You are assumed to know that Flimbim is actually a college at Oxford/Cambridge, and that it's spelled Funglingspoons. And WTF is Greats?

Hey, I ran a module on Grates and urban water runoff!

 

[lazybloke]

Thread revival for 2024 A Level results day.
My son has been battling his SEND conditions since reception class. During the last two years especially, his work had never met his targets, and had slipped further with each report.

But today his first choice of uni has confirmed a place for him, plus he pulled something special out of the bag and got good enough grades that they've upgraded his course choice - dropping a foundation year requirement.

An absolutely fantastic result; well done, lad!!!

 

[fossyant]

Thread revival for 2024 A Level results day.
My son has been battling his SEND conditions since reception class. During the last two years especially, his work had never met his targets, and had slipped further with each report.

But today his first choice of uni has confirmed a place for him, plus he pulled something special out of the bag and got good enough grades that they've upgraded his course choice - dropping a foundation year requirement.

An absolutely fantastic result; well done, lad!!!

Well done

 

[fossyant]

This is exactly what my Uni is doing - if someone's results are better than expected for the Foundation, they are bumping them to the Degree. Some of the UCAS points have been lowered, so those that were originally considered for the foundation, are being moved onto the degree, enabling those will 'less good' results to access the foundation programmes.

 

[wiggydiggy]

Ooof I remember getting mine, a combination of lazyness and complacency meant I left without what I needed. I did go to uni but wasn't my first choice and I did go through clearing. Good luck to anyone going through clearing as even years later I remember how stressful it was!

 

[markemark]

I got As in maths and further maths A levels. Could have done a pure maths degree but decided on something more practical. Of course I can easily help my daughter with her GCSE maths. Bit of algebra, but of trig. Do it with my eyes shut. Let me have a look..... Easy, easy, easy, easy, that one was a bit trickier but I can do. Feeling cocky. Erm.....that's quite tricky....hang on, that's really hard. What, this is GSCE now??

Yes pupils are doing really well and many are getting As and A*s. But that's because the teaching methods have come on so far in the last couple of decades. It's incredible what they learn and to what level. The sad part is that there's many kids who are getting left behind and there seems to be a widening gap between those who try and those who don't.

So good luck to all those kids who did well and ignore everyone who tries to diminish your achievement.

 

[fossyant]

We know very well, that many of the students coming through now to Higher Education, are needing more support than ever. Why, well their education has suffered due to the lockdowns, so even more praise if they have done well.

 

[lazybloke]

I got As in maths and further maths A levels. Could have done a pure maths degree but decided on something more practical. Of course I can easily help my daughter with her GCSE maths. Bit of algebra, but of trig. Do it with my eyes shut. Let me have a look..... Easy, easy, easy, easy, that one was a bit trickier but I can do. Feeling cocky. Erm.....that's quite tricky....hang on, that's really hard. What, this is GSCE now??

Yes pupils are doing really well and many are getting As and A*s. But that's because the teaching methods have come on so far in the last couple of decades. It's incredible what they learn and to what level. The sad part is that there's many kids who are getting left behind and there seems to be a widening gap between those who try and those who don't.

So good luck to all those kids who did well and ignore everyone who tries to diminish your achievement.

Yes good luck to everyone else getting results today.

It's not always the smoothest path. I crashed out of my Further Maths A Level in the autumn of my upper sixth year, which meant I failed to meet any of the requirements of my uni offers.
Clearing is one answer - I got my first choice after all.

That was 35 years ago, and I've yet to use my degree!

 

[derrick]

My grandaughter 2 A stars 1 straight A. she is going where she wanted to go,

 

[lazybloke]

My grandaughter 2 A stars 1 straight A. she is going where she wanted to go,

Wonderful!
My wife's niece was getting results today too. Not that they really matter, as she's been sitting on an unconditional offer from Oxford since last year!

 

[Profpointy]

There are jobs out there for these students - Animation goes straight into all the films/TV etc you see - most backgrounds are green screen. Student outcomes are important - i.e. getting graduate level posts after qualifying. Psychology is really popular, it's a great course, BUT very few get a graduate level job after.

Strangely I seem to know 3 or 4 professional psychologists, and I don't recall meeting a psychology grad working at summat else.

By contrast in my own software/telecomms career, an engineering discipline, a good many of us were not qualified in Comp Sci or telecomms, particularly those of us above a certain age. Most of the youngsters had a relevant degree though, and of us oldies the majority had studied a science or engineering subject of some kind. There were some highly qualified people too, some of them eminent contributors to the standards committees and such, so we weren't all a bunch of amateurs

 

[Time Waster]

Niece got two As and a B. She got top marks in GCSEs in all but one of her 10 courses. She's in to Nottingham. Back in the day Nottingham was the one everyone at my school wanted (except the Oxbridge / Durham snobs). Mostly because all boy and it was over 50% women there!! I got turned down by Nottingham Poly (yes one of the last years to apply to UCCA and PCAS separately).

Nottingham Uni did not even reply to me putting it in my 5 choices. I was not triple A student and I put them 5th because I didn't want to go there because their Civil Engineering department was pants compared to the other choices. I got into my first choice but not my choice of course. I got poor results because I didn't work for A levels. You can do that for GCSEs but not A-levels back then. My first choice uni called me offering me a place in a dead end course. Pre-internet I had no idea what it was or how good. It sounded ingterested and I had no idea of clearing. My school wasn't interested in you once thehy handed results out. If you didn't get in where you applied then FU!!!! They basically preferred to push kids to Oxbridge. Abotu a third got in to those universities even if they were not the best for quality of chosen subjects or gave the best outcomes in the field.

Anyway, I heard this year Universities were giving higher offers but accepting a lot lower. For example a civil engineering course in Sheffield was something like AAB but people were getting accepted with BBC. Cue news programme asking if they are letting people in who are not able to get a degree? WTF! In my day offers were at most BBB for civil engineering and Sheffield was one of the many giving offers out for CCC in civil engineering. Is this a sign of grade inflation, better school teachin standards in schools or are kids simply more intelligent these days???

BTW I got a shoot degree then a decent masters to make up for it. I then went into a different field completely. I amm now waiting for an ADHD diagnosis. Which explains my inability to get my coursework in on time, or at all!! I used to say I was only interested in learning the stuff not proving I had learnt it. I know people in academia and the current syste really is set up to properly teach, assess and help students. I do wonder how well I could have done if I went through school and university under the current system. Could I have shown my true potential?

I wish all the young adults well in their futures. whether university or other route. We need them all to do well.

 

[lazybloke]

Nottingham, snotingham.
Interviewed me, then gave me a ridiculous offer that was completely out of reach.

I was a bit annoyed to hear a few years later that two new friends had gone there.