[Will.]

So basically I'm starting college in September with Media and production diploma (level 3).

Maybe level 2 if I don't get 5 C's.

Do you have a tutor, or do you just come in for the classes? Is college all day? or is it just a few classes?

And are the holiday times different to school, as it says the course ends in Sep next year?

[Will.]

Not been giving much info from my college tbh, they keep saying I'm doing Art and Design course, don't know how many times I've had to contact them saying its Media lol.

[Moosething]

I'm doing A levels so I wanna kno

[lily.]

It's different from school.

You'll get a timetable with your classes on it. Should be 3 or 4 days a week. You only need to be there when you have a class. If it is the same as up here, they will split the year into two semesters, and your timetable will change for the second semester around the end of January.

You should get an induction day which will explain everything. If you haven't been invited to one, call them up and speak to student services or go in and see them. They have loads of help and info at the one I went to, so yours is probably the same.

It's quite daunting when you first start, but you'll settle in quite quickly.

[Tom4784]

Originally Posted by Will1999

So basically I'm starting college in September with Media and production diploma (level 3).

Maybe level 2 if I don't get 5 C's.

Do you have a tutor, or do you just come in for the classes? Is college all day? or is it just a few classes?

And are the holiday times different to school, as it says the course ends in Sep next year?

It's a piece of piss tbh.

I had a form tutor who you'd go register with once a day with the rest of my group and we'd have a few form sessions a week. We'd usually only have about three lessons a day with long breaks in between most of them. As long as you attended the classes you could do what you pleased outside of them. I was only in for four days a week as well and two of them were half days.

Breaks are longer if i remember right, I can remember the summer breaks lasting for ages in particular.

[lily.]

Oh, there was no 'form tutor' at mine. Guess that's an English thing. :/

A register was taken at the beginning of each individual class, and that was kept centrally, so if you skipped out on classes the curriculum leader knew about it and that could get you kicked off the course, or affect your student loan/bursary.

[Will.]

thanks guys,

so it says its 9-5:30 full time (mon-friday), so classes can be any time of the day between 9-5:30?

Do you have to leave college at 5:30, or when your last lesson is?

[Jason.]

You get the same holidays as you would in Year 7-11, if I remember correctly.

October Half Term (1 Week)
Christmas Break (2 Weeks)
February Half Term (1 Week)
Easter Break (2 Weeks)
May Half Term (1 Week)
Summer Break (6/7 Weeks)

[lily.]

Originally Posted by Will1999

thanks guys,

so it says its 9-5:30 full time (mon-friday), so classes can be any time of the day between 9-5:30?

Do you have to leave college at 5:30, or when your last lesson is?

I'm guna leave others to advise you on this, cos it seems to be a lot different in England than it is up here, so my answers will probably just confuse the situation.

[Jason.]

When I went to college, we went in whenever we had lessons. You get free periods (although, that depends on the individual). You leave whenever you finish your last lesson. You don't have to stay till 5.30. The day ends like normal school would, around 3, unless you have extra work or need to stay behind or something. You can leave before that, though. Say your last lesson is at 1pm, and you it ends at 2pm, then you can leave at 2pm, instead of staying till 3pm, if that makes sense.

I don't really remember much as I went college like 8 years ago.

[Tom4784]

Originally Posted by Will1999

thanks guys,

so it says its 9-5:30 full time (mon-friday), so classes can be any time of the day between 9-5:30?

Do you have to leave college at 5:30, or when your last lesson is?

You can leave whenever you like, you don't have to stay until 5:30 if you don't have any more lessons to do. You just have to attend lessons, anything other than lesson time is your time.

EDIT: Yeah, lesson times can be anywhere between those two times. I remember one year when we only two lessons for one of the days, one was at 10 and the other at 3:30. I used to just go home and come back in time for the last lesson.

[Moosething]

I have to do enrichment once a week w/e that is

[Will.]

Originally Posted by BB6

You get the same holidays as you would in Year 7-11, if I remember correctly.

October Half Term (1 Week)
Christmas Break (2 Weeks)
February Half Term (1 Week)
Easter Break (2 Weeks)
May Half Term (1 Week)
Summer Break (6/7 Weeks)

I went to private school so it was a little different:

October - 1 week
December - 4 weeks
Feb - 1 week
Easter - 3
Summer - 8

Thats decent though, considering your not at college all day unlike school, the whole course ending in Sep is confusing... Do you think if I only get the qualifications for level 2, it will be ok to swap from level 3 to 2?

[Will.]

Originally Posted by Dezzy

You can leave whenever you like, you don't have to stay until 5:30 if you don't have any more lessons to do. You just have to attend lessons, anything other than lesson time is your time.

ok thank you.

[Jason.]

Originally Posted by Will1999

I went to private school so it looked like this:

October - 1 week
December - 4 weeks
Feb - 1 week
Easter - 3
Summer - 8

Thats decent though, considering your not at college all day unlike school, the whole course ending in Sep is confusing... Do you think if I only get the qualifications for level 2, it will be ok to swap from level 3 to 2?

Are you going to a private college, or just a normal one?

I think it may look like the former.

[Will.]

Originally Posted by BB6

Are you going to a private college, or just a normal one?

I think it may look like the former.

no not going to private college, the school I went to was in bishop Storford (like an hour and 15 mins away).

North London is really bad for private schools tbh, there aren't any near me, thats why I was sent there.

[Jason.]

Originally Posted by Will1999

Do you think if I only get the qualifications for level 2, it will be ok to swap from level 3 to 2?

You should be allowed to. I remember when I was going to college, they said we needed to get the certain GCSE grades required to do what we wanted to do and if you didn't, you'd do Level 2 or BTEC.

[Jason.]

Originally Posted by Will1999

no not going to private college, the school I went to was in bishop Storford (like an hour and 15 mins away).

North London is really bad for private schools tbh, there aren't any near me, thats why I was sent there.

Yeah, that's true. I went to Woodhouse College.

[Jason.]

I'm speaking from expirience from almost a decade ago, though. So I'm not sure if things have changed or not, but I don't think they have

[Will.]

Originally Posted by BB6

You should be allowed to. I remember when I was going to college, they said we needed to get the certain GCSE grades required to do what we wanted to do and if you didn't, you'd do Level 2 or BTEC.

yeah thats good then, I think I've done decent on probs English (2), RE and ICT, making 4 GCSE and possibly Maths, should be ok.

Geography, Business and Science are a mystery, I have no idea tbh.

Yeah my parents aren't to stressed about there results, and we've already discussed level 2, so it won't be like a huge shocker/crisis if I don't get 5 c's.

Although I think I'm being a bit OTT, as I got 4 c's and a B on my mocks, and 3 D's.

[Will.]

Originally Posted by BB6

Yeah, that's true. I went to Woodhouse College.

omg yeah loads of people are going there from my school, I've heard all about it, don't think anything has changed. The teacher didn't mention level 2, but I think he thought I was perfectly capable of 5 c's.

[Jords]

Attend a couple of open days and tasters

[Jason.]

Originally Posted by Jords

Attend a couple of open days and tasters

I think they did that back in November, before applying.

[Moosething]

I think that all you basically need is a C in English & Maths.
My sister did a BTEC Level 3 and A level even though she had to redo her maths because she got a D.

[Will.]

yes I attended a taster/interview in Feb, it was amazing but a little messy on behalf of the people running the day.

Lots of technical difficulties, and they took as into the library and everyone of the students was kind of chatting/messing around, and the guides didn't know what to say lmao.