How do I get my son to uni?

Question

My Nigel is nearly 13 and I want him to have a university education.
It didn't occur to my parents that it was even possible for their kids yet some privileged babies have their name down for Eton to give them a good start. I find I'm just as ignorant as to what steps to take yet his friend, who's father owns the wine bar in town, is quite certain he is going.

Answer 1

First of all, make sure that this is his ambition, not just yours,otherwise he'll drop out a month or so after going.

Make sure he takes his education seriously whilst at school. WHen he comes to choose GCSE's I would suggest he chooses according to what he enjoys, not what he wants to do in life (unless he has very set ideas about a specific career) By choosing what he enjoys, he is more likely to be enthusiastic and do well. If he feels he is doing a subject because his mum said its a good idea, he may be likely to get bored and therefore disruptive and fail.

Once he has done GCSE's he needs to progress to further education. This would usually mean A levels (AS followed by A2 over 2 years) but universities also accept peple who've done NVQ's. Again, pick subjects that he enjoys, unless he is looking at being a vet or doctor for example, where he will need the sciences.

Around Christmas time of his 2nd year of A levels, use UCAS to research universities and courses. You have to apply to uni's via UCAS and there is a fee of about £30 (at the moment!) You can apply to up to 6 uni's. They will get back to you with a conditional offer. If you have more than one offer you have to say which is our 1st and 2nd choice.

Then, he works hard to get the results he needs to get in. At this point, he's done it!

Well done on wanting to encourage your son. Education is so important and opens so many doors. Have a look at the UCAS website for some idea of the qualifications accepted.

Answer 2

It is relatively easy for your son to have a university education. Help him get good GCSEs and then A levels in the subjects he needs for his chosen degree. There is plenty of choice available too. Sadly I found that whilst I could help teach my children and afford to send them to university, they didn't want to go. In fact they just dropped out; now many years later they seriously regret it.

So I would suggest that the most important thing you need is for your boy to be keen on going to uni; so you need to get him thinking like that and continue to encourage without pushing too hard. A friend who is going to uni too, helps. However also be aware that male hormones may become a problem over the next couple of years and he may not be too keen. Then you need to encourage him to stick with his current studies and take things a step at a time until you get him back on track. Hope this helps; I certainly felt I failed my daughters.

Answer 3

As it stands at the moment, there is plenty of support for students wanting to go to university. Until 2010 tuition fees are capped at £3000.00 per year but even if they rise above this by the time your son starts university it is likely they will have a similar finance support system in place to the one they have at the moment. Students can take out loans to pay their fees which have a very low rate of interest (linked to inflation) and do not have to be repaid until they have left uni and are earning over £15,000 p/yr. Even then this is only 9% of the amount over £15,000, eg an individual earning £20,000 p/yr would be repaying approximately £40 per month.

I would strongly recommend saving as much as you can as whilst he would be eligible for a fee loan; grants and loans to cover living costs are linked to household income, therefore if your income is (at the moment) more than £33,500 p/yr your son would only be entitled to a fee loan plus a reduced rate loan to live on. On the other hand if you have an income of less than this you could be looking at grants for living costs, plus loans for living costs and maybe even a bursary from the university if they are charging the highest rate of fees.

There is lots of information out there, as your son is 13 you could speak to your local Connexions office for independent careers advice, they may also have an aim higher adviser who can give your son advice on how to get into higher education.

Answer 4

If you truly want your son to have a collage education, than you should start saving now. There are accounts that you can open just for that purpose, that plan your investments for a long term goal. Tuition is very expensive , so start now. Go to your bank and get started now, the money you deposit will also receive some tax credits as well, when used as intended.

Answer 5

How much you earn and the money make has nothing to do with getting into Uni. All it does is make it less financially difficult once you're there and maybe to go to better schools/colleges beforehand. Your son wil get into Uni if his grades are good enough and he actually wants to go. Stop looking at what his friends are doing as the decision has to come from him. He will only go if he knows enough about it for it to be appealing to him.

Answer 6

First he will need excellent grades in his A level exams. Secondly he would need around £20,000. With good grades he should get a grant or a scholarship if not put some money aside starting from now. Eaton will be out of the question if money is your main criteria.

Answer 7

You need to save up so that the fees etc can be paid. Your son needs to make sure he gets the grades in his a-levels to be offered a place at Uni assuming he wants to go. At the end of the day it's his choice and some people just don't want to go to Uni. Be prepared for him deciding not to go.

Answer 8

University is something he will have to want to go to. University educations don't necessarily mean you will get a better job. If he wants to go, that's his choice. Ask him what he wants to do. I have a Bachelor's degree and a Master's degree and my brother has a community college degree. He is making $20 000.00 more than I make a year in a career that his is happy in. I work in a call centre. Was university worth it for me? No

Answer 9

My son is at uni and the 1st in our family to go.He studied hard to achieve his A levels and when he was in his second year at college he applied for university.You ar helped by the college to apply for 6 universities with your expected grades and what course you want to do.You need enough UCAS points to get in but you can get extra points doing voluntary things like working with kids in schools etc.my son is training to be a teacher and has just completed his 1st year.Good luck and don't forget speak to his head master and they can give you loads of advice.

Answer 10

In the UK you can go to University to study anything, believe me. Since the govt. changed all of the colleges and poly's to Universities, any idiot can study there and come away with a degree in 'fruit science' or 'the dynamics of hip-hop on frogspawn'