Need some help with Clearing?

It wasn’t too long ago when the word ‘Clearing’ was feared and loathed by A-Level students. Finding a university place through clearing was almost like a last resort. However, that’s all changed.

More and more students than ever before are finding university places through Clearing. In fact, this year in 2019, UCAS revealed that record numbers of students would go through Clearing - many of who haven’t even applied to university until after they have received their A-Level results.

This would suggest that it is a buyers market!

So what is Clearing?

Clearing is open from 5th July until 23rd October and is a UCAS service that allows you to apply for university or college courses if:

• you are applying after 30th June
• you didn’t receive any offers
• you didn’t meet the entry criteria
• or you declined your offer

Essentially, if you don’t hold an offer from a university or college, and the course still has places, you can apply.

So, Clearing is a little like a sale. Although the window of opportunity is shorter and there are a limited amount of places, there is still time to shop around and find yourself something that fits.

So where should you start?

Talk to an expert

Pick up the phone or pop back into college to talk to one of the admissions team who can talk you through what to do next. You can get some ideas down on paper about which courses you’d like to study and which unis you’d like to study at. They’ll also help you register with UCAS (if you haven’t already) so you can make your application.

Browse the sale rail

With so many course choices and loads of different perks being offered by universities across the country, why shouldn’t you take your time to find the best deal? Universities will be trying to fill their places and may reduce their entry requirements as a result, meaning you can still find your dream course. So, if you missed your grades first time around, you can apply through Clearing.

Use the UCAS search tool to browse the range of courses on offer. You may need to try different universities or slight variations on your subject, but there are always bargains to be had!

Try things on (virtually)

Before you add a course to your Clearing choice in Track, have a look at the university and course online. What are people saying about the course What’s the campus like? What clubs and societies are there for you to join? Get a good feel for the place to see if it is the right fit for you.

Once you’ve done that, give them a call to get things started. Give them your Clearing number (you can find this in Track) and Personal ID and ask if they would accept your application. This also gives you a good opportunity to ask them about accommodation options if you’ll be living away from home.

Add your choice to your basket

Once you’ve had your choice you’ll be ready to checkout. You should only add a Clearing choice once you have permission from the university or college.

Click 'Add Clearing choice', and fill in the course details by the date the university/college gave you. This counts as you definitely accepting the offer, so if they confirm, it'll show as an acceptance on your 'Choices' page in Track. You can only add one choice at a time, but if the university/college doesn't confirm your place, you'll be able to carry on shopping and add another.

There are still a few places on our courses starting this October, so if you’d like to talk to us about Clearing or chat about any of our courses at our three campuses then give us a call on 01424 458466.