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Fiona Scott
Business owner and consultant
The open day at the University of Gloucestershire, where Sammie now studies, was very well organised. There was a marquee and from there you could plan your day and timings. We went to a few talks and two lecturers gave us a tour of the arts studio and answered our questions. We also looked around the shopping centre and the accommodation to get a feel for the city.
My husband is someone who really likes to plan things, so we thought about everything quite carefully. We didn’t want to rain on Sammie’s parade, but we did want to inject some realism into her view of the place, because young people can get what I call “happy ears”. They feel a place is wonderful but they don’t think about the practical side of things.
As a parent I knew I should sit in the background and make suggestions – but I’m an extrovert, so I had to work hard to shut up and let her ask the questions herself. It’s really important to let the students do that. I felt like the university would be a good place for her but I deliberately didn’t say anything; I felt the final choice had to be hers.
Sammie Scott
Student, University of Gloucestershire
I liked the Gloucestershire open day and had a good impression of the place. When I was deciding between universities mum told me it was about my gut feeling. She said you have to think of the place you’re going to miss if you don’t come back. So that’s how I made my decision.
On the open day it felt friendly and everybody was approachable. There were ambassadors every way you turned. I went to a few talks and remember spending quite a lot of time looking at accommodation.
Mum really helped. She encouraged me to ask questions I felt awkward asking. For example, you hear rumours about noisy flatmates and I wanted to ask about that, but was nervous. Mum told me nobody would laugh at me and encouraged me to find out more.
It was definitely good to have my parents there. It meant it was a learning experience for all of us. It was good to share my experience and get a second opinion.
The day can be overwhelming and you’re not always thinking as clearly as you might. But you know you’ll hear the honest truth from someone close to you.
My advice would be to make the most of the day, because it will go quickly. If there was one thing I’d change about my visit, it would be to try to enjoy it more.
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