Learning Highway - Applying to HE
Timing
Most people who go to higher education apply before they have the exam results or other qualifications that they need. Most courses want applications in during the academic year before the courses starts.
So, it's normal to start the process well before you want to start your course -the usual period being between September and mid January - ie 1st September 2005 and 15th January 2006 for courses due to start in September/October 2006. This is the peak period, so it's advisable to get the forms in then, but applications can be accepted right until the day the courses start!
The lack of exam results means that students have to rely on predicted grades given on the form by their teachers. It's not a very satisfactory system and it means that they cannot be sure that they have a place until exam results come out. Every so often the government of the day makes noises about changing this and moving to a post results system.
Some people, mainly young people taking a gap year or adults returning to education do have their results before they apply.
UCAS
Sooner or later when you are researching higher education options you will come across UCAS. The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service handles applications to nearly all degree and higher diploma courses in the UK. For 2006 entry UCAS has moved to an all-electronic application system. It works like this.
- You bring up a UCAS form on-line by entering UCAS Apply, a secure, web-based application system. If you are a full-time student at a school or college you will receive guidance on how to use the system there. If not, you can still use Apply from anywhere that has access to the internet.
- You fill in some personal details and list all your qualifications.
- You list up to six courses that you wish to apply for at colleges and universities.
- You also write a personal statement, explaining why you want to do a degree, DipHE or HND course.
- You get someone - usually someone who has taught you - to add a reference.
- You then need to pay an application fee of £15 or £5 if you want to apply to just one course. You may pay on-line using a credit or debit card. However, full-time students may be asked to pay by cash or cheque to their school or college which will then pay a total fee to UCAS for all applications made.
Your application and fee are sent to UCAS whose staff now take over.
UCAS staff send a copy of your application to each college and university you have chosen.
It's a fair system - which was introduced to limit the administration that both applicants and admissions staff had to cope with. Just imagine if every applicant applied to every course that they could do. The Internet would break down!
Of course, the system doesn't please everybody because many students are forced to make difficult choices, given that they may choose only six courses.
UCAS staff don't make any decisions on your application. That's for the colleges and universities. UCAS gives them deadlines so that they have to send replies to applicants by certain dates. Officially, all replies and all contact between you and the ones you choose is done through UCAS but many admissions tutors write to candidates to let them know that a place will be offered at the same time as they inform UCAS.
UCAS has a very informative website that tells you everything you need to know about applying for a place, including the dates. It also has links to other useful websites (on topics like student life, student finance and health, for instance) and to the ones run by each college and university.
THE UCAS WEB SITE : www.ucas.com
Some courses are not in the UCAS system.
These include:
- Some held in private universities and colleges
- Postgraduate courses.
- Diploma courses in Nursing. (Nursing degrees are in UCAS). For diplomas there is a second system very like UCAS. It is in fact run from the same offices and is called NMAS, the Nursing and Midwifery Admissions Service. www.nmas.ac.uk