11 Plus Exams Forum

I was going to university this autumn........hindsight is a wonderful thing!

Didn't want to call this "wasted on the young" or "if I ruled the world"! But I surely can't be the only one who sees them going off to uni and wishing it was me again. I know you can go as a (very) mature student but you are so carefree and without responsibility at that age.

Is this just Sunday evening'itis? What do others wish?

I wish that I'd trained as a nurse or a teacher or another profession that would have adjusted well to me working part time. That way now I could be at home for my children but still taking part in a career, not (gratefully) earning a very low wage in a job I am lucky to have, with lovel people, but that is so far removed from the lucrative career I spent 18 years in.

There has been times, once or twice, over the years when I have often pondered how my life would have turned out had I known it was even possible to go to uni. In fact I wished I'd known that just about anything in life was possible.

But then I think of my three beautiful children and the life I have lived, and you know what? I wouldn't swap any of it, not a single second and I would have to, if I'd taken a different path in life as I would never have met my (1st) husband, etc etc etc.

I'm entirely of a mind with Snowdrops. I wasted most of my time in education and could make SO much better use of the opportunity now (which is why I find our eldest, who reminds me horribly of myself at the same age, so UTTERLY FRUSTRATING ). But if I could go back and change things...I wouldn't, because if I hadn't taken that rather suboptimal path through life I would never have met Mrs 1880.

Ah, that's where we differ as I would still have met Mr Doodles, but when I left uni I wouldn't have been persuaded out of teacher training and into the City. After 15 years of merchant banking, and yes I was very well paid, I was made redundant and that was the best day of my high flying career

Fast forward to 10 years ago and I retrained as a Nursery teacher and I'm now as happy as a pig in muck even if I earn a pittance

Touring unis with DD I am struck by how many interesting courses there are these days - I would have done a different course, but probably ended up in the same sort of career. I do have slight regret that I didn't do medicine, but not enough to ever have done anything about it!

I always loved maths when I was in primary school but I didn't stay with it after having a bad teacher in secondary school who really put me off it. I went down the biomedical science research route instead but feel in awe of others who can do complex sums.

If I were to go back and do it all again, I would make sure that I told myself that I got my place as of right and was just as good as the older and apparently more sophisticated types that surrounded me. (Then again, I couldn't do it all again because the changes to financial help for students then and now. )

Yes, Rosy Pippin good point - my parents would never have encouraged me to go to uni and take on a debt. Neither of them ever had a credit card or a loan; if we couldn't afford it we didn't have it.

So I don't have any 'if only' wishes.

I flunked my A levels so never went to Uni, I eventually did my degree at the ripe old age of 35 and it was the best thing ever....I was the oldest on the course but the only one who got a First....I was very proud of myself!!!