Didn’t get the results you needed?
Don’t panic if you have the wrong combination of grades or if you didn’t quite achieve what your chosen university required – there are still many options available to you.
- The first thing you should do is contact the university and see if they’re willing to give you a place anyway – it’s well worth doing if you’ve just missed out on your required results.
Make sure that you convince them that you’re a good candidate and that they should accept you!
- If the answer is no then ask them if they’d consider taking you next year without you having to re-sit your A level’s again. They may ask you what you will do in your gap year so make sure you tell them how you would put the year to good use!
- If you have a UCAS application check the ‘track’ service as that tells how your university application is progressing.
- Remember if you don’t get the grades needed for your first choice but you get them for your second choice you will be accepted there.
Want to re-sit your exams or have them re-marked?
If you want to get your exams re-marked then talk to a teacher as soon as possible! Don’t forget that you can’t actually directly apply yourself – the institution where you sat your exam has to do it in your behalf.
Take to your college, parents and career advisors and the admissions tutor for the course you want to do, if thinking about re-sitting your A level’s. Bear in mind that universities might ask you for high grades when re-sitting an exam. It’s understandable to feel upset or angry if you feel that you underachieved in your results but remember a lot of good universities may offer you a place through clearing.
Clearing…
Last year nearly 40,000 pupils found a place in a University through clearing and in the 40 years UCAS’s clearing service has been running it’s helped millions find a place at university.
What is it?
Clearing is a service which basically matches up people who didn’t get a place in the university they wanted with universities who have unfilled spaces.
Who can use it?
You’re allegeable for clearing if you have applied through UCAS this year but been unsuccessful in securing a place on a course and:
- If you were never offered a place at university or were offered one but didn’t meet the required conditions (e.g didn’t get the right grades).
- If you declined your offers or not responded in time.
- Your offers weren’t confirmed when your exam results were announced.
- If you applied to late (after June 30th or June 12th for art and design route B).
If you’ve obtained reasonable exam results there’s a great chance that you’ll find another course.
The vacancies in courses are published on the UCAS website (
www.ucas.com) from the middle of August until the end of September.
Things to remember when using clearing!
· There’s no need to rush! Explore the options available to you and don’t accept the first offer you get.
· Contact as many universities as you can and talk to them about the courses which you’re interested in.
· Don’t panic! Clearing could help you find the course of your dreams…
Got better results than you expected or want to decline an offer?
It’s good if you get better results than you expected but don’t make hasty decisions. First you need to check with your university if they’re willing to release you. If so then think about if you’re willing to enter clearing and if you’re not then talk to universities and see if they would accept you next year. You also need to check if your firm choice would be willing to accept you next year if you don’t find a place anywhere else. There’s a lot of questions to ask yourself and a lot of talking to universities needed so don’t make rash decisions!
Thinking of taking a gap year?
If you want a break from studying or need time to clarify your thoughts and ideas then you may be considering taking a gap year. So for those of you who have decided to reapply to university next year make the most of your year out as it’s a good way to gain a wider life experience. Options include going abroad, doing voluntary work etc.
