What to do if your teen’s NCEA results aren’t what they wanted.

The last two years have been hard for all NCEA students, but especially so for those living in Auckland. 

They have experienced weeks out of school, trying to develop consistent study habits at home. Whilst some have had access to Google Classrooms full of activities and daily Zoom lessons, others have not been so lucky. 

This made NCEA exams even more stressful for lots of students last year. Some were sitting papers for Achievement Standards they had learnt entirely from their workbook because they didn’t have enough time in class to cover the content.

NZQA did bring back Learning Recognition Credits to make it easier for students to get the credits they need.

NCEA exam results will be available from Thursday 20th January. Unsurprisingly, some students won’t get the results they need for University Entrance or for entry into the subjects they want to take this year.

I think the important thing is to remind your teenager that these results do not truly reflect their ability. If they don’t achieve University Entrance that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t still go to university, especially if they need a degree for their dream career. Likewise, students who don’t gain entry requirements for a subject, like Level 3 Chemistry for example, shouldn’t just drop the subject if they are interested in it. It is highly likely your teenager would have got different results if the circumstances were different.

So, what can your teenager do if they didn’t get the results they expected.

For students sitting NCEA Level 2 and 3 this year

Talk to their dean or the HOD

Some students will find that they did not get enough credits from their exam to continue with the subject this year.

Schools often require students to have gained at least 12 credits in a subject before they can move on to the next level. For the science and math based subjects, some of these credits usually have to come from externals. You can read more about how NCEA works and the difference between internals and externals here.

If your teenager has done well academically in the past, but has found learning from home difficult, then their best first option is to talk to their dean.

Teachers will be expecting poorer results this year and they will make exceptions. Your teenager’s dean will be able to look at their previous grades to gain an idea of whether they would have success in the subject. If the dean believes their results were likely affected by lockdowns, they can let students into a subject.

If your teenager really wants to take the subject you can actually push for them to be in the class. However, speak with the HOD for the subject and your teenager’s teacher from last year. They will give you honest feedback about whether it is in the best interest of your teenager. A lot of subjects, like NCEA Chemistry, build on the topics taught in the previous year. It can be really hard to keep up with the work if students are trying to teach themselves the topics covered the previous year and learn the topics taught in class. Students risk not getting any credits in the subject. In saying that, they can always try the subject and change to another subject if they find it too difficult.

Taking NCEA subjects across two levels

If your teen only gained a few credits in one subject, and they need that subject for their future career path, they can repeat it. For example, if a student does not gain any credits in Level 2 Chemistry, but they do well in their other subjects, they can repeat Level 2 Chemistry and take Level 3 classes for all of their other subjects. 

Often this will mean students forgo their study period. This way, they can still take five Level 3 subjects. This will let them achieve Level 3 and/or University Entrance in the same year. Whilst most Year 13 students don’t want to give up their study periods, they’re often used for socialising anyway.

The downside of this option is students who need Level 3 credits for that subject will need to explore other options over summer or the following year. These options are discussed in more detail below.

For students wanting to attend university this year

For University Entrance, students need 14 credits in each of three university approved subjects (42 credits total).

Your teenager has a few options if they didn’t get University Entrance.

Going back to school for the start of the year and applying in Semester 2

Universities run their academic year in two semesters. If students don’t get into university at the start of the year they can apply to start in July. This gives them the option of returning to school for the first one or two terms. 

The first step for them is to go into school in the last week of January and talk to the Year 13 dean. If they let the dean know what degree they want to enrol in, the dean will be able to suggest some subjects that will help them gain university entrance the fastest. 

Some schools even offer a credits programme at the start of the year. Students who just missed out on NCEA Level 3 or University Entrance can come back and complete a few Achievement Standards in the first couple of weeks. This can often get students into university in Semester 1.

If your teenager just needs a few credits in one NCEA Level 3 subject, the dean can speak with the teacher in charge of that subject. Most subjects have an Achievement Standard offered at Level 3, which could be completed at the start of the year. This means your teenager could come back to school until they complete that assessment and gain the credits they need.

However, this is at the discretion of the teacher. It would add a lot of time and work for them, if they haven’t offered that standard before. There’s already so much to do at the start of the year that most teachers can’t quickly create an assessment. In this case, Te Kura might be a better option.

Taking NCEA subjects at Te Kura Correspondence School

Te Kura offers an alternative pathway to gain NCEA Level 3. It is free to all students aged 16 to 19. Students learn online, so can take on part-time work as they study. They offer a range of NCEA subjects so students could enrol in three university approved subjects. The advantage is that students can repeat Year 13 without having to go back to school.

You can find out more about Te Kura Correspondence School here.

Bridging courses

Universities offer a Certificate in Foundation Studies. Students achieve University Entrance when they complete the course. 

The advantage of this is that students get to go to university with their friends and don’t feel like they are being left behind. The certificate will give them a feel for uni life. They can then decide whether university is for them, before they enrol in a degree.

The big disadvantage is that it costs. Students pay for every paper they enrol in. The government brought in a fees free scheme for the first year of study. However, students still have to complete their degree after they gain University Entrance. This means they will pay for all three years of their degree rather than just the final two years. So in actual fact, this course is not free.

You can click below to read more about the Foundation Certificates offered at three universities.

Auckland University I Massey University I University of Otago

Introductory/Foundational papers at university

A three year Bachelor’s degree is made up of 360 credits. These credits come from compulsory papers students must take and papers they choose, to make up the 360 credits. Students can’t major in their chosen area unless they have passed all compulsory papers.

Some compulsory papers have entry requirements. This means students need a certain number of credits (usually 14) in a specific NCEA Level 3 subject. 

For example, students must have 14 credits at NCEA Level 3 Chemistry to enrol in the first year compulsory papers for a Bachelor’s degree majoring in Chemistry.

An introductory paper is the best option if your teenager achieved University Entrance but didn’t gain enough credits in a required NCEA subject to gain entry to a compulsory paper at uni.

Each university will state what foundation paper students need to take first, if they do not meet entry requirements for the compulsory paper. Have a look at the entry requirements for the compulsory papers in the major your teenager has applied for.

Comment below if you can’t find the information and I will reply with a link to it.

Students can complete the foundation paper whilst completing other compulsory or chosen papers at the same time. This means they can work towards their degree while working towards entry into another paper.

The foundation paper does cost. However, the advantage with this option is that the paper is worth credits. This paper will count towards the 360 credits students need for their degree. Therefore, fees free study will cover the costs of the paper.

Summary

Whatever your teenager’s NCEA exam results, just remember there are options if they didn’t get the results they needed. 2021 was a crazy year, so just remind your teenager of all the things they did achieve last year!