Houns – Member
Yeah of course that’s what will happen

Best not do what you do either as that obviously makes you a bellend toocome on, you have to admit, army training/life turns, not all of you, but a large proportion of you into utter bawbags.

As you are posting here you I guess you might have a PC. If so, you probably have all you need to learn to code.

Qualifications never do any harm, but no one cares that all I have are seven o-levels when it comes to interviews and getting a contract. Being able to write decent code, speak and write English and talk to the customer without scaring them off are what my clients care about most…

I’m never going to set the world on fire, but my bills are (mostly!) paid and I can afford a lifestyle far better than I ever thought I’d have. It’s been hard graft and hard times sometimes, but few things in life get handed to you on a plate.

Good luck!

I don’t think you be able to enter a trade in the forces without qualifications.

I left school in the mid 80’s with n 6 O’levels, that was above average at the time, but there was no expectation or “momentum” for kids from working class backgrounds to continue education past 16 back then. Over the years I have found that lack of higher education becoming an increasing problem.

To get a decent job these days, without even GCSE’s would be nigh on impossible. It is easy too repeat the myths that hard work will see you progress, but for every hard-working person who does manage to move up the ladder, the are thousands of equally had working people who don’t, who are the first to be dropped by companies, who just move from crappy job to crappy job. It isn’t about hard work, it is all about luck, and that’s not worth depending on.

Get your self back into education, do 2 years in college and you will look back and be really happy you did for the rest of your life.

Yes, but YOU need to decide what you might want to do with the rest of your life. Different people decide this at different points (I was a bit later than many) and, of course, peoples’ ideas change over time but, like many have said, if you can find something that gets you fired up, that’s a good starting point.

Some qualifications (Maths, English etc) through a college would probably be a good idea. Our nearest college has a whole bunch of options for people with no formal qualifications so maybe start by talking to yours?.

I would agree with the opinion that having GCSE English, Maths and a Science is useful.

That’s basically what I had when I was dossing about, got me started in my profession when I was 21, withut them it would of been much more difficult. I am now doing very well and love my job.

Sadly if you applied for a job and had no basic qualifications on there you wouldn’t pass the “paper sift”

I would go and sit the
them at college. Unfortunately the days of getting by without basic qualifications are gone.

@akaskittles – as an employer GCSE English and Maths are used as gatekeeprs – it’s one of the first filters businesses use when recruiting, not a nice fact but I’d say it’s pretty much the same across the board. We have just taken on an apprentice and the college placing students only referred those with C or above at GCSE.

You seem to capable of writing well, with better spelling than many who have posted in this thread, if you are articulate and can write coherently there are opportunities out there but you will probably be looking at minimum wage and lots of hard work. I would agree with those above who have suggested getting you GCSE Maths and English – if you get a job your employer may support you through achieving them, ask them up front as it will show you are serious about progressing.

As has been said before, find something you love and throw yourself into it, if you have to start at the bottom, better that it’s the bottom of something that floats your boat.

Good luck.

mikewsmith – Member
I’d add in that your not stuffed but life will be harder.

Northwinds advice on collage is a good one.

+1 to both points. Life is tough enough. Education opens doors and is so much easier that going through a series of closed one – even if they are not locked completely.

Appreciate that things may not be completely in your hands OP hence NW advice is very appropriate. Good luck, don’t despair but do try to find a way to completing minimum GCSEs. It will help you on your journey…

If you drew a family tree hard work and education would be closely related but school would be a distant relative.

I left school 5 years ago with not much in the way of GCSEs and im now a fully qualified printer operating a machine on a shift after completing an apprenticeship.

Education is great but school is very limiting and does not expand ones mind or encourage us to grow because they do not focus on each individuals needs and wants.

I should probably have made it clearer that I was talking about contracting, not permanent jobs.

Maths and English probably are prerequisites for perm roles… At 48 experience counts for more than qualifications for me, but your mileage will almost certainly vary.

You are not screwed. You are now mature enough to realise the value of education. Qualifications give you choices, nothing more. It is up to the individual to make the most of life’s opportunities.

I’d suggest that now you are older, a course in GCSEs at a college, where you’ll be treated as an adult, would be a better option. Who knows, you may find a subject you love, taught by a teacher who’s an inspiration, and a motivation to carry on studying.

And btw, your English is excellent, but judgement flawed. This place is as geeky at the rest of the internet. But serious questions get treated with respect.

Yes of course you can have a great future with out any GCSE’s – personal skills including a good attitude are very important.

That being said you are 16, excuse me for saying this still just a kid. I am not saying that to belittle you but to point out you have a lifetime in front you. You have plenty of time to get some training and qualifications if you want. Thats the key part you have to want it. There is plenty of advice available to you, you might not like it but to to job centre / careers advice, have a look at some vocational courses, electrician, plumbing, carpentry, car mechanic etc. Also its definitely not too late to get some formal qualifications if that’s what you want. Sure other ids may take their GCSE’s at 16 but if you take yours at 20 on the grand scheme of things over your lifetime it won’t matter.

Good luck and keep us posted.

EDIT: Just a +1 for @TiRed above, OP your English is very good, there is a skill right there and it suggests to me if you wanted an English GCSE you could get one.

Sounds like an unusual set of circumstances – is it possible to seek legal emancipation from the pair of cabbages who call themselves your parents?
You’ve not had the chance to find out if you’re suited to academic learning – you might be very good at it. You have to at least try to see what it’s all about – particularly mathematics.

Most people aren’t academically inclined btw, but getting a few GCSEs under the belt suggests a degree of personal growth. Like you can sit still and think for an hour or so without trying to set the school on fire. They’re as much social qualifications as academic ones from that perspective.

For reference, £18k is not a well paid job

maybe, maybe not, but i know plenty of grads with a degrees worth of debt on less. i would suggest 18k is quite comfortable at that age.
minimum wage is only around 13k
the national average is 26k ish, but it is skewed pretty drastically by small number of people getting paid up towards the millions. (middleclasstrackworld is not the place to judge this i dont think)

im also not sure this is best place to ask for personal experience, as things were very different 10 years ago, let alone 20 and 30 years ago. I would be very surprised if anyone took you on without the core GCSEs.
its not that you cant do the work, quite possibly very well, but with recruitment as it is you have to think of how your prospective employer sees it. Two identical candidates. One with his certificates, one without. You are competing with too many other “young people” for too few jobs i think.

you might find an apprenticeship if you were lucky, or had “an in” (friend or relative might be able to get a good word in for you). Nothing wrong with being a groundworker or general builder.

It might be worth looking to see if you CAN get onto a vocational course for something like plumbing, electrical work, or mechanic, without your GCSEs. Where are you? whats your nearest college?….

As above, contact your local college for advice.

Be wary of being pushed towards anything you don’t want to do. Many will assume that having no GCSEs at 16 means you should be lifting heavy things for minimum wage, but there’s a whole world of possibilities out there.

Where in the country are you? There’ll be people here who can recommend a good college.

my parents used to work here, which is why ive clicked it.

http://www.shrewsbury.ac.uk/subjects/business/courses/ready_to_work_employability_skills

“employability course”, seems to be a year geared towards getting you what you need to get onto other courses.

http://www.shrewsbury.ac.uk/subjects/construction/courses/level_1_electrical

Nothing required to get onto a sparky course. Your OP seems you could waltz through the

If you have a positive attitude and an enthusiasm to learn the trade

requisite.

All colleges have careers offices. I would suggest heading down to the careers office and speaking to someone who actually knows how the system is geared these days.

FWIW, i went to uni, and now spend my time “managing” subcontractors doing building works for us, while worrying about about the technicalities of insurance claims, and writing reports.

I do often wish i had saved myself the bother and done something with my hands.

The forces is a good shout, but you won’t get a decent trade like engineer without qualifications unfortunately, but it doesn’t mean you can’t join, get free qualifications and then transfer to one of the trade skills after a while.

I’d also back those who have said go out and get some qualifications now, you’re only 16, so time is well on your side, i messed up my last year at school, as boredom got to me, so never went on to do highers, i still had 5 GCSE’s, but that killed off going to uni or getting an interview at better jobs. I was lucky enough to get an apprenticeship that has since given me further qualifications and so on, but i wouldn’t like to think where i’d be if i hadn’t got that job, and i’m guessing a few folk on here are the same.

It’s a harder world out there now as well for school leavers, there’s just so many coming out with good levels of qualifications, and so many fighting over every job it makes it hard to get something that will keep you going through life, sure you might find something that pays well enough, but will be boring as hell after a year, it’s a balancing act to find something you like, that keeps you interested, and pays well enough to pay the bills.

See this car?

It’s got an Formula 1 engine in it just to power the fuel pump for it’s Rocket Engine. It’s on track to break the world land speed record.
The guy who co-founded the company that built and tested the first prototype rocket engine for that thing has No Qualifications.
He stated getting into rockets at a young age. Get into something, learn it, keep learning more about it and do it until you’re paid for it you can sell it.

The normal way of GCSEs -> A Levels -> Uni -> Office job is boring anyway.

You only need qualifications if you want to work for someone else.

Of all the people I know success seems to be inversley proportional to qualifications. You can be as successful and wealthy as you like, it’s down to determination and drive.

I came from a situation very similar to yours, all of 10 years ago. I failed completely at school (i’m not going to try and make excuses, i just wasn’t interested). At the age of 16, i got a job working in a dark, smelly factory for £3/hr.

At the age of 18, i joined the Forces. I’m now earning £30k, with a great work/life balance and loads of experience in a widely employed field. I was recently given the opportunity to earn a degree (a proper BSc, from a proper University) for the princely sum of about £400. Unfortunately, i didn’t meet the prerequisites; GCSEs. So here i am, 10 years later, studying for the exams i should have done at your age (the Forces are paying for much of that, too).

I would seriously recommend looking into the Forces (Note the word ‘Forces’, not ‘Army’ – there’s a whole lot on offer from all three Services).

Regards,

War Machine Bellend.

In the meantime there’s nothing stopping you from washing pots or bar work etc..

NPLQ level 2 – only a 2 week course but would its useful all over the world.

Ski season?

If I were you I’d get in touch with your local further education colleges: Looking back through some of your posts your written english is clearly good enough to get an english GCSE. I don’t know about your maths but you seek bright song doubt you’d have a problem even if it takes some work.

We started looking for apprentices for our business this year and it has been a challenging process. I don’t expect a CV to contain much (or any) work experience at that age but they’re generally so badly written, poor grammar/spelling and give little insight into the candidates.

You’ll need to get functional skills (English, Maths & IT GCSEs) to complete a level 2 NVQ if you wanted to do an apprenticeship and employers will find it reassuring if you already have those qualifications – and if you’ve been organised enough to get them off your own back, rather than just doing what your teachers have said and turning up for the exams with your schoolmates, then that bodes well.

The big questions for you are what do you want to do? And can you think of a way to get to that point?

I’d interview you though based on how you can actually string a few paragraphs of English together.

All employers need to know they’re hiring people who are able to focus and deliver, whether that’s a stacked shelf, a brick wall laid or software programme developed. Qualifications don’t just show a competency, they show that ability to knuckle down. You’ll have to prove you can focus if you want to get taken seriously.

Another vote for considering the forces, i left school with mediocre GCSE’s and i doubt i’d be as comfortable as i am now if i hadn’t spent a few years in the army, if all else fails the infantry will take you even if you can only spell your own name, you’ll get opertunities to get qualifications whilst in, and in my experience prospective employers tend to look quite favourably on ex-servicemen.

And don’t worry about becoming a bellend, sure there are some, but in my experience those that leave bellends joined as bellends!

There’s a difference between leaving school at 16 with no qualifications and getting to 16 without having been at school…

I’m a highly skilled and qualified engineer in my field. I travel to a different country every week business class. BUT! I have just paid my builder 5 k for 2 weeks work. That puts him on rock star wages, and much more than me, he did 1 year at college. I can’t fathom life sometimes.
Since when did the ‘manual’ jobs we worked hard to avoid, pay double the more ‘skilled’ work

Are you serious ?

You paid your builder £500 a day, labour only ?

If you did, you need to get a second quote next time 🙄

you seek bright song doubt

The wonders of autocorrect…

I notice the OP hasn’t contributed again since his initial post…?

What the hell were your parents playing at? It’s one thing to take your kid out of school and home-educate them, working to their own curriculum, but at the same time working to recognised qualifications, it’s another to take your kid out of school… Unless you’ve not mentioned special extenuating circumstances to us…

I see you have two options:

1. Enroll at your local college to start Level 2/GCSE courses next September
2. Start your own business

I think you probably know which of these options is most likely to get you somewhere.

I don’t know for certain but I don’t think the services will look too kindly on you having nothing to show for yourself (in terms of official bits of paper) for the last few years, otherwise that would be option 3.

my 2p worth…. I have 9 gcses, 3 A levels, a degree, numerous professional and trade qualifications … and I am a postman!!! its not all about what bits of paper you have. get the basics in asap (maths, English, science) then see what you feel like doing from there. oh and as for knowing what you want to do, I am 37 this year and still have no idea what I want to be when I grow up! 😀

Plant operator/overhead linesman £50k pa easy.

Do your GCSE Maths and English.

1. Majority of employers take it as a minimum requirement.

2. It’s not the qualification that’s important, it’s the proof that you are capable of applying yourself and putting in the effort to get it.

3. The discipline of studying can be beneficial.

4. You might find that you like studying enough to take it further.

5. Education is never worthless.

Skip the GCSE’s. Do Khanacademy (free), then go straight into A-levels.

Get some books on study skills and essay writing.

Get the GCSEs: basic qualifications will never close a door in your face, while the lack of them will.

Skip the GCSE’s. Do Khanacademy (free), then go straight into A-levels.

yes, if you can get yourself to the higher qualifications then why not, nobody is going to ask where your CGCE maths is if you have a higher qualification.

Plus you may suffer from your teacher not being so good, or not getting on with your teachers methods, whereas nowadays there are a lot of alternate ways of learning about stuff – khanacademy or choose books from Amazon based on their reviews.

For example no-one got below a B at O level in my A level group, whereas in the final exam results 3 of us got Ds, a few got Es, and the rest were Os or ungraded. And those that did pass benefited from revision class from another teacher who was far less qualified than our main teacher.

There are so many good books that might give you some enthusiasm about a subject, for instance did you know that Isaac Asimov wrote a number of books about maths :

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Realm-Numbers-Isaac-Asimov/dp/0395065666

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Realm-Algebra-Isaac-Asimov/dp/0449243982/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1398622642&sr=1-1&keywords=Realm+of+Isaac+Asimov

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Realm-Measure-Isaac-Asimov/dp/039506564X/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1398622642&sr=1-3&keywords=Realm+of+Isaac+Asimov

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Quick-easy-maths-Isaac-Asimov/dp/B0000CN8BV/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1398622727&sr=1-1&keywords=Quick+and+Easy+Maths+Asimov

Trouble with your calculus ? see this book :

A quote from the reviews :

more than 50 years ago, i came across this book in my local library, when i was preparing for A-level maths

from Calculus being a mystery to me, it became my strongest subject, and led on to a grade A at A-level, a place to read chemistry at university. The rest, as they say, is history!

Remember: ‘What one fool can do, another can learn’ (Silvanus P Thomson, author of the book)

Skip the GCSE’s. Do Khanacademy (free), then go straight into A-levels.

Which colleges are going to accept someone with no GCSE onto their A level maths course?

Which colleges are going to accept someone with no GCSE onto their A level maths course?

And why would you do an A level maths course, unless you’re planning on going to university?

You’re only 16 so still young enough to take action. The important thing is that you take action. Qualifications are not just there to get interviews and jobs, they are there fundamentally for your own education and development. The process of learning is just as important as the end result/qualification. I’ve got an engineering degree and work in engineering and I’ve probably only used about 5% of what I learned in lectures and to pass exams! but the process of educating myself is something that has never left me. Just because you’ve left school doesn’t mean you stop learning and developing and you will need to continuously learn and develop throughout your working life no matter what you do.

Sorry for not being around to answer your questions and fill in some details, but I have not abandoned this thread!

Anyway, the general consensus is that I should go to a collage to get maths & English GCSE’s And Yes, that is what I plan todo. My closest college is West Herts College and I took a breif look around their site and the do offer English + math courses for 16+ So I’ll drop them a email.

And, thank you all for your advice. My head is alot clearer now without the notion that I’m done for. Saying that Educating myself, doing the college course are the rest of my life have moved into it’s place.

Which colleges are going to accept someone with no GCSE onto their A level maths course?

Plenty if you approach a tutor/teacher on an individual basis and show aptitude and interest. I studied Medical Science at a pretty good university without any Biology, Chemistry, Physics or Maths A-levels (because I’m **** awesome 😈 ). Are you saying that my university has lower entry standards than some shitty 6th form?

And why would you do an A level maths course, unless you’re planning on going to university?

Maybe he is planning to go to university. Why not aim high.

Sorry for not being around to answer your questions and fill in some details, but I have not abandoned this thread!

Whatever you decide to do, get your A-Levels. The world is rapidly changing and you seem to have the self-awareness and drive needed to be able succeed academically. Do a Medical, Engineering, Maths or Law degree, or at least try for the sake of knowing your own limits and never having to wonder what you could have been.