The Applicant Journey
RESEARCH
APPLICATION
OFFERS & REPLIES
CONFIRMATION
CLEARING &ADJUSTMENT
School ProcessNow - Begin course research and first draft personal statements.
Student completes application form including personal statement, course choices and education.
Student pays (£22 for five or £11 for one) and ‘sends’ to referee.
Tutor collates subject references including predicted grades for current courses and personal touch based on knowledge of the students’ amazing qualities.
Application and reference checked by HoS / Assistant HoS and sent to UCAS.
Is University the right choice for me?
How do I choose the right University and Course?
Can I afford to go to University?
Research
Requires: Sufficient time Resources Organisation Knowing where to look / what to look for Encouragement and support
Works best when: Systematic Methodical Thorough
Range of resources: Paper Experiential Online
UCAS Course Search
Which courses are offered at which institutions Open or closed for application Entry profiles EP
Specific information about course and university Guide to minimum qualifications/grades required Information about what kind of candidate Guide to the selection process Clues for writing Personal Statement Financial information (fees, bursaries etc) Headline link to unistats website
When to apply
One application per year
- give yourself plenty of time and make it the best it can be
Deadlines matter
- applications received by deadline will be considered
- applications received after deadline may be considered
- HEIs can close courses after the relevant deadline
Apply early only if absolutely sure of choices
- if only sure of some choices, either wait, or submit with sure choices
and add others later (but not able to change personal statement)
Application numbers spike around deadlines
- Admissions officers may have less time to spend with each!
What information will UCAS require?
Students are asked to complete the following sections:
Personal Details Choices Education Employment Personal Statement
First of all you need to register:
10 minute process Applicant given username Applicant creates password Applicant given Personal Identification Number (PID)
Track
Enables you to follow the
progress of your
application (24/7, access via
password)
Quickest way to find out about
new offers
You can reply to offers online
HEI decisions
UCAS processes and makes available to considering HEIs (usually within 24 – 48 hours)
Institutions consider independently ~ UCAS not involved (average waiting time 2012 was 51 days, so patience required!)
Each HEI will record a decision through UCAS unsuccessful offer
- unconditional where qualifications held- conditional where results not yet known
Track updated and email sent to the applicant
Conditional offers
Could be made in terms of UCAS Tariff score alone
e.g. Score 320 UCAS Tariff points from all qualifications.
Could be made in terms of grades or scores e.g. Achieve grades A, A, B in A-levels being taken summer 2014
Could be a mixture
e.g. Score 360 UCAS Tariff points including a grade A in A-level Mathematics
Could include further conditions or limitations e.g. Achieve A*,A,A in A-levels and STEP I and III at Grade 1
or ....Achieve 280 Points from a minimum of 3 full A-Levels
Applicant replies
When? Decisions received from ALL choices If offer(s) made applicant asked to reply and given a date to reply
by on Track Reminders sent, but failure to reply by the reply date results in
offers being declined by default
What replies can be made? For unconditional offers
– ACCEPT – DECLINE
For conditional offers – FIRM – INSURANCE
“What am I committing to?”
Confirmation
If conditions of a FIRM choice offer are met, applicant is
PLACED with the FIRM choice HEI
If conditions of a FIRM choice offer are not met, the HEI
could (at its discretion) still choose to confirm and the
applicant would be placed with the FIRM choice HEI
ONLY if conditions of a FIRM choice offer are NOT met
and the FIRM choice HEI does NOT confirm does the
INSURANCE choice come into play.
Clearing: What happens when?
Some people eligible mid-July (but no vacancy list)
Track is ‘frozen’ the weekend before A-Level results
are published in mid-August
Vacancy list published on UCAS website 1 minute past
midnight the night before A-Level results are published
Track is ‘unfrozen’ the morning A-Level results are
published (always a Thursday)
Option to ‘Add Clearing Choice’ via Track appears
18.00 GMT on the day A-Level results are published
PLACED applicants and Clearing
Any applicant who has been PLACED with a university or
college has made a commitment to the HEI
No simple automatic process to get out of the commitment
ONLY option is to ask HEI to change record to a decline
Applicant would have to: Contact HEI direct Explain circumstances / what they wish to do Seek HEI agreement (it is at HEI’s discretion) Ask HEI to action decline (UCAS cannot)
Adjustment
For applicants whose place has been confirmed at their
FIRM choice, and who have MET all conditions of offer and EXCEEDED at least one condition
Can hold on to confirmed place while seeking a more
aspirational one for UP TO 5 DAYS MAXIMUM (Consecutive 24 hour periods - clock starts when applicant PLACED
or A-Level results day, whichever is later – end time shown in Track)
Key dates and deadlines
Early June: applicants register and start application
Early September: School can start to submit
completed applications to UCAS
14 October: deadline for early applicants
Medicine, Veterinary, Dentistry
Oxford or Cambridge
14 January: main deadline
23 March: deadline for some Art & Design
THEY
ARE
VITAL
Admissions testmay need to be
registered for prior to submitting
UCAS application
Art & Design courses
Used to have a separate application route (Route B)
Brought into main system in 2010
Some courses have a later (23 March) deadline - some applicants do 1 yr foundation course before applying to university
- need time to decide on specialisms and for referee to get to know them well enough to write a meaningful reference
Likely to require portfolio evidence to support application
School Deadlines:
Early Applications
complete:26th Sept.
All other applications
complete:7th Nov. Aiming to turn applications around
with references in 2 school weeks.