The Student Room Group

Should I do Gold DofE?

Hiya, I'm a current year 12 student and have the opportunity to do gold dofe but don't know whether I should. For reference, I have only completed bronze dofe. I did enjoy bronze dofe as it allowed me to bond with a lot of people and push myself but I don't know whether it's worth doing it in year 12. I say this because it will be a lot of added work ontop of school (1 hour of meetings and three hours of volunteering,physical and skill per week) and I have other opportunities available. Another factor is the cost because it is definitely not cheap. So I guess my question goes to people who have completed gold dofe or know of it - is it really worth doing it? Do unis care a lot for it and how much would it benefit me? (not just for uni).

Any help would be much appreciated! :smile:

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Original post by carxlinefxrbes_
Hiya, I'm a current year 12 student and have the opportunity to do gold dofe but don't know whether I should. For reference, I have only completed bronze dofe. I did enjoy bronze dofe as it allowed me to bond with a lot of people and push myself but I don't know whether it's worth doing it in year 12. I say this because it will be a lot of added work ontop of school (1 hour of meetings and three hours of volunteering,physical and skill per week) and I have other opportunities available. Another factor is the cost because it is definitely not cheap. So I guess my question goes to people who have completed gold dofe or know of it - is it really worth doing it? Do unis care a lot for it and how much would it benefit me? (not just for uni).

Any help would be much appreciated! :smile:

I'm currently doing gold so I don't know how much I can help. I am using the activities that I already did for my volenteering, physical and skills, for example I play tennis already so I'm just doing that. If you can find activities that you already do, the 3 hours a week doesn't seem so daunting.
If you're applying to top universities, they don't really care that much about it tbh. But it does give you a great experience that you'll remember for life, adn the opportunity to show to your uni that you're resilient and can work in teams (rather than just stating that you are).
Original post by carxlinefxrbes_
Hiya, I'm a current year 12 student and have the opportunity to do gold dofe but don't know whether I should. For reference, I have only completed bronze dofe. I did enjoy bronze dofe as it allowed me to bond with a lot of people and push myself but I don't know whether it's worth doing it in year 12. I say this because it will be a lot of added work ontop of school (1 hour of meetings and three hours of volunteering,physical and skill per week) and I have other opportunities available. Another factor is the cost because it is definitely not cheap. So I guess my question goes to people who have completed gold dofe or know of it - is it really worth doing it? Do unis care a lot for it and how much would it benefit me? (not just for uni).

Any help would be much appreciated! :smile:

It's better to do things you enjoy and get involved in school and volunteering. D of E is a tick box exercise these days I'm afraid - it should not be expensive either - that was not the original idea at all.

Arrange your own opportunities :smile:
Original post by confuzzledteen
If you're applying to top universities, they don't really care that much about it tbh. But it does give you a great experience that you'll remember for life, adn the opportunity to show to your uni that you're resilient and can work in teams (rather than just stating that you are).

Many other ways of showing that ...sport, music, volunteering .. D of E is not now how it started or was intended to be.
Don't do it for uni - do it because you will enjoy it.
My daughter did Bronze and Silver out of school as school didn't offer it, then switched school for 6th form and they offered Gold. She already needed the volunteering for her chosen uni course, she went on a residential that also helped for uni application, she set a challenging goal for her skill and then they did a walking expedition. They had such a great time on the expedition that the same group went away and redid some of it again over the summer.
Original post by carxlinefxrbes_
Hiya, I'm a current year 12 student and have the opportunity to do gold dofe but don't know whether I should. For reference, I have only completed bronze dofe. I did enjoy bronze dofe as it allowed me to bond with a lot of people and push myself but I don't know whether it's worth doing it in year 12. I say this because it will be a lot of added work ontop of school (1 hour of meetings and three hours of volunteering,physical and skill per week) and I have other opportunities available. Another factor is the cost because it is definitely not cheap. So I guess my question goes to people who have completed gold dofe or know of it - is it really worth doing it? Do unis care a lot for it and how much would it benefit me? (not just for uni).

Any help would be much appreciated! :smile:

Hi!

I know a few people who have completed it and have said it's definitely worth the experience. Employers also look at it so it is really helpful for that, as you can apply it in an interview. Or even your personal statement, which universities consider a lot.
Depending on your other commitments, try and stick to a timetable and you might find you can/can't fit it realistically. If your other opportunities will benefit you more later in life then choose to do them. Also, think about whether you would really enjoy it.

I hope this helps and good luck!
Chloe - Official Student Rep :smile:
Original post by MonkeyTail
I'm currently doing gold so I don't know how much I can help. I am using the activities that I already did for my volenteering, physical and skills, for example I play tennis already so I'm just doing that. If you can find activities that you already do, the 3 hours a week doesn't seem so daunting.

Yeah, I kinda did that for bronze dofe and it definitely made it seem like a lot less time than it was. Thanks for your advice! :smile:
Original post by confuzzledteen
If you're applying to top universities, they don't really care that much about it tbh. But it does give you a great experience that you'll remember for life, adn the opportunity to show to your uni that you're resilient and can work in teams (rather than just stating that you are).

Thank you! Wouldn't options like core maths and EPQ do this also as I'm thinking of doing them but don't know if it'd be too much work on top of gold dofe? :smile:
Original post by Muttley79
It's better to do things you enjoy and get involved in school and volunteering. D of E is a tick box exercise these days I'm afraid - it should not be expensive either - that was not the original idea at all.

Arrange your own opportunities :smile:

I have the option to do EPQ and core maths and some other opportunities (a -levels are bio.chem and eng lang for ref). I was also thinking of perhaps starting to offer to tutor GCSE pupils (possibly at my old secondary school[for free]) as I feel like this could benefit both me and the pupils if it is possible! Would these opportunities be good for my uni applications? {Also if I do Gold dofe I don't think I'd be able to balance core maths and EPQ alongside it :/ }
Original post by Muttley79
Many other ways of showing that ...sport, music, volunteering .. D of E is not now how it started or was intended to be.

It does, unfortunately, feel slightly like some companies are profiting from it...
Original post by carxlinefxrbes_
I have the option to do EPQ and core maths and some other opportunities (a -levels are bio.chem and eng lang for ref). I was also thinking of perhaps starting to offer to tutor GCSE pupils (possibly at my old secondary school[for free]) as I feel like this could benefit both me and the pupils if it is possible! Would these opportunities be good for my uni applications? {Also if I do Gold dofe I don't think I'd be able to balance core maths and EPQ alongside it :/ }

It does, unfortunately, feel slightly like some companies are profiting from it...

Choose things you enjoy not just for UCAS :smile:

I wouldn't tutor at the moment because of COVID - are there clubs you can help with or start one from an interest of yours?

An EPQ can be useful if you can find something you're interested in - that and Core Maths is too much, What degree are you thinking of?
Original post by ReadingMum
Don't do it for uni - do it because you will enjoy it.
My daughter did Bronze and Silver out of school as school didn't offer it, then switched school for 6th form and they offered Gold. She already needed the volunteering for her chosen uni course, she went on a residential that also helped for uni application, she set a challenging goal for her skill and then they did a walking expedition. They had such a great time on the expedition that the same group went away and redid some of it again over the summer.

Thanks for your response! I loved the expedition for bronze but it was a lot of work and I was rushed for time to finish my bronze if I'm honest! (skills-wise). The residential does seem like an interesting aspect to the gold dofe though! :smile:
Original post by University of Portsmouth Student Rep
Hi!

I know a few people who have completed it and have said it's definitely worth the experience. Employers also look at it so it is really helpful for that, as you can apply it in an interview. Or even your personal statement, which universities consider a lot.
Depending on your other commitments, try and stick to a timetable and you might find you can/can't fit it realistically. If your other opportunities will benefit you more later in life then choose to do them. Also, think about whether you would really enjoy it.

I hope this helps and good luck!
Chloe - Official Student Rep :smile:

Thanks for your response! :smile:

With regards to time management, I don't know whether it would be too much with core maths and the EPQ (and studying) alongside it which is the issue. Would unis appreciate core maths and EPQ as much as gold dofe? (I'm studying eng lang, bio and chem for ref). I could probably manage them but don't know how much I'd struggle.
Original post by Muttley79
Choose things you enjoy not just for UCAS :smile:

I wouldn't tutor at the moment because of COVID - are there clubs you can help with or start one from an interest of yours?

An EPQ can be useful if you can find something you're interested in - that and Core Maths is too much, What degree are you thinking of?


The core maths course would be finished by March I think and then EPQ starts after that. With regards to uni course, I'm really uncertain hence the all facilitating A-level subjects haha. I have been trying to focus on uni courses and the one I keep going back to is natural sciences for some reason? Probably because it's a wide set of options then narrows down I guess. I've also thought about marketing, editing, pharmacology and toxicology so a spread of options tbh. That's the thing that worries me is that I don't know what I want to do yet and don't want to make the wrong options now that will hinder any options I may decide on in the future!
Original post by carxlinefxrbes_
The core maths course would be finished by March I think and then EPQ starts after that. With regards to uni course, I'm really uncertain hence the all facilitating A-level subjects haha. I have been trying to focus on uni courses and the one I keep going back to is natural sciences for some reason? Probably because it's a wide set of options then narrows down I guess. I've also thought about marketing, editing, pharmacology and toxicology so a spread of options tbh. That's the thing that worries me is that I don't know what I want to do yet and don't want to make the wrong options now that will hinder any options I may decide on in the future!

Put your A levels into here: https://www.theuniguide.co.uk/a-level-explorer

That will give you an idea of the degrees open to you.

Also check on university website and the A levels required ...
Original post by Muttley79
Put your A levels into here: https://www.theuniguide.co.uk/a-level-explorer

That will give you an idea of the degrees open to you.

Also check on university website and the A levels required ...

Thank you! I've been on this website quite a bit but, unfortunately, it still hasn't helped with my decisions much. But I will definitely start looking at uni websites more to help try and solidify my options. :smile:
Original post by carxlinefxrbes_
Thank you! I've been on this website quite a bit but, unfortunately, it still hasn't helped with my decisions much. But I will definitely start looking at uni websites more to help try and solidify my options. :smile:

As long as you have the A levels you enjoy and you check you aren't 'missing' something vital then it's very normal to not know what to study so early :smile:
Reply 17
Do you think they really dont care about whether you do gold? I did bronze so is DofE kind of ticked off cv wise when I’m applying? (oxbridge/Bristol/Warwick/Manchester)
Reply 18
Original post by confuzzledteen
If you're applying to top universities, they don't really care that much about it tbh. But it does give you a great experience that you'll remember for life, adn the opportunity to show to your uni that you're resilient and can work in teams (rather than just stating that you are).

Do the Russel groups not care? Will it matter if I’ve just done bronze and instead of gold fill my time with different separate things for cv? My parents said it’s fun to do in first year but I don’t know if it’s vital for uni applications
Original post by Frd
Do the Russel groups not care? Will it matter if I’ve just done bronze and instead of gold fill my time with different separate things for cv? My parents said it’s fun to do in first year but I don’t know if it’s vital for uni applications

Hello!

I ended up not doing gold dofe and instead did core maths and EPQ! I don't think it really matters that much at all to top universities as I got an offer for Bristol and an interview for Oxford but I guess if it's something you'd enjoy go for it. Likewise I did EPQ (none of the universities I applied for offered lower grades for this but some do!) which wasn't needed but I really thoroughly enjoyed it as I adored the topic I did and loved that I had the opportunity to research it and display it to others!

Hope this helps :smile:

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