APPLYING TO HIGHER EDUCATION

SEPTEMBER 2012

Why bother going to Uni?

The average graduate starting salary is £20,964 and for a non-graduate is £13,721

Graduates entering law, banking, IT and engineering can expect salaries above this

the average lifetime earnings of a graduate are £2270,000 more than those of a non-graduate with two A-levels

The top earning graduate jobs of 2010 are law, investment banking, consultancy and confectionary manufacturing

Which Course??

There are three main types of course available

Vocational Course – these are courses that lead to a particular career eg education or nursing

Non-vocational Course – these are courses in a particular subject that do not necessarily lead to a particular career eg biology (check out www.prospects.ac.uk for “What do Graduates Do?)

Sandwich Course – these are courses usually in engineering or languages where study an university is broken by a year of employment or living in another country

The Process

Most applications will be through UCAS

Pupils complete an on-line application form. This includes personal details, their qualifications, their five choices of courses and their personal statement

School advises that pupils select one course from Queen’s, one from the University of Ulster and one in Great Britain

Pupils make an appointment with their allocated interviewer in order to check the form

The Personal Statement

• A personal statement is probably the single most important piece of work that pupils have had to do so far

• Justify course choice (very important for a vocational course)

• Work experience• Activities inside & outside school• Positions of responsibility• Concluding statement

Timetable Oxbridge + Medical Courses -

Closing Date 15th October 2011

All 0ther ApplicationsClosing Date 15th January 2012

Student Guidance Interviews - September 26th 2011 – 14th October 2011

Oxbridge + Medical Applications - Sent by 12th October 2011

All Other Applications - Sent by 11th November 2009

What happens next??

After the interview, pupils are asked to make any corrections as quickly as possible

Pupils then bring a finalised paper copy of their form to Mrs Browne

The form is checked one more time and pupils now pay (£21 online by debit/credit card) and then sends the electronic version to school

The school now writes the confidential reference and attached this to their electronic form and sends this to UCAS

What happens then?? UCAS then sends the form electronically to

all the universities Admissions tutors then make a decision

based on the personal statement, predicted A-Level grades, GCSE grades & A/S grades, evidence of motivation and the school reference

Some pupils may have to go to interview before a decision is made

They will reject an applicant or make a conditional offer

What next??

If rejected, the decision is final but pupils can ask for feedback

Pupils must wait until all five decisions are made before they can confirm any decision

By early May, pupils accept a Firm Conditional offer and an Insurance Conditional offer which should have lower grades

These are binding but there may be some leeway

Finance 1 – Tuition fees Universities in England, Scotland and

Wales are now able to set their own tuition fees to a maximum of £9000

NI have set fees for NI students at £3465

All students will be eligible for a loan to cover their tuition fees (or may be paid up front)

The student takes the responsibility for the loan

It is repaid directly from their salary when they earn over £21,000

Earnings (annually £)

Annual tax (£) Monthly pay reduction (£)

15000 0 0

16000 0 0

21000 0 0

22000 90 7.50

30000 810 67.50

40000 1710 142.50

50000 2610 217.50

Finance 2 – Maintenance Loans

Loans are also available for living expenses

All eligible students are entitled to 65% of the maximum figure

The remaining 35% is means tested and depends on residual income pre-tax income minus pensions and allowances for dependents)

London £4988 - £7675 Living away from home £3575 - £ 5500 Living at home £2845 - £4375

Other info about loans Loans are repaid at 9% of earnings

above £21000 After 30 years, any remaining debt is

wiped Above interest inflation will be charged Allowed to earn more before repaying

(previous limit was £15000). This means that those earning £21000+ will be £540 better off annually

BUT, this means that you will owe the money for longer and potentially repay more

Loans do NOT go on credit files

Finance 3 - Grants

Grants are non-repayable Students from lower income households

will be eligible for a non-repayable grant up to £3250

If residual income is less than £25000, student is eligible for the whole grant

If income is more than £45000, student is eligible for none of the grant

A sliding scale works in between the upper and lower limits

If a student is entitled to the maximum grant, the maximum maintenance loan is reduced

Finance 4 - Bursaries Universities have to provide

additional (non repayable) support to students who receive the full grant

These are non-repayable A number of bursaries are

available in healthcare A number of scholarships are

available in engineering and IT Universities also have “Access to

Learning Funds” which are available to students on low incomes

Information available

www.hotcourses.com www.prospects.ac.uk (What do

graduates do? Section) DEL – “Financial Support for Higher

Education Students” (Apply in February/March)

DEL – Student Finance Branch Education & Library Boards www.dfes.gov.uk/studentsupport www.studentfinanceni.com www.moneysavingexpert.com

What if I need help??

www ucas.com/parents (sign up to receive the UCAS parent guide and quarterly email bulletins)

Contact Mrs Browne at school (90702777 or fmcauley789@c2kni.net

Check the school’s website – updated monthly to allow parents to see what is happening that month