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They'd only give you an offer if they thought you could pass the course right?

Got two offers and i have to decide what to do within a matter of days:

I have an offer for MA Music at Oxford Brookes. This would involve writing about popular music. I am confident in my ability to this. But it would mean living at home and having an exceptionally poor social life. So the course is right but I would be emotionally challenged (I live in a small town and am still "not allowed" out...nuff said)

I have an offer for MA Music Since 1900 at Liverpool Hope. This would include doing some composition and writing a bit about classical music. I am unsure about how well I'll do in this (As long as I pass I don't mind but yeah, I'm worried about what it will take to pass). If I did this course I'd live in Manchester where I have an excellent social life and would be very happy...like the course director knows that taking some units would be risky for me but still says they could be risks worth taking and they're not beyond possibility...like surely, I wouldn't have been given an offer unless he was totally sure I could pass the course?

Do many people drop out of Masters courses because they find them waaay too hard or because the course isn't what they expected?

Like I think I'd be happier living in Manchester even though the ideal course if in Oxford.

It's a big dilemma between doing the ideal degree vs doing a degree that will give me an equally good qualification but it may be harder to achieve...but yeah, I developed a lot of emotional problems at home and I'm scared that I'll regress and be all lonely again.

Eeek! so yeah, any random advice needed but ultimately, do yas think I'd have been given an offer from Liverpool Hope only if they believed I could pass the course? If it helps, I was honest about my strengths and weaknesses and experiences in my application.

All help massively appreciated as I'll have to make a fast decision V soon.

Thanks,

Laura :smile:

Reply 1

saoirse

Don't stay at home. It sounds like it would be a disaster for you as a human being, whatever about you as a student.

Is there no way you could do the Oxford Brookes and move out? Why not? I'm assuming its not a money issue as you'd have to pay rent if you took the Manchester option anyway? Or is it that the folks will help out financially if you are doing a course in another city?

Anyway, I think you should just move out, but still do the course you want. Get a career development loan and a job or a loan from the credit union or something...or sell any assets eg if you have a car!

Reply 2

beautifulbigmacs

saoirse

Thanks,

If I studied at Oxford I'd have to live at home because fairly enough, I'm too local for my parents to help pay for me to move out and I have no means of getting a loan. So the only way I could live away is if I'm studying at Liverpool (so I'd live in Manchester as I have so far).

So yeah, tis ultimately home or away and although I think away is better, I'm worried that I will struggle to pass the course.

Like I know ultimately, it's about gettin and MA but my home and away lives are so so so different

:eek3:

Reply 3

The_Lonely_Goatherd

As far as I can tell from the Internet info, the composition and classical elements would only be about 10% maximum each?! So even if you don't do that well in it (and you may well surprise yourself and be much more capable than you think!), it shouldn't have a huge impact?! :dontknow:

The course director seems to have assessed your case carefully and thought about how well suited you are to certain parts of the course, so I'm guessing he wouldn't have made you an offer unless he was sure that you could get through it :smile:

Reply 4

mickeyfit

I don't understand how, at an age where your going on to do a masters degree you 'aren't allowed out'....

Normally I'd say do the course you think you'll enjoy the most... but if you think your going to be extremely unhappy at home, you won't do well at school... So I'd go to Manchester and gain some independance... thats partly what university is about!!!

Reply 5

ThePants999

laurakate1988

(I live in a small town and am still "not allowed" out...nuff said)

Newsflash: on the assumption you're at least 18, your parents can't tell you what to do any more.

Reply 6

Angelil

^^ If she's living under their roof and presumably not paying rent/contributing towards food etc, then of course they can. In fact, if what she describes appals you, hear this: I had been with my boyfriend (now fiancé) for 3.5 years when my dad finally allowed us to sleep in the same bed when he stayed with us (which was hardly every week given that we were in an international LDR), which was just faintly ridiculous given that we were 18 and 23 when we got together. Parents can unfortunately exert a hideous amount of control over you if you're living under their roof and you're not financially independent of them.

And as for the OP's actual question: I agree with The_Lonely_Goatherd.

Reply 7

The_Lonely_Goatherd

Angelil

^^ If she's living under their roof and presumably not paying rent/contributing towards food etc, then of course they can.

That's the thing. It'd be like that for me if I stay in London, so these kinda things are important. Otherwise I'd usually say Brookes over Liverpool Hope, since Brookes have some very cool popular music people. Being happy and having a sense of freedom is important though :yep:

Reply 8

beautifulbigmacs

Angelil

Thanks

I'm glad you can relate.

I love my parents and they care for me dearly and although some of their rules I find hard to go by, I do so because I respect them and they help me in many ways too. So for me it's a case of co-operate or upset them and then have less support. I don't know if this is a good or bad approach but yeah.

I'm from a small town where it's hard enough to meet new people as it is what with the poor public transport and then what with not being able to go further afield at night using taxis, I think I'd struggle to take responsibility for my own social/emotional welbeing compared to if I lived in Manchester.

I feel a bit guilty when I'm sure the Oxford Brookes course plays more to my strengths...like I ask myself if I'm cheating myself...like am I swapping the chance to do a good MA in exchange for having a social life...BUT I wouldn't want to look back on (what could be) my last year as a student and think "The course wasn't too hard and the rest of the time I sat around indoors a lot"...i dunno, like it doesn't sound like a very exciting/productive year in some ways

Reply 9

beautifulbigmacs

The_Lonely_Goatherd

Thanks,

Initially, he suggested that I study the course 2 years part time (this would allow me to avoid taking composition) but when I asked about doing the course one year full time, he explained that IF composition was a risk worth taking then yes, I could study one year full time.

So yes, he's said it's not impossible...maybe I should have more confidence. I suppose it would help if I knew the nature of the compositional bits...like I'd be a lot less worried if I could compose for a pop band rather than a whole orchestra.

Hmm, so I guess it is a case of doing a more challenging course and having a more rewarding personal/social/emotional life (plus I can do more extra curricular in Manchester) OR doing a course that I am more confident in, not being that stressed on the course whilst feeling mentally understimulated at home, like i'm worried i might stagnate and lose a lot of the confidence i gained from going to uni in manchester initially.

I have a plan: defer my offer for Oxford Brookes to September 2010 (WILL THEY LET ME DO THAT?) and then go to Liverpool Hope September 2009 and try my very best to pass that course and only that course. However, if I start the course at Liverpool Hope and it is waaaaay beyond my abilities to pass, I could drop out, spend the rest of the year working in Manchester and then come home to do the Oxford course in September 2010 what with having it in the bank as an offer. Thoughts people?

I know that sounds like masses of hassle but I'm thinking that assuming I could pass the Liverpool Hope course, it would be more rewarding what with having become more confident in composition and classical music rather than milking what I already know a lot about at Oxford Brookes...also, I know that Liverpool Hope would be more personally rewarding due to the living arrangements I've discussed already.

So yeah, maybe I wouldn't do the IDEAL course but because they'll lead me in the same career directions anyways, perhaps I should embrace the challenge of Liverpool Hope with Brookes as backup, knowing that if I pass at Hope I will end the year more personally/emotionally/socially fulfilled(?)

Any more advice is still massively appreciated

thanks again :smile:

Reply 10

Angelil

I personally think you should embrace the challenge at LH, particularly since there's often plenty of flexibility at master's level. Plus, I can't speak for Brookes, but at Oxford they definitely don't allow deferrals and I know that other 'top' unis (such as Cambridge and LSE) are also not keen on it, but this will obviously depend on the uni.

Reply 11

The_Lonely_Goatherd

I've no idea what Brookes' admissions system is like and what they'd think about deferred entry. I think you should definitely look into the Liverpool Hope course more and try and find out what these composition bits are like. If it's only worth 10%, it's unlikely to be something that you can't handle. In undergraduate composition you typically get a choice between a few options, so maybe it's the same at postgrad? Or maybe you can bend it so you can write a song? :dontknow:

It's worth finding out, definitely. I was dead against the dissertation option at my uni until I realised that there was nothing stopping me from writing about ABBA rather than something more traditional :awesome:

Get back to this course director and find out more about the composition bit :smile:

Reply 12

candytreeman

laurakate1988

Eeek! so yeah, any random advice needed but ultimately, do yas think I'd have been given an offer from Liverpool Hope only if they believed I could pass the course? If it helps, I was honest about my strengths and weaknesses and experiences in my application.
x

Firstly, I think that aspect is negligible. My undergraduate degree involved a lot of catching up in classical music modules (University of Liverpool) where the students had done A Level straight Music (I did Music Tech) and were studying on the straight Music degree, and I ended up getting a First still. I think as long as you're aware of your own shortcomings then it is possible to take modules which you really don't have the prerequisites for.

You wouldn't have an offer for the course if the course leader thought you were unsuitable for it. My MA course leader told me a similar thing, that part time study may benefit me as most applicants had done a straight music / music tech / creative music degree (I did Combined Honours, studying both Politics and Popular Music 50/50). But I recently switched to the full time course and I'm not particularly worried. I have to catch up sometime! :p:

I am unclear on one aspect; howcome you'd be living in Manchester whilst studying at Liverpool Hope? Would this not possibly reduce the chance for social interaction? Is the course not in the main Liverpool Hope campus? (never been there but roughly know whereabouts it is).

Reply 13

beautifulbigmacs

candytreeman

Thanks

Very helpful.

To answer your question, throughout my undergrad degree I didn't socialise as much with the student community as much as I did with the wider community in Manchester, as a result, a lot of the people and places I want to see are in Manchester....eek! that sounds really narrow minded potentially but to be blunt, I find it massively beneficial for my confidence to be in Manchester, plus I'm looking forward to exploring Liverpool more on the days I'm there (if I go there)...so i'm hoping to have the advantage of having links within the two cities :smile:

Reply 14

candytreeman

laurakate1988

Thanks

Okay well that sounds fair enough :smile:

, as long as you can spend enough time with the uni people etc you're probably getting the best of both worlds. And it's only about a 30 min drive each way, easily doable. :o: