Students up and down the country will be returning to schools this week to collect their GCSE results or will be picking them up on email or text. Many will be hoping to have obtained the grades to secure a place at a Further Education or Sixth Form College. For many it can be a time of celebration, but it isn’t always plain sailing.
How informed are you about your or your children’s choices and what happens if you or your young person doesn’t get the grades they’d hoped for? What’s the Plan B and what’s next?
Here, Lisa Capper MBE, CEO and Principal of The Sandwell Colleges, one of the largest and most successful college groups in the West Midlands covering the Black Country and Birmingham, reassures young people that even if results don’t quite go to plan, there’s still an abundance of options and plenty of help and advice available, whatever the grades.
Lisa says…
“GCSE results day is a nerve-racking time for young people but if you (or your child/ young person) don’t receive the grades you were hoping for, please don’t panic as there are many options to move forward into the bright future you deserve.
“If you have just missed out on the critical subjects, don’t panic. At Sandwell College, Cadbury Sixth Form College and Central Saint Michael’s Sixth Form, there are opportunities to re-sit your GCSEs in English and/or Maths and there’s also a wide range of technical, professional and vocational subjects on offer as well as academic A Levels and T Levels – ensuring that the right course, Apprenticeship, training and work experience is available to suit you. Not many educational journeys are perfect or linear by nature, and many young people have found the thing that makes them tick as they move through their later teens and into their early twenties.
“Keep in mind these simple top tips as you approach GCSE results day so that you can make the best decision for you, once you have your results:
- Don’t panic: If you don’t get what you hoped for, whilst you’ll inevitably be disappointed, you should take some time to acknowledge all your hard work to get this far and feel good about completing this stage in your life. There will still be plenty of options for you and we can help you with your choices.
- Be ambitious: Stop and think about what you’d like to do next. Ask yourself, what will help you achieve your career goals? As well as choosing a course, are you excited about gaining work experience or developing a specific skill or specialism?
- Be realistic: Reflect on what you really want to do. Build useful, transferable skills. Ask for or take part in projects to give you opportunities. Ask for work placements as well as a course so you are in a prime position to get a foot in the door.
- Think differently: Continuing in a traditional education setting might work for some people but for others, more vocational or technical practical and hands-on training would suit them better. Now is a great time to think about a Vocational Diploma or a T Level or a course that can prepare you to take up a T Level the following year.
- Talk to someone: Find the right person to talk to about your next move – it could be a parent or carer, a teacher at your school, or a careers advisor or teaching staff at a further education college such as Sandwell College. Talking through things with your support network will help you to decide what the best option is for you. They can also help you tackle barriers such as transport or getting to know others.
“The most important thing is to stay positive. If you have not quite got what you were expecting, it’s not the end of the world, so it’s vital to pick yourself up and take immediate action. Just because you didn’t get the results needed for the initial course you wanted, it doesn’t mean the door is closed.”
Sandwell College Student Union President Hasmik added: “You might not get the results you want, or at least not straight away. Sandwell College or our sister colleges Cadbury Sixth Form College or Central Saint Michael’s Sixth Form offer a course for everyone and they will help you resit some of the key qualifications like English and Maths alongside new subjects. These subjects are crucial for your future career or further study so achieving these is essential.
“Thinking about your interests and what you enjoy can really help you choose the right course – visit our websites to find out what’s on offer and consider all options such as T Levels with an extended work placement or Diplomas (both of which are equivalent to 3 A Levels), a different combination of A Levels or Apprenticeships as well as the range and mix of our vocational courses and A Level programmes. We can help you get that party feeling!
“If you are reading this as a parent or carer you may also be interested in our provision for adult learners including English, Maths, Digital and English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) as well as full-time Level 3 courses in skills shortage areas.”
Enrolment starts from 12pm on Thursday 20th August and our Careers advisors and teaching staff will be on hand at all of our campuses to help advise on next steps and options. We are proud to have received the King’s Award for our pioneering work on work experience which really motivates young people to focus and achieve.
Whatever your results, you can be sure of a warm welcome at The Sandwell Colleges, which includes Sandwell College and Central Saint Michael’s Sixth Form in West Bromwich, and Cadbury Sixth Form College in Kings Norton.
Your Future is Our Focus!
