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Having a rant again!
Being a parent is hard work, being a single parent even harder but when you add on a degree and work placement it is sooo exhausting.
I have enough trouble returning to education at 31 not having been there since age 16 but when I am also having to re - learn all the basics like adjectives, pro nouns, fractions etc so I can help little angel with her school work my head feels ready to combust!
The trouble is uni dont seem to really acknowledge that being a parent HAS to come first. They set up my work placement too late so now I will be working full time for first 4 weeks of little angels summer holidays and of course this means arranging childcare and missing out on valuable time. Quite a few of us have been affected by this lack of organisation by uni but all they say is "it is a requirement of the course to have completed your work placement before you start Year 2" I get that but why have they left our placements so late in the year when most students were placed in January?! So frustrating. They also arrange extra study events in the evenings when most of the parents cant attend so we feel we are missing out. Our student rep presented these issues today at uni and the response was pretty much "you knew what you were getting in to when you started the course" Well Thanks alot!!!
There is a complaints procedure and I know a few of the parents are going down that route, for me though I just dont have the time (or energy). The problem is either way I will have to do the placement, but I just wanted some kind of acknowledgement or apology for the inconvienience it caused.
Oh no! I just typed a really really long reply and pressed a wrong button and it disappeared!
My uni is quite good with considering people's personal needs. Also, we have a programme management meeting twice a year. Student Reps are invited to take part and any issues are discussed. And we are listened to - I have instigated a few changes over the last couple of years.
With placement: (don't know if you've read my other thread) I am having an operation which coincides with the start of a four week placement, but I'll need 2 - 6 weeks recovery time. So I spoke to the programme director, and he has arranged for me to do the placement in the summer holidays instead (we have 1 week hols each at Christmas and Easter, and 5 in the summer, always coinciding with school holidays). Maybe your uni could do something similar for you? Or maybe stretch your placement, so that you don't have to work every day of the week?
Also, speak to your student union, maybe they have other ideas of how to help you.
Hope you can get this sorted! I know about the constant guilt trip us mums are on. If you spend too much time with uni stuff you feel guilty towards your children, if you spend too much time with the children you feel guilty about not doing your uni work.
Hugs to you! x
Lol Hopeful that is so the thing I would do - delete a long message!
Well I werent at the meeting the students rep had but I was told that no solutions were offered. Honestly, I can manage it because my mum cares for angel while Im on placement but there are others who are really up against it. I just wanted the uni to accept that parents should get some extra consideration when they are organising the placements. I was just feeling a bit stressed that they said that and plus I am trying to do two assignments whilst on placement as well as learning Key Stage 2 English and Maths as angel keeps asking for help with homework and I cant remember anything ( doing a degree but no clue about adjectives and fractions, whats that about?! lol)! Head is on overload, also as I am litigant in person (or whatever its called) I am also putting together my own case for court and could have done with using the holidays to do that.
But never mind am just moaning as usual, Ill get it done - eventually. Then I will sleep for a month 
Hi littleangel, the response to your student rep was outrageous! Especially in this day and age, I think you should push it further, especially as it sounds as though there are quite a few parents on your course.
Is there a complaints procedure, do you know?