Congratulations to all of those who got over the line - but if you haven't!

Well done to everyone who passed! - but this week' blog is not just for you.

Disappointing Exam Results?

Anyone who has been though the school system and come out of the exam period with less than they thought they deserved will tell you - it’s a shock! Here is some support to help deal with that disappointment.

First Don’t Panic!

Take a deep breath and take a few days to process your disappointment and let both your thoughts and emotions settle. Having some distance from the rawness of it all will help.

So, the best thing is to talk about it!

A lot of adults have been through this and they will have had a lot of distance from the event. So, they are able to reflect upon their experience and you might find that not getting the results was in fact the best thing that happened to them. There are many very successful people who left school empty handed, didn’t quite make it at university or got fired from their first job! It is not easy at the time to go through but they have learnt something from it.

Don’t assume anything or even everything is lost!

You will have basically two choices:

one – try again

two- move forward with what you have

Check with the college or university if you can still go with the grades you have. If that option is no longer on the table this year, think about going for it next year. Then the question is what will you do with the year in-between?

Get informed and act quickly might be a good idea but don’t feel under pressure to take the first offer you get.

There is always more than one way of doing anything. When I was at college, one of the best lectures there had a saying that was ghastly then as it is now. (No cats were ever harmed - it is just a very old fashioned saying)

"There is more than one way to skin a cat!"

Meaning, that "every job has more than one way to do it" and "life has more than one path way to follow."

You might choose to revisit your initial plans altogether – some might find that a vocational path, rather than an academic path gets them where they want. Some jobs or careers require a university degree but some employers are very happy to help support their employee via the NVQ program get to the right qualifications. NVQ Level 5 is the same as a degree and you will have been paid while you are studying rather getting into debt with a university loan.