Posts Tagged ‘university study’

Year 13, UCAS Applications – time to decide which university is right for you

Wednesday, October 12th, 2011

If you are in Year 13 and deciding about your next step after A Levels then you are probably in the midst of completing your UCAS application form. It maybe that you’ve already decided what you want to study and where you want to go. But if you are struggling with the decision then here are a few places to look for more information and some hints on making that all important decision.

This week (15th October) is the UCAS application deadline if you want to apply to study medicine or dentistry, veterinary courses or want to go to Oxford or Cambridge. We’ve written before about Oxbridge entry and we have specialised tutors at 121 Home Tutors who can help with Oxbridge entry.

  1. The first part of your decision is whether you want to go university or not. It’s easy to get pushed down a road of going to university by over enthusiastic parents, especially if you’ve no idea what you’d like to for a future career. We’ve written a blog post here about the drop out rates at universities and some questions to ask yourself before you complete your UCAS form. There are alternatives to university – a great place to look is http://www.notgoingtouni.co.uk/. And there are plenty of successful people who didn’t go to university.
  2. If you decide that university is the right choice for you then you need to do your research. There are comprehensive guides to the universities by subject and you need to read these as well as the prospectus for the specific university you are interested in.
  3. There are a few things you need to consider when choosing a degree course. It’s a good idea to choose something you are interested in and/or show a flair for because you will be studying it for at least the next three years. But it’s worth thinking beyond graduation. What kind of career prospects will your chosen degree give you? . For example did you know Medicine and dentistry have the highest rates of employment – 87%  of Medicine and 83%  of Dentistry students  find jobs immediately after graduation, and they earn more than other graduates – around £30k a year.
  4. It’s important that your decision is your own. Try not to be influenced by where your friends are going – you’ll make new friends.
  5. If you’re struggling to make a decision then talk to your careers advisor. You can also ring prospective universities and ask to speak to course tutors, they are usually very happy to help.

If you need help with tutoring in Year 13 or help with your UCAS personal statement then 121 Home Tutors can help – we cover areas across Manchester and Cheshire including Wilmslow, Didsbury and Alderley Edge. It’s easy to get in touch.

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100,000 students drop out of university

Wednesday, September 21st, 2011

This month will see about half a million students start a university course in the UK. This is the last entry year before many universities will introduce higher fees (some at £9k or more a year) and the number of applications to universities rose sharply. Many missed out on places but did you know every year hundreds of thousands of students drop out of university? A 2008 study estimated 100,000 students left their course after the first year.  Almost a quarter of students, around 22%, failed to complete their course.

There are probably lots of different reasons that students drop out of university – they didn’t want to be there in the first place, they chose the wrong course, they miss friends or home, they can’t cope with the change. Lots of people think that widening participation (getting more people into university) is one of the main causes of drop out rates and that may be a contributing factor as students might not have the support of people at home or struggle financially.

We tutor lots of students, in all kinds of subjects from Maths to Spanish, who are about to apply for university. Here are some questions to ask yourself before you make that final decision.

  • Why are you going to university? Is it for you? Are you doing it to make your parents happy? This is probably the first adult decision you will have to make that could have a real impact on the rest of your life – it has to be right for you.
  • How have you chosen your course? Did you decide on it because your mates are doing it or because you did an A Level in it? Sit down with a piece of paper and make a list of the things you enjoy and are interested in (and would be willing to study for at least three years). That’s a good starting point to choose a course.
  • And the same goes for university locations – choose carefully, visit each campus. Remember you will be living there for at least three years – think about how easily you can get home, get around the city and see people so you don’t feel isolated.
  • If you are the first person in your family to go to university then make sure your friends and family understand that you’ll need financial and moral support. It’s great if you have someone to talk to who has been to university.
  • Think about what you want after uni. This will help determine if it’s right for you. University does give you some great life skills (and general transferable skills like research) but it can be a confidence knock if things don’t go well. If you really want to be a writer then is going to Aberdeen to study Engineering the right thing?

If you are applying for university this year and need help with your UCAS form or tutoring for A Levels including Maths, English and Science in Manchester and Cheshire then contact 121 Home Tutors.

 

 

 

 

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Tutoring helping children secure Oxbridge places

Wednesday, September 7th, 2011

The Independent recently revealed that more than 100 states schools are paying a private company to tutor their brightest pupils on how to get a place at Oxford or Cambridge. This news has come at the same time as a report from the Sutton Trust that shows that most people who get places at Oxford and Cambridge are from selective state grammar or independent schools.

Getting a place at Oxford or Cambridge has never been easy – they turn away around 8,000 applications each year and expect pupils to gain A* grades at A Level.

Now it seems it isn’t just parents who want to use tutors to help their child gain a place at Oxbridge but also the schools. In the last few years it has become more acceptable for both parents and teachers to seek the help of an outside tutoring company or private tutor to help them get a child into Oxford or Cambridge.

Specialised tutors can help in a number of ways:

  • Prepare and help your child for exams throughout the year so they get the grades they need to get into Oxbridge – because getting a place is so competitive these universities won’t accept lower grades so you need to be on top academically. It’s worth thinking about university before GCSEs – when students apply to university they will only have their GCSEs (and possibly AS and predicted A Level results). Their grades at GCSE will need to be as good as possible (usually A*).
  • Coach on interview techniques – Oxbridge interviews can often be used to test how you cope under pressure, so the interviewer may throw unexpected questions your way.
  • Help with test preparation – you might be asked to take a written test or engage in a healthy debate, you need to know how to handle this situation.

Oxford and Cambridge do offer a number of opportunities for students from lower income households, if you contact the universities they can tell you about these schemes.

There are two main things a private tutor can help you with – building your confidence and helping you develop as an independent thinker – these are two key skills that Oxbridge are looking for. We can’t wave a magic wand and guarantee a place at Oxbridge and any private tutoring company or personal tutor claiming to do so should be avoided.

If you’d like to know more about Oxbridge tutoring then call 121 Home Tutors on 01625 531 630. We work with students across Manchester and Cheshire.

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A Level Results day – what happens now?

Wednesday, August 17th, 2011

It’s August and that means results day tomorrow for those of you who took your AS and A2 Levels just a few months ago. We’ve got our fingers crossed that you’ll get exactly the right grades you need to get your place at University on your chosen course. But what happens if things go wrong and the piece of paper doesn’t have what you expected on it.

-          The first thing is not to panic – both your college or school and universities are used to (and set up for) dealing with students who didn’t get the grades they expected (and it works both ways – maybe your grades are better than you thought they’d be). The first thing to do is take a deep breath and then find someone to talk to – it could be your personal tutor/head of sixth form, an advisor at college (there may be people around specifically to help you) or someone at the university you applied to. All these people want to help you and your school or college will help you look at different ways of getting you on to the course or university you want to be at. If you have a good relationship with your tutor they may be willing to speak directly to an admissions tutor. It’s always worth checking with the university that you don’t already have a place (mistakes can happen!).

-          If you haven’t got the grades you expected it doesn’t instantly mean you won’t get the place or course that you applied for. It’s not easy to get onto competitive courses if you haven’t got the grades they wanted but do call the university and speak to the admissions tutor – if there are specific reasons why you didn’t get the grades you thought you would then be prepared to explain them. If you really want to get on a course then you may have to fight your corner.

-          If your grades mean you can’t get on the courses you wanted then you can consider going through clearing. Again your first port of call should be your school or college who can point you in the direction of suitable courses and universities.

-          If you think clearing isn’t for you (and you have to think carefully about choosing a university or course at speed) then how about other options – lots of people take a gap year and work or travel, maybe you might decide to work full time or try a more practical route like an apprenticeship.  Look at www.notgoingtouni.com.

-          You can always go back. For most students the prospect of resitting fills them with dread but for the sake of a few months you could get on the university course that you want. You can usually resit modules next January and reapply through UCAS. The advantage this time is that you probably have a good idea of where you went wrong and how you can fix it. If you decide to resit then this can be the ideal time to get the help of a private tutor who can help you make the most of your study time.

A Level Results Day

If you need to talk to someone about your exam results in confidence then call 0808 100 8000. If you need to talk to someone about private tutoring in Manchester and Cheshire for A Level, AS Level and A2 Level then contact 121 Home Tutors.

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How do I get a place to do Medicine at University?

Thursday, August 11th, 2011

If you want to study Medicine at university then you have to be ready for some fierce competition.  There are only a handful of universities that offer medicine and it is an academically demanding course that tests even those with the best grades.  But many students who intend on applying to do medicine fall down at the application or interview stage because they fail to see they need to stand out. We’ve asked our tutors to come up with some tips for applying to do medicine. You’ll find these especially helpful if you’ll soon get your GCSE results and finally decide AS/A Level options or are about to go into Year 13.

If you want to apply to do medicine you do it through UCAS (Universities and College Admissions Service), in common  with admissions for all courses to all universities in the UK. The early application deadline is 15 October medicine (earlier than some courses).

You can apply for four medical places (you have six spaces – most people use the other two for back up courses in medically related fields like pharmacology).

  1. The UCAS form is the thing that will secure you an interview so it’s vital you spend plenty of time on it – the two most important aspects are your personal statement and teacher statement.
  2. You’ll be expected to get very high grades – places like Oxford require AAA (or possibly even A*). You will need Chemistry at A Level. AS results, A level results, A2 results and GCSE results also matter, you need to show a consistent academic performance.
  3. In your personal statement carefully check your grammar and spelling (or get someone else to do it). Make sure it meets the UCAS entry guidelines – so it has to be less than 47 lines on the form (not 47 lines typed in Word) and less than 4000 characters. You need to be clear about why you want to study medicine, any work experience/voluntary work you have done, what you know about working in medicine and how you found out about this (work experience etc), your hobbies and achievements, any jobs and responsibilities and sum up why they should choose you.  It’s not really the place to start going over your AS results, A level results, A2 results and GCSE results.
  4. One thing in your personal statement that will help you stand out is any relevant work experience – start thinking about this now. You can find useful information here . Holiday work will look good in your personal statement and also ensure that you are picking the right career path.  
  5. Make sure your teacher or referee knows the kind of information a Medicine admissions tutor is looking for – you want them to backup your passion for becoming a doctor and studying medicine while talking about your achievements and your positive attributes such as leadership and communication skills.

If you need help with tutoring at As or A2 and A Level subjects such as Biology and Chemistry in Manchester and Cheshire then call 121 Home Tutors (01625 531360). Over the next few weeks we will be around to chat through your options when you get your AS results, A level results, A2 results and GCSE results.

We have a team of dedicated and experienced tutors who have helped students gain places on courses to study Medicine.

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Tutoring gets children into Oxford and Cambridge

Friday, February 25th, 2011

Xaverian College in Rusholme, Manchester has hit the headlines because 12 pupils have been offered places to study at Oxford and Cambridge. At the moment about eight per cent of pupils in Britain attend private schools. That small percentage makes up about half of those who get places at Oxford and Cambridge.

Peter Birch, Assistant Principal, made it his mission to help his inner city pupils compete with children from private schools by introducing special private tuition lessons. This Manchester college concentrated on building confidence, problem-solving and interview techniques in their private tuition lessons.  The interview for Oxford and Cambridge can be particularly tough for unprepared students (you can read about Christopher Howarth’s experience here).

Here at 121 Home Tutors we work with high school, college and sixth form students in the same way – giving them the tangible skills they need (higher grades) and less tangible skills (confidence) to get a place at top universities. It’s not always subject specifics that we tackle in tutoring, it’s often about finding untapped potential and helping a child realise what they are capable of.

If you or your child would like to talk to someone about private tuition in Manchester (or a surrounding area such as Heaton Moor, Altrincham, or Didsbury) to help with university entrance then contact us today.

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Dealing with university re-sits this summer

Saturday, July 10th, 2010

So you/your child worked incredibly hard at GCSE and then A level, to achieve the grades to get into University only to struggle to get through the course?  (As a parent you may not actually realise your child is struggling – I know I did at least once during my undergraduate degree and certainly didn’t admit it! There are no end of term reports so be prepared to probe deeper.) Going to University is a huge learning curve for students – as undergraduates they must learn to stand on their own two feet and take responsibility for themselves and also their learning. They must learn to organise their time effectively – which may mean time managing a part time job with studies. University is not regimented like school/college and it is all too easy to become distracted by University life itself and as a result, studies often suffer. Even the most academic and brightest students can struggle – a child used to being top of his/her class at school is not necessarily going to be top of the class at Uni and students can struggle for many reasons; course content may be tough to understand and or they have struggled with time management and/or organisation.

Unlike at school/college where poor end of year results translate to unfavourable reports, at University, failure to make the required standard means failing the year. Students must pass the year to graduate to the next.  Failing a year can have a devastating effect on students and can knock their confidence and/or  cause panic/stress or it can be a necessary wake up call if not enough study was done first time round! However, failing a year is not usually as final as it sounds and most courses offer opportunities to re-sit failed modules / courses.  Re-sits are usually in August or September. Course tutors and other University staff are there to help students – but again students must take responsibility for themselves and ask for help and for students that have a re-sit exam this summer we have a few tips…

  • First, don’t panic – panicking doesn’t lead to constructive study.   
  • Be honest about the problem – why did you fail the original exam/module? Was it lack of understanding, lack of knowledge and/or not enough commitment to study? Was it a personal/medical problem?
    • Lack of understanding: course tutors are often more than happy to explain things – we’d advise asking a course tutor, or maybe a postgraduate student, if they are willing to help and if you can book an appointment with them. It is best to book an appointment as, contrary to popular belief, academics are very busy and have plenty work to do outside of formal teaching time!
    • Lack of knowledge: if this was because not enough time was spent studying, take this as a useful wake up call! Timetable in more study time and get more organised! Again, if organising your time is a problem there are University support staff available – student counseling services, student unions and careers offices may be sources of help on this.
    • A personal/medical problem: don’t worry you are not alone. Many students find it difficult to cope with university life and study and for numerous reasons. Hopefully you have already discussed this with University staff and have been given some dispensation and/or a plan to move forward but if not, again Student Counseling services, Student Unions, Careers Service can point you in the direction as can course tutors. Get help
  • Get organised and get down to work! One of the transferable skills acquired at Uni is being organised, self motivated and able to work independently. If you need help with revision you may find our posts on revision tips and making the most of study leave helpful; though the posts address GCSE and A level students, the tips are applicable to students of all ages.
  • Ask for help if you need it and it’s advisable to be upfront with friends and family who will no doubt provide much needed support.

As a parent, there are several ways you can help:

  • Understand that your ‘child’ is a young adult learning to juggle life, work, play and study and this is not easy.
  • Remember your young adult ‘child’ is no longer bound by school rules and there are no teachers to report back on their progress so make them feel comfortable and encourage them to be upfront about their studies – many students will not want to admit they can’t cope. If they are struggling try to probe why and see if/how you can help.
  • Be supportive – even if you think they should be working harder or doing things differently!
  • Consider hiring a tutor.   

If you live in the Greater Manchester or East Cheshire area and you’d like to find out more about how tutoring can help with degree re-sit exams, dissertations and theses – don’t hesitate to get in touch with 121 Home Tutors. We’ll be very happy to advise you, and, if you wish, put you in touch with tutors relevant to the student’s needs.

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