Options if not going to Uni?

[disney1st timer]

What have your children gone on to do if they feel that uni is not for them? Dd is 15 and not hugely academic, has no enthusiasm/spark for art or design (which is a real shame as she’s very good at art and predicted a high grade). She really enjoys health and social care and wants to go to college to do a course in this area. I’ve managed to book an open day in the summer to have a look around Loughborough college and see what her options are but the types of courses are mind boggling and I don’t understand which qualifications she needs to look for to pursue this career path if not going to uni. When I was at school you literally did GCSE’s, A Levels and a degree but it seems like there are so many more options these days! I just want to make sure she follows a path that will open doors and not close them. I’m not interested in pushing her to go to uni if she doesn’t want to but I do want to encourage her to take higher education seriously to give her plenty of options in the future.

[Leggibone]

So - if she wants the option to go to uni later, then she’ll want a-levels or a relevant Btec,
She has to stay in education until 18 - but I believe an apprenticeship counts (it did with someone doing the same course as my sister in engineering), the quality varies by employer and education provider though.
If she wants to do something in health and social care, then it’s worth a look at the various roles that interest her want in terms of qualifications - eg. You can be a carer with very little training, but a midwife goes to uni and there’s various options,
If she’s not sure what aspect of it interests her then maybe needs to approach some places for work experience, or even a shadow session to find out what they do.
Some also allow you to work towards professional qualifications or train on the job - like paramedics ect.

Edit to add - I did Alevels then went in to work (at a well know supermarket) following leaving there I now work in financial services and have got a professional qualification which will allow me to progress once experience and pandemic allow!

[Fluffypenguin]

I originally didn’t intend on going to uni, so I did a BTEC extended Diploma.

My grades from this actually enabled me to go to uni and I changed my mind and went to uni in the end.

I wasn’t massively fussed about uni, but I decided I wanted to do a bit more education before I threw myself into the world of full time work as I just wasn’t ready for a full time job when I got to 18.

[TinselAngel]

Apprenticeships are worth exploring and especially degree apprenticeship programmes for which there is a lot of funding around. The college open day is a good move - make sure you encourage her to ask lots of questions - the college staff really will like that and will engage with her, and she shouldn’t worry about asking ‘daft’ questions either - it’s only easy if you already know the answer and it’s ok to not know. They may have current students there as ambassadors for the college - they are good to chat to as well -so she should ask if there are any students to chat with.

Lots of degree programs start with a couple of years ina FE college before moving to Uni, which may be a good option.

[Floridatilly]

My middle son is 15, year 10, there is no way he would manage at university. He won’t be able to do A levels but I am hoping he can do some for of B tech. He would love to be a fire fighter but I don’t know if his autism will prevent that. Children are such a worry, as long as he is happy we will be happy.
A few of my daughters friends are not going to university, they are doing a mix of things from beauty to apprentices 👍🏻👍🏻

[myaquarium]

Send him to careers office during the summer with the intention of getting an apprenticeship.
Both my lads took this option and we sent them everyday. Obviously they were not happy but on both occasions they were the only kids going.
Both got apprenticeships with Land Rover. Both earning wages from the day they were 16.
Funny enough they both went to sixth form for 1 day and by the time they got home the careers office had confirmed their apprenticeships. Uniforms quickly ripped up and that was that. There’s 6 years between them but I’m glad they took our advice. Uni was a definite no for them.

[ClaireNJ]

I think what your DD wants to do sounds great, University isn’t for everyone, ask the school for some advice regarding the social care & what exams might be needed 😀

My youngest son who is very bright got A*A*B at A level & had no intention of going to University said it wasn’t for him & got a trainee Accountant position with a local firm, took 5 years to do the exams to qualify & now another 5 years on he’s FCO of a large firm.
My eldest who’s not as clever had a part time job at Primark whist at College & they took him on FT & he’s now Store Manager.
They’ll find their own way wherever they are, most important that they have supportive parents which you obviously are

[Joelin]

My son loathed school and didn’t do great academically (we’re in Scotland so qualifications are different). He left and did an introduction to computing course, then went on to do a further entry level qualification and has now been accepted for an HNC in Cyber Security starting in August which had fairly competitive entry. Lots of “introduction to..” courses can open doors for kids who weren’t the most academic at school ,my son is thriving in the college environment which I almost can’t believe at times. Good luck with it,is a worrying time as a parent because you just want what’s best for their future

[disney1st timer]

Thanks everyone, some good advice and great to hear success for children that didn’t go on to uni. I just don’t know where to start with it all but the open day will be a good starter. She’s very shy and will not chat/ask questions so I need to make sure I push her in to it a bit to try and help her gain some confidence!

[123]

Originally Posted by disney1st timer

Thanks everyone, some good advice and great to hear success for children that didn’t go on to uni. I just don’t know where to start with it all but the open day will be a good starter. She’s very shy and will not chat/ask questions so I need to make sure I push her in to it a bit to try and help her gain some confidence!

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Whilst uni isn't for everyone it is worth noting that a lot of jobs in the area your DD is looking at now are firm choices for degree holding applicants.

Nursing and most professions allied to medicine are generally accessed through degree courses nowadays.

I do a lot of work with council social care teams as part of my work with a large consultancy and probably 85% of people in the social care teams are holding degrees.

I'm not saying it's a necessity (far from it in the social care team I work with the most the most senior practitioner left school at GCSE) but if your competition for the role is going to have a degree why not compete on an even playing field, and also doing a degree keeps more options open for her to make a choice in the future.

Just make sure you keep her open to doing a degree rather than helping her close down that avenue, she might regret it later (then again she might land a job she loves straight out of school and never look back - no two people are the same)