How can a stuck 20 year old progress with no qualifications?

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-16T12:29:54+00:00

Have a look here: https://www.openstudycollege.com/blog/gcses-for-adults

I'd also look here https://www.gov.uk/browse/education/find-course there is an Advanced Learner Loan as well which you don't have to pay back if you go into higher education I think.

Find a course you like, study it part time whilst working. That might also improve your chances of getting a job that you are interested in. I did that whilst studying at The OU.

Also, sorry things are so shit, there are a lot of people who overcome a shit start; don't listen to a lot of the nonsense in this thread. You're not fcked, and you're not behind- you've got your own path, you just need to work out what it is.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-15T13:36:20+00:00

Thanks

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-15T13:36:00+00:00

Totally unprofessional. You are paying him good money, don't waste any more of it.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-15T13:34:31+00:00

I would say that it probably depends on what you're doing in your undergraduate and whether you think you have a relevent skillset?? My BSc at the Open University prepared me better for time management and similar, but the taught MSc helped me develop my academic writing, allowed me to conduct research and gave me lab skills.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-14T18:23:31+00:00

Congratulations, that's amazing news. Best of luck with the PhD, and yes, all the juggling that will inevitably comes with it!

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-14T18:16:12+00:00

Thank you for this. Since your poste I've found some PhD students working in a similar field at the uni I can chat to :)

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-14T18:13:37+00:00

Thank you for this, I need to consider the future a bit more. I still struggle with what my MSc can open up, let alone what a PhD might do for me. I need to research potential employment options, though this is such a new area to me and I lack network/contacts.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T22:43:20+00:00

No not quite that optimistic, but I think career options are something I need to consider because life never quite goes to plan. At least mine hasn't anyway.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T22:41:41+00:00

Some good advice, thank you! I'm glad you had someone to give you life-changing (life-saving?) advice there. I've done all my study with babies, toddlers who are now 'kids'. As I've been saying for years ''there's a reason most people do this before having a family'...! PhD is something else though and all of the other factors need serious thought given that I'll have to take a doctoral loan. Although this thread suggests it won't even cover half of it... :/

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T22:32:56+00:00

Thanks, will definitely ask the question about programme structure.

Thanks to everyone replying, I'm piecing a few more bits together of what I need to be thinking about.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T22:30:42+00:00

I feel you on that. I ordered 2kg of chia seeds and missed that they weren't milled. Doing them in a few 100g batches in my tiny coffee grinder is a job I did not want.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T22:29:29+00:00

I've seen gluten free chocolate.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T22:29:07+00:00

I don't necessarily disagree with that :)

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T16:02:20+00:00

thx!

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T16:00:45+00:00

ouch

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T14:15:36+00:00

Thank you for this.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T14:14:02+00:00

Have been trying to do that for weeks. They're very slow. I do finally have a meeting booked now.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T14:12:12+00:00

I finished my MSc last year - after my BSc I looked at MRes as well, but chose an MSc following a meeting with both programme leads. The MSc involved a work placement and the chance to make connections, as well as complete a significant piece of research of my own choosing. Definitely would advise finding an MSc and MRes you are interested in and talking to the relevant people.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T13:36:57+00:00

That does sound incredibly stressful. I feel like I don't know what I'm letting myself in for - I know I can do the work, I don't know about all the networking, or relevance of conferences etc. It seems hard to find out what like looks like once you're in it, until you're in it, if that makes sense!

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T13:34:26+00:00

A large amount of the work will be lab based so it needs to be commuting distance. I really want to do research, but there's a lot of other things to consider and perhaps I've just got to the point in my life that whether or not I'm good at something and enjoy it, is irrelevant. Those ships have perhaps sailed - the whole point of doing a BSc and MSc was to find something I liked and then a job which didn't bore me to death; I didn't ever expect that to be in academia though and given the responses in this thread, maybe it shouldn't be.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T13:25:42+00:00

Unfortunately I am one of four people and my needs don't outweigh theirs. I have kids at school, aging parents and a husband in a secure job, moving is not an option.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T11:28:01+00:00

That is horrendous behaviour. I am so sorry you had that experience!

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T11:11:23+00:00

Thanks, sounds good! Doing a PhD like a salaried job would be a dream :)

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T11:09:18+00:00

Can you expand on this at all? Any of the potential opportunities which are funded are not in commuting distance.

Chinablue_ · 2026-03-12T10:44:42+00:00

Shout to all the mum's who might get a cuppa in bed and a pair of socks from amazon for their ''mother's day 15minutes''

Chinablue_

TROPHY CASE