UCAS statements - Any advice please?

[ByRoseLeader]

Hi, I’m wondering if anyone can give me some advice regarding a UCAS statement & how much of a difference they make when submitting an Uni application?

This is the first I’ve heard of them so any info would be appreciated.

To give a brief background, my daughter should have been SEN tested. I have been requesting it since she was in year 9, she’s now in year 12 & has only just been tested & acquired an extra 50% time. This is obviously good for her A-levels, but I have subsequently put in a complaint to the school as she would have been eligible for it when taking her GCSE’s. It’s obviously too late to appeal to the exam boards as the cut off was September, she wasn’t tested till December.

This is the only option the school is suggesting. Has anyone been in a similar position? I would much rather there was a discretionary appeal service as I think it’s not right that she didn’t have grounds to appeal till after the deadline. I can’t seem to find any info on who (other than the school) can advise me. I’ve tried contacting the exam board directly but they have not replied. I’m not sure if the school is 100% being truthful when it states this is the best they can offer.

really hoping someone can either shed some light on the statement or where to go for advise 🙂

thank you for reading this longer than planned message!

Not sure what you mean by ucas statement. She will get the access arrangements for A level which is the key thing. Does she have the gcse grades she needed?

Not sure exactly what you're asking, but the UCAS application will include a personal statement from your DD explaining what she wants to do and why, plus a reference from her 6 form tutor, based on individual references from her subject teachers. Within that there is an opportunity to mention any extenuating circumstances, but that is to explain any discrepancies in her predicted grades, eg for year 12. She clearly missed out on the extra time she deserved at GCSE, but now she has it granted for A level it shouldn't affect her application.

This all applies to a UCAS application to university, which most year 12s will be starting to work on now, of course - UCAS has nothing to do with appealing previous grades.

Yes I don't really know what you mean either. All students write a personal statement for their Uni choices to read to help them decide whether to make an offer to the student or not... but this is an opportunity to sell themselves rather than to convey SEN or errors is previous exam protocol.

I was SEN tested and did mention my diagnosis in my personal statement to demonstrate that I could overcome challenges.
But the main focus was on the activities I had undertaken that were related to the degree I was applying to study.
The personal statement is a way to sell yourself as an individual to universities.
Issues with your school wouldn't feature there.

If you’re talking ‘25 entry then there is a possibility that the personal statement might be replaced by a number of questions, which would give the opportunity to highlight extenuating circumstances. This is not confirmed, it was supposed to be in place for ‘24 entry but was pushed back.

https://www.uniadmissions.co.uk/application-guides/personal-statements-changing-2025/#:~:text=In%20short%2C%20this%20is%20what,2026%20Entry%20in%20the%20UK.

Yeh what PPs say - not sure what you are asking @ByRoseLeader

If you want to know about the UCAS form personal statement, yes, it is a statement of frankly not many words about why you want to study the chosen course and what research etc you have done around it. So DD for eng lit talked about what sparked her passion for it and what her interests were. How much difference does it make? Anecdotally, probably not much unless it's a very competitive course but obvs the student needs to make it as good as they can.

Most of your post is about your DD's exam arrangements - nothing can be done about her GCSEs but as long as she achieved what was needed to go forward (and presumably she did) then I wouldn't worry too much. The key thing is that she now has the extra time in place for any mocks in yr 12 and 13 and of course her actual A level exams.

Thank you for your reply 🙂

I don’t really know either. Apparently the school can provide dd with a written statement which will be given to her UCAS referee “as part of her reference and flagged as part of the application” but by this I presume it will be given to the teacher at the school, whichever one that then will be her referee for Uni so though they’ve admitted problems with SEN I don’t think I’ll even know what they put in the letter or just how supportive it is.

She didn't get the grades to attend Uni for her 1st career choice but has good enough grades to still apply to Uni but to put it into context if she achieved just 1 grade higher, she probably could have persued her 1st career choice.

My concern is that as well as this, since she has started 6th form she’s been given all new teachers. There are issues regarding teacher attendance in 2 out of 3 subject's (1 of the subjects her teacher has been been off since Oct & is now off indefinitely) they’ve now asked a teacher who had retired to come back to cover but only since returning from Feb half term so I am starting to feel like she’s being let down again by the school.

Knowing that she would have received the extra time for GCSE’s but missed out I really want to ensure that whatever agreement I reach with the school will be in her best interest but I can’t find advice anywhere.

My DD's personal statement was three sentences about her and all of the rest was about the subject like @clary says.

Then her tutor at college wrote whatever it is that they write. They are separate things.

Thank you to everyone for the replies.

I’ve expanded a bit further on another reply. This is not student statement or reference it is in addition to both these. It’s to be submitted with but in addition to the teachers reference to explain she should have received extra time for her GCSE’s. That’s as much as I know.

if no-one knows the worth of this can anyone advise where to get advice please?

I know UCAS is separate/different to appeals. An appeal would be my preference but have been told it’s not possible

Do universities care about GCSE results?

She didn't get the grades to attend Uni for her 1st career choice but has good enough grades to still apply to Uni but to put it into context if she achieved just 1 grade higher, she probably could have pursued her 1st career choice.

Are you talking here about GCSE grades? Tbh the only way they really matter for uni is that many popular unis will ask for 6+ in maths and English, and all unis pretty much will want at least a 4 in both. Other than that it is only Oxford and Cambridge that look for mostly grade 7 and above. Or I guess medicine - but A level PGs are more important for that tbh.

What course has she been told she cannot apply for bc of her GCSE grades? For the vast majority of uni courses, while GCSE grades are the grades in hand, unis look more at PGs for A levels.

Depends on what they’re studying I think. In dd’s case apparently so. 5 GCSES between 6-9 of which 1 needed to be English

So what subject does she want to study at uni? My dd was only ever asked about her English and maths grades at GCSE when she was calling unis about clearing places. Obvs all GCSE grades are submitted to unis with application but I never heard of anything as specific as you cite here. Who has told you this? Is it on the relevant uni website?

It is true as I say that some unis look for at least a 6 in maths and English GCSE, but deffo not all.

If she's missed the English grade she should think about retaking it rather than accepting career choice B.

But yes what in

FFS...

What uni / course is asking 5 GCSEs at grade 6 or higher though, it's an unusual requirement for all to ask this?

As I mentioned earlier - there is a space alongside the reference submitted by the student's tutor to acknowledge any extenuating circumstances, so a note could be added to say, for example, that 'student X has recently been diagnosed with SEND and as a result...' If the SEND is something that requires significant adjustment (which is likely given she gets 50% ET) then it is worth acknowledging the potential impact. This statement is likely to be what the school is referring to in your case. Your daughter should be aware who is writing her reference and speak to them to ensure everyone is on the same page.

She could also write something into her personal statement to highlight the resilience and determination she has had to develop in order to get this far with an undiagnosed SEND.

Hope that helps.

My youngest did not do brilliantly in her GCSEs but they were enough to get her in to sixth form college to do her A levels and to be honest I haven't considered the GCSEs to be a hinderance to her going to university because I didn't think they gave a hoot as long as you have passed maths and English and haven got the A levels necessary.

If she gets 50% et, bear in mind that some papers can be 2-3 hours long without it. How sustainable will it be for her to use it all especially if she has two exams on one day. That could be exhausting especially in essay subjects, and possibly counterproductive unless she gets rest breaks too.

Which course at which uni, and what grades did she actually achieve?

Have you spoken to the admissions office at the uni?

I am intrigued, not only the GCSE results, but a uni course that leads directly to a career, without which degree one can't do the career.
Presumably medicine?

Plenty of med schools don't state that requirement though, and those that do are receptive to a resit, particularly given the circumstances.

If it is medicine I'd be very concerned about the lack of teaching though, and possibly the lack of experience of early applications generally.

She’s been looking at other courses since so will have to ask her. She got a 5 (not much under a 6) in Maths & English so even with what you’ve mentioned it still limits her choices. This is part my reason for asking as I mention further up if she had the 50% extra time at GCSE’s it was only one grade, then she wouldn’t be limited.