Doing Duke of Edinburgh purely for UCAS?

[WestMuncher]

DD, who is going into Year 10, really isn’t outdoorsy or sporty in the slightest. She’s just got back from a Year 9 adventure week and absolutely hated it. Ditto camping with Guides when she tried that last year.

She’s got her eye on a very competitive uni course though and is already keen to do everything she can to maximise her chance of a place. She’s saying she thinks she ought to do Duke of Edinburgh (Bronze), yet is this really going to make a difference? She really would be doing it purely for UCAS as it just isn’t the kind of thing she enjoys.

She plays piano to Grade 4 and will probably get another grade or two in before UCAS time. She also sings in chamber choir (which requires an audition although she’s never done singing grades). That’s it so far though in terms of extra-curriculars. She’s not into either sport or drama.

Can you afford to lose the money if she decides it is not for her after the practice walk? My youngest was adamant he was never going to do DofE but then all his friends signed up and he decided to do it. He actually seems to have really enjoyed it. He sees it as a rite of passage and is pleased he achieved that. I don't think he will do silver and I don't think he has developed any great love of walking but he had a couple of days hanging out with his mates and he managed to work in a team to plan and finish the walk.

I don’t believe the bronze gets much recognition because it’s very easy, others have previously said that silver or gold is more favourably looked on, if it comes down to a personal statement as the bronze is too easy

Just on the volunteering element, my daughter volunteers at the library, she is 15.

You’re right, op. The idea of ‘doing DofE for UCAS’ is misguided even if you do the full set. And if she’s at the sort of school that pushes it but she only does bronze it wouldn’t be remotely impressive. My dd did the full set and it barely made half a sentence of her PS along with something about teamwork…the rest was all about her engagement with her subject.
It can be very good experience for some kids but doesn’t sound like yours would benefit at all. Horses for courses.

on second thoughts …although you’re absolutely right re ucas, if she’s got the other elements covered, and you can afford it and she actually wants to do the expeditions, then I’d let her. Even if she hates it, it may be a useful experience in terms of resilience, teamwork or at worst the point of listening to your mum.

Nope. My DD was quite keen on it (at her school you either did Dof E or Cadets) but was put in with the most god awful bullies and I will never forget picking her up after her first expedition and her crying all the way home. Disgusting behaviour (on another team there was a type 1 diabetic and the team abandoned her when she was experiencing a hypo!!!). And it means nothing in terms of uni entry. Unless your kid loves that kind of thing don’t bother.

I’d be questioning the school’s priorities - pushing DoE Bronze but no societies until year 12 and you can’t set a new one up until end year 12. They don’t sound great if you want support for an Oxford application.

The only use would be if she can draw observations relevant to her course from doing it.

I agree with this. D of E is not worthless because everyone does it. It is really useful for building confidence, teaching problem solving, initiative, planning, time management etc. My dd is at the end of her silver award and through the two stints of volunteering (food bank and another charity) has learned so much about working with people outside of her social circle, compassion, etc not to mention speaking up for herself. She has really enjoyed it. And it has given her more confidence which will be really useful when applying for, and studying at, university.

There are other things one can do to put on UCAS. Perhaps follow a hobby or interest to the next level. DC is a film buff and got involved with BFI youth section, he was into martial arts and there was the option to learn to teach the younger ones, football refereeing etc.

I'm going to say that DofE is often something kids do purely for their CV and it's not greatly enjoyable to many who do it.

DofE isn't just about the expedition. (It's only a 2 day assessment, and usually a 2 day practice from Bronze, plus maybe another couple of daytime bits).
The volunteering, practical and skills sections are equally/ more important, and if she picks things that either she enjoys, or are related to her course for that, it'll definitely help, even if it's just something to talk about in personal statements or at interview. It'd also be great if she found something in one of those areas she really enjoyed, and was able to carry it on, as then it'd give her even more to talk about (eg how she tried it for DofE, didn't enjoy some bits, but persevered through to get her award, but found her passion for XYZ, which she has continued to this day and would like to do more of at uni, and she's seen on the website that that uni has a society for XYZ, which is part of why she'd love to go there).

Does she do any other volunteering, practical or skill type activities already? What's she interested in generally? For psychology, could she volunteer in a patient setting, or with children who're likely to use some psychological services (Eg a friend volunteered in a hospital shop, or she could look at volunteering at a club for children with Special Needs (Autism, anxiety etc), or with Scouts/Guides younger sections, mentioning she's particularly interested in helping SEN children).
For physical/ skill, there's lots of things which could translate into psychology or therapy jobs - lots of outdoor skills can be translated into types of play therapy, and finding a passion for one might lead to a niche area of study in the future about the impact of X Outdoor activities on mental health, or the use of Y in treatment for Z disorder).

It's a great chance to explore new interests without a long term commitment (I believe its 3months, 3 months and 6 months for Bronze), and tbh I'd encourage anyone who's interested to go for it!

These days all that matters in terms of uni applications- including Oxbridge and RG, is high predicted grades and decent personal statement including supercurriculars and reading around the subject. Then with Oxbridge, interviews.

Not sure why you've revived an old thread to make that proclamation, but it clearly isn't true.

Applicants to all sorts of courses need to be able to demonstrate their people skills. Some need to demonstrate experience and / or volunteering in the area of their course. You seem to be basing this on a particular course or type of course perhaps ?

That doesn't change original answer that a Bronze DofE is irrelevant to an UCAS application of course, but it can still be a good thing to encourage teens out of their comfort zone to try new things.

Wait, personal statements will be phased out? for all unis and subjects or just Oxford?

@WestMuncher don't bother with DofE if she hates camping. Best to stay true to herself and focus on academics. She could join SJA cadets, that would be a good idea.

No, they’re not being phased out; from 2026 they will be structured as a set of 3 sections (phrased as questions).
The third question is ‘Question 3: What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?
something like DofE may have been useful in this context for one applicant but not for another.

https://www.ucas.com/applying/applying-to-university/writing-your-personal-statement/the-new-personal-statement-for-2026

Waste of time!! Such a rigmarole and I say that having a DD who did all her D of E including gold and has just struggled to get her place at uni! She missed her grades and needed to go through clearing! I realised the unis are really mainly interested in grades!! Didn’t care that she’d got an A on her EPQ, or d if E gold or that she’d done 3 science A levels not 2 - I would encourage her hobbies and some other bits including having a little job!! Traveling a bit of learning a new skill!

Just to add… she actually loved the camping etc and is like a female Bear Grylls so it was great for her but most people just do really easy volunteering stuff like my son who did it at bronze but the school just got him to spend an hour a week tidying the Library and he played tennis which he did anyway! He’s not that bothered about it really and found it a pain! 🙈!!

No one cares about d of e.

Not true.

Plenty of people care enough about giving dc the opportunities to stretch themselves, and to move out of their comfort zone, that they volunteer for hours every year to facilitate it. They do so because they have seen, over many decades how, done properly, the DofE Award scheme can introduce teens to all sorts of experiences they wouldn't otherwise encounter.

DofE can be great for some irrespective of whether it helps with their uni application. But it doesn’t add value to that, and Oxford couldn’t care less unless it is directly demonstrative of their interest in their subject.
The PS is now a set group of questions, though imagine it asks what a PS should say anyway (it is the same length as before). Oxford puts a lot of weight on not just grades but exams (if needed), submitted work (if required) and the PS. Other unis are just about the grades.

https://www.st-annes.ox.ac.uk/study-here/undergraduate/outreach/students/super-curriculars-and-resources/
https://www.magd.ox.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Preparing-for-Oxford-Resources-Pack-.pdf
https://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/files/publications/super-curricular_suggestions.pdf
https://www.mindsunderground.com/british-psychology-olympiad

You are not writing about stretching yourself, comfort zones or voluntary work in a personal statement though.

Many students complete the bronze D of E and it barely gets a sentence in the precious word count limit. She would be better off securing a couple of stand- out work experience placements and waxing lyrical about the skills she gained from those.

Was talking to an admissions officer last week who said dofe gold was one of few ways to distinguish yourself at that age. Not sure bronze is worth much, I’d do direct entry gold or forget it.

Ours both did bronze and gold. Mostly because pretty much all of the kids at their school did them. They both went to good RG unis, but I don’t think it made a jot of difference in their personal statements. Much of their DofE evidence was a work of fiction anyway.