I'm worried my daughter isn't going to get the grades...

Q. My daughter is convinced she will not make the necessary grades to secure her chosen University place. I had thought she was just being pessimistic, but as the day grows closer I’m starting to wonder if we should have a backup plan. Any tips for going through the Clearing process?

A. Be ready! Read our What to do on results day article and have a think about the following points:

• Don’t let your daughter accept a place just because it happens to be available – this is a huge investment so be sure she really want to do the course

• If she’s having second thoughts/got lower grades because she couldn’t motivate herself – is this the right thing for her?

• Are her grades telling you both something – if she wants to do Medicine but got Bs in Biology and Chemistry and A* in English is she really better suited to an entirely different course?

• Be organised on results day – encourage her to get in early with all her login
  information for UCAS and work through her options systematically

• Be prepared to drop everything on results day and go to the university she is looking at so she can sell herself to them and try to work out whether it is the place for her.

• If she decides to pull out of UCAS, encourage her to use the year she gains productively – develop a skill, volunteer, get involved!

Good luck!