University things, and snow!
3 Mar 2006 10:24 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
curiouswombatWe've had snow! This is a fairly rare occurrence - it doesn't happen every year at all. There was even enough for it to stick, and for the children ( and teenagers!) to make snowballs, although not enough for snowmen. I was going to take a picture of the palm trees in the square near my office covered in snow, but by the time I had a coffee break and went outside the snow had all slid off them.
The saga of the daughter and the universities continues.
For those of you outside the UK system - all applications are made centrally, and students may only apply to six universities. So the first bit was of course deciding on the six. Did that a while ago, and the application form went in. Then you wait to see who offers you a place. You have to wait (these days) until you hear from all your six universities, then let the central system (UCAS) know which one you will go to if you get the required grades at A level (end of secondary Education State Exams), and which one you want to hold as your reserve - obviously one which will take you with lower grades, in case you don't do quite so well. The others get told you don't love them!
So by mid-December Kat had offers of places from five of her six universities, and no rejections - which is pretty good! Especially as she knows she is good at her subject - History, and did not underestimate herself - all 6 of her choices are in the top 30 of UK universities, most in the top 20.
Most exciting for her was getting her offer from York - where she most wants to go. To take up the place she has to get an A in History, an A in Classical Civilisation, and a B in German - they don't accept General Studies as one of your three graded subjects.
We waited and waited for her sixth university to contact us. In the meantime we had visited not only York, but also Sheffield and last weekend Lancaster - she was trying to decide between them for her second 'insurance' choice. She is having real trouble with this, as both have equal numbers of pros and cons - I think it was a bit 'the head says Lancaster, the heart says Sheffield', but her feelings altered by the hour, and she really wasn't sure. Sheffield also want an A in History, plus another A and a B - but they will accept General Studies, Lancaster want an A in History, and Bs in 2 other subjects, including General Studies. Edinburgh and Glasgow have also offered her places, but Edinburgh sent lots of rather confusing forms which she had to return 'NOW', confirming that they were her first choice, or something dire would happen - so she decided that they could get stuffed! Glasgow is nice, but she kind of preferred Lancaster or York - probably!
Then there was that sixth university - St. Andrews. She applied almost on a whim, because the course looked good. St Andrews is Scotland's equivalent of Oxford or Cambridge. It is where Prince William did his degree. She thought before Christmas that if they offered her a place, or asked her for interview, she had better go and have a look, and if they offer you a place could you turn them down, or are they a bit like royalty?
By a couple of weeks ago, she had decided that she probably wouldn't bother to go visit if asked - the longer she waited and the more she learnt about the place the more she decided it wasn't what she wanted - as a town it looks a bit like Peel but with a bigger Golf Club House! (When we came home to the Island S2C said he didn't mind where we lived, as long as it wasn't Peel - it gives the impression that it shuts down from September to May, and people on the island tell 'Peel' jokes - you get the idea!).
But as long as she didn't hear from them she didn't have to make any decision.
So a couple of days ago St Andrews also offered her a place. She is fairly sure that she is going to turn them down - even if they aren't used to such cheek!
Today she got a letter from Lancaster. If she chooses them as her first choice, and gets 3As in her A levels, they will give her one of their 300 £1,000 scholarships. They really, really want our daughter! So now she has a 'bribe' to take into consideration as well - because if she decides to accept this, then she has to accept them as her first choice - so no chance of going to York if she doesn't get the 3 As she needs for the Lancaster scholarship, because UCAS will allocate her to Lancaster. As their actual place offer is on lower grades than York she can't keep York at all really - she would have to keep Glasgow as her insurance. But if she goes to Lancaster she is £1,000 better off, if she gets 3 A grades.
I think that I hope she sticks with her heart, and keeps York as her main choice - but for the first time in well over a year she is now unsure about this, because Lancaster want her so much they will pay her to come. Meep! The good thing is that she has still got time to decide - her final written choice doesn't have to be in for another 8 - 10 weeks, but it is all so confusing now!
And a big Thank You to LJ for this new auto-save - for some reason this didn't post, and I had forgotten to save it myself before posting it - but LJ has saved it for me - the first really useful new feature!
The saga of the daughter and the universities continues.
For those of you outside the UK system - all applications are made centrally, and students may only apply to six universities. So the first bit was of course deciding on the six. Did that a while ago, and the application form went in. Then you wait to see who offers you a place. You have to wait (these days) until you hear from all your six universities, then let the central system (UCAS) know which one you will go to if you get the required grades at A level (end of secondary Education State Exams), and which one you want to hold as your reserve - obviously one which will take you with lower grades, in case you don't do quite so well. The others get told you don't love them!
So by mid-December Kat had offers of places from five of her six universities, and no rejections - which is pretty good! Especially as she knows she is good at her subject - History, and did not underestimate herself - all 6 of her choices are in the top 30 of UK universities, most in the top 20.
Most exciting for her was getting her offer from York - where she most wants to go. To take up the place she has to get an A in History, an A in Classical Civilisation, and a B in German - they don't accept General Studies as one of your three graded subjects.
We waited and waited for her sixth university to contact us. In the meantime we had visited not only York, but also Sheffield and last weekend Lancaster - she was trying to decide between them for her second 'insurance' choice. She is having real trouble with this, as both have equal numbers of pros and cons - I think it was a bit 'the head says Lancaster, the heart says Sheffield', but her feelings altered by the hour, and she really wasn't sure. Sheffield also want an A in History, plus another A and a B - but they will accept General Studies, Lancaster want an A in History, and Bs in 2 other subjects, including General Studies. Edinburgh and Glasgow have also offered her places, but Edinburgh sent lots of rather confusing forms which she had to return 'NOW', confirming that they were her first choice, or something dire would happen - so she decided that they could get stuffed! Glasgow is nice, but she kind of preferred Lancaster or York - probably!
Then there was that sixth university - St. Andrews. She applied almost on a whim, because the course looked good. St Andrews is Scotland's equivalent of Oxford or Cambridge. It is where Prince William did his degree. She thought before Christmas that if they offered her a place, or asked her for interview, she had better go and have a look, and if they offer you a place could you turn them down, or are they a bit like royalty?
By a couple of weeks ago, she had decided that she probably wouldn't bother to go visit if asked - the longer she waited and the more she learnt about the place the more she decided it wasn't what she wanted - as a town it looks a bit like Peel but with a bigger Golf Club House! (When we came home to the Island S2C said he didn't mind where we lived, as long as it wasn't Peel - it gives the impression that it shuts down from September to May, and people on the island tell 'Peel' jokes - you get the idea!).
But as long as she didn't hear from them she didn't have to make any decision.
So a couple of days ago St Andrews also offered her a place. She is fairly sure that she is going to turn them down - even if they aren't used to such cheek!
Today she got a letter from Lancaster. If she chooses them as her first choice, and gets 3As in her A levels, they will give her one of their 300 £1,000 scholarships. They really, really want our daughter! So now she has a 'bribe' to take into consideration as well - because if she decides to accept this, then she has to accept them as her first choice - so no chance of going to York if she doesn't get the 3 As she needs for the Lancaster scholarship, because UCAS will allocate her to Lancaster. As their actual place offer is on lower grades than York she can't keep York at all really - she would have to keep Glasgow as her insurance. But if she goes to Lancaster she is £1,000 better off, if she gets 3 A grades.
I think that I hope she sticks with her heart, and keeps York as her main choice - but for the first time in well over a year she is now unsure about this, because Lancaster want her so much they will pay her to come. Meep! The good thing is that she has still got time to decide - her final written choice doesn't have to be in for another 8 - 10 weeks, but it is all so confusing now!
And a big Thank You to LJ for this new auto-save - for some reason this didn't post, and I had forgotten to save it myself before posting it - but LJ has saved it for me - the first really useful new feature!
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no subject
Date: 04/03/2006 09:58 am (UTC)Thank goodness for the UCAS system - I don't think we could stand the strain if she had more than 6 wanting her!
no subject
Date: 06/03/2006 09:37 pm (UTC)What will be worse is when she has all the acceptances, and we have to look at all the choices and scholarships and decide if she can afford her first choice. The cost is incredible for some of these schools. (Over $40k per year before scholarship funds are applied.)
no subject
Date: 06/03/2006 10:24 pm (UTC)The cost to us is pretty much the same - the governmemt will pay her fees for her, and hall fees are fairly similar at all the universities. I have been saving a bit regularly and have enough in the 'university account' to pay almost all her hall fees for three years - although actually they are usually expected to live out in their second year and sometimes their third - but it will pay her rent anyway!
Actually I really, really love my daughter - she is beginning to think that it is unfair that Lancaster would give her money, even though she will have enought to live on just about, when there maybe someone who needs it more than her, but aren't offered it because they don't feel the need to 'bribe' them as they are only ABB level, rather than possible AAA. I was greatly impressed when she voiced that opinion last night.