Friday, May 11, 2007

To be or not be - a university place, is the question

Lol! Sorry about the delay for the goss about the uni interview!!! I’ve had gastric flu (yuck) and now have tonsillitis and a chest infection so I’ve not had a chance to get to the PC really. Yuck! I really am a manky old thing :) Mustn’t grumble though!

Yes…so the uni interview. I think the word I’d use to sum it up would be surreal. It got off to a great start, there was about ten of us and we had an informal group discussion with the admissions tutor about the course in general and I felt I had a good rapport with him. One of the other candidates asked how many places were let on the course, and he told us that basically we all looked academically sound on paper, that we were the last handful of potential students they were interested in, and that the interviews were just to check that we are who we say we are and that there’d be no risks regarding us working with kids. So that put all my nerves to bed and I felt quite confident. We had to partake in a small written exercise, and then we each had a one-to-one interview.

That’s where things got a bit strange. To put it nicely, I think the lady who interviewed me was depriving a village somewhere of an idiot. She struggled to work out what qualifications I had from the UCAS printout she had been provided with, and even once she’d worked it out she was still getting them wrong throughout the interview, for instance telling me I would have a problem as I’d not taken any core subjects as A level (on which I had to polite remind her that, as we’d just discussed, I’d done English lang & lit *rolls eyes*). I feel she’d already judged me before I’d walked in there; she was rather rude and condescending for most of the interview (even seriously calling me a “silly girl” for not having taken up higher education before now, despite explaining in great details my circumstances and how I’ve come to the decision that the time is right now). She did tell me that she would recommend me for the course, but that the ultimate decision would be up to the admissions office, and as I haven’t studied for a few years I would most probably receive a conditional offer depending on the results of the NVQ I’ve just taken up at work. How that’s going to work I just don’t know – it’s not like I’m in college or school and the course will finish on one set date and I’ll receive the results on another. I guess I’m just going to have to wait and see how that works if and when I get an offer. When Mrs Village Idiot told me my interview was over I asked if I should leave my written exercise with her, she replied “Uh………….yeah……..I was supposed to discuss that with you at the start of the interview” and snatched it from me without a second glance.

So all in all I’m pretty bummed out about the whole thing after all my hard work and research I’d done, and haven’t got a clue what to expect on whether I’ll get in or not. And worse still, she did tell me that this may well be the last year they take on students for the course due to lack of teaching jobs in Wales and the government wishing to withdraw funding for that reason. So if I don’t get on this year I won’t be able to employ my Plan B, which was simply to try again for September 2008.

Bummer!
Anyway, on a lighter note! We’ve been busying away in our garden whilst we had all that lovely sunshine! We’ve planted loads of pretty glazed pots around our balcony, including two gorgeous palm trees, training clematis around the kitchen door, and are even having a go at growing our own fruit and veg!! It’s keeping us out of mischief anyway!!! We’ve also planted a few fruit trees and I’m still surprised every time a new seedling rears its little head out of the seed trays – everything seems to be going very well, but how long that will last until either a) we got bored or b) we manage to kill everything I don’t know!!! Here are some little pics:

I grew all these from seeds! How exciting is that!! (don't worry - I can hear you yawning from here!!). this little fella is a Corgette plant! yum!!
These Daddas are cucumber plants! cool!
And when this little mite grows up he will be a tomato plant!!
Mmmmmmm and this little lady needs noo introduction!!! these pics were taken a couple of weeks ago (as you can tell form the sunshine lol!), but I checked yesterday and this little strawb is starting to go red! Yippee! Wimbledon here we come!!
Made a card this week for the first time in yonks – our friends have just bought their first house and I was invited around for the grand tour and an afternoon of vino, so made this little token of warm wishes for them :)

Speak soon blogeroonies xxx

8 comments:

Gertie said...

What a bummer about the interview. I'll keep me fingers and toes crossed for you hunny :-)
You're doing well with the fruit and veg growing, I'd have killed the blighters by now.
xxx

Anonymous said...

I'm sure you did fine in the interview sweetie :o) Have a little faith in yourself!
Ooh check out your strawbs mmmmm! I'll be around for some with cream just as soon as there is enough to share hehe
xx

Chrissie said...

Oh...kill the bitch, that's what I say.

ROFL!

I'm SURE it'll be FINE. Interesting about them withdrawing funding because there are no jobs in Wales (that has been my experience as you know). You may have to move to work chick.

Beth said...

Super card Nat, very home warming indeed. Lovely plants too, I wouldn't have the patience. Keep me a strawberry though, lol. Thinking of you on the interview front, stooopid woman, what's she on uh? XX

Di said...

Oh Nat, don't worry about the interview hun, I'm sure you did absolutely fine lovely! The stupid woman probably just had a bad day!!

Lovin' your veggies....and that strawberry.......YUM YUM!!!

Dawnie said...

Oh, Nat,all the best luck in the world that you get the news you are hoping for:)It would be fab if you could make it to one of our New Inn crops-we have the best cakes ever!!!
Dawnx

Tina said...

Keeping everything crossed for you hun!

Anonymous said...

Sorry you had a hard time Nat.

I have to say I'm shocked at the comment about removing funding- I've not heard anything and we always need teachers