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Bad attendance in secondary school affecting college application

I’m in year 11, my final year and my attendance is REALLY bad (under 75%) and we’re only 6 months in. I have about 7 weeks until my GCSE’s and I’ve applied for college and have an interview this month. I’m really worried they’ll bring up my attendance, the reason it’s so bad is because of my depression and anxiety. My school has no support whatsoever so I have no choice but to go home when I feel so low. I’m hitting my predicted grades (A-C’s) but I’m afraid they won’t accept me due to my attendance and mental illness. I feel in college my attendance will be a lot better as I’ll be doing something I actually want to do in life and I heard the college has great support with counsellors and such.

(edited 4 years ago)

Reply 1

SarcAndSpark

Original post by Hannah9904

Is the college you're applying for a state school? If so, they're allowed to interview for information purposes, but they can only make admissions decisions based on academic performance. They can't refuse to offer you a place based on your attendance or another reason, they can only make your offer conditional on hitting certain grades.

Any educational institution also isn't allowed to discriminate on the basis of disability, so if it's a private college, then you should make them aware that your absences are due to a diagnosed medical condition (and provide evidence) and then this shouldn't be counted against you.

Hope this helps- but basically it shouldn't have an impact. Personally, I'd discuss the situation openly with the college- explaining the reasons for your absence and how you feel the college will support you better. This means the college can advise you about what support they have on offer and be ready to support you in September.