Is your son or daughter considering going to University? What you need to know and do.

Is your son or daughter considering going to University?

What you need to know and do

The next 5 months..

• Ideally all applications from Forest will submitted by October half term

• Medicine, Vet and Oxbridge applications must be in by 1st October

What is a University application?

• A single online form that is handled by UCAS• UCAS forward it to each university that is

applied to • You can apply for a maximum of 5 courses

What does an application include?

• Personal details• Academic history and courses currently being

studied• Predicted grades• Personal statement• School reference

The dreaded personal statement..

• 42 lines long• Explains why you want to do that course• Reflects on what you have done to ensure it is

the right course for you• Reflects on your academic history (good and

bad)• Reflects on your interests outside school• Average number of drafts 15!

Reference

• 42 lines long• Written by form tutor• Includes a report from each subject teacher• Includes details of super-curricular activities• Includes details of community work done at

school and perhaps outside of school• Includes any extenuating circumstances –

please make sure we know of them

So, before the end of the term students should...

• Choose a course• Choose a University• Write a personal statement– Then write it again• Go to previous line…

• Organise any relevant work experience

Vocational courses

• Will train you towards a specific career and is likely to lead to professional qualifications in that field

• Medicine, Veterinary Science, Architecture, Quantity Surveying, Physiotherapy, Primary Teaching, Speech Therapy, Engineering (Civil, Electrical, Electronic, Mechanical, Aerospace, Space, Chemical…)

Semi vocational courses

• Still vocational but a degree in the subject is not necessary for that career and not all graduates will enter the profession

• Law, Accountancy, Journalism, Computer Science, Food Science, Forensic Science

• Some courses are more vocational than others

Academic courses

• Not necessarily linked to a specific career • Motivated by a passion for the subject

• e.g. Geography, Art, Biology, Maths, Chemistry

Joint, Combined and Multidisciplinary courses

• Natural Sciences• Politics, Philosophy and Economics• Combination of 2 academic subjects e.g.

History and Politics• Combination of an academic and a vocational

e.g. Physics and Performing Arts• Variable balance of major and minor options

e.g. Sports Science with Management

Type of course

• Continuous at one UK institution• Sandwich course• Continuous at one UK institution – but with a

year overseas.

The benefits of an academic degree are easily overlooked

• Microsoft: “For us it’s less about what you’ve studied and more about why you want to work for us and what you can bring”

• Graduate employers still often seeking good degree in any discipline + employability skills + work/voluntary experience

How to choose a course

• Think about what you enjoy• Research on University websites• Go to University Open Days• Talk to people• Think about what type of learner you are –

can you learn independently or do you need a lot of ‘teacher time’.

Are all Sociology courses the same?

• Once you have chosen the course or type of course use the University websites to research the details of what is covered

• e.g some sociology courses expect a student to be able to learn how to USE Maths – but A level Maths is not a requirement.

• Some courses are assessed by only exams but some have coursework

How do you choose a university? – so much choice

• Oxbridge (Oxford and Cambridge)• Russell group (24 universities all successful in

commercial exploitation of their research)• New Universities (founded in 1992, some were

originally polytechnics, some teacher training colleges and Art and Technology institutions)

• Campus or City

Open Days

• Southampton University 4/5th July• Bath University 19th June• Surrey University 27/28th June• Brunel University 28th June• www.opendays.com• Also available in September which may help

cope with clashes – but don’t leave it all until then

Make realistic choices

• Aspirations are great but make sure choices include courses that ask for lower grades

• Just because a student is unlikely to get AAB grades doesn’t mean they shouldn’t apply to University they just need to choose the right course (level of teaching v independent study) for them

• Look at how the course is assessed – find the right type for you

• Choosing the wrong course can lead to demotivation and stress, now and later

2011/2012

• 21% of students dropped out of their course!!• ‘I didn’t like the course’• ‘I didn’t know what else to do’• ‘I felt pushed’• ‘My accommodation was too far away from the Uni’• ‘I was burnt out after working so hard for my A levels and I

couldn’t do it any more’• ‘I was made to apply to Cambridge’• 'I had too much free time and I didn’t feel I was being taught

enough’• ‘I was too far away from my girlfriend/boyfriend’

Websites

• Each University has a comprehensive website• www.ucas.com• www.completeuniversityguide.co.uk• www.russellgroup.ac.uk• www.hepi.ac.uk• www.push.co.uk• www.hecsu.ac.uk• http://unistats.direct.gov.uk/

What happens after you have done all this and the form has gone

Conditional offers based on A level grades

Conditional offers based on points tariff A*= 140, A=120, B =100, C = 80, D = 60, E = 40AS’s half of the aboveDist = 120, Merit = 80, Pass = 40

Rejection

What we will be doing

• Using IT suites for EP sessions.– Course and Uni research– UCAS application

• Listening, advising, reviewing personal statements and cajoling students beyond an impasse.

• Even if a student is convinced they are not going to university he/she should still participate in this process.– The data you have to input will be required for any job/apprenticeship

application – it’s all in one place– You will need to make a personal statement about yourself

• It’s bloomin’ hard, so this is good practice.

What can you do?

• Discuss application status– Review personal statements

• If they will let you.

• Act as a sounding board for your son/daughter• Encourage open day visits– Maybe even provide transport

• Tread that delicate line between help and pushing too much• There are often separate sessions specifically designed for parents.

• Use contacts to find useful work experience

A word about finance• Support comes via loans that are only repaid when the

repayments can be afforded.– Tuition fee loan and maintenance loan– Part of the maintenance loan maybe a grant

• https://www.gov.uk/student-finance/overview has a very good overview.– And information on extra support available

• The maintenance loan will not be enough to live on, other sources of income will be needed to top this up.– Bursaries/Scholarships

• http://thescholarshiphub.org.uk/ – Long term, interest free overdrafts– Vacation work

Thank you for coming

• Good luck!• And thanks for your donations– Your £28 helped me break the £300 barrier• Very much appreciated by Miss Bishop as well.