Clearing Questions.....

[BaconAndAvocado]

Obviously he's hoping he won't have to go through clearing in a week, but if DS1 does have to go through it.........

1. Should he phone his firm and insurance first in case they will still accept him?

1. Are there phone numbers specifically for clearing or does he phone the relevant departments?

I feel completely at sea with it all

At my university admissions deal with most things. A level results are released to us this weekend - admissions will spend the next few days sorting out offers pending official release of results. Admissions will have already negotiated with relevant academic depts the grades they can automatically confirm at - which is quite often slightly lower than the standard offer. Any lower grades are referred to admissions tutors for the relevant subject to decide whether to accept or not. This is all done before the results are released.

Fingers crossed for your DS that he gets the results he wants.

If he narrowly misses his required grades and has been rejected on Track it may be worth ringing the University to see if they would consider allowing him on an alternative course, DD's friend did this successfully with Warwick last year.

If he is eligible for clearing here is a step by step guide
www.telegraph.co.uk/education/2016/06/27/ucas-clearing-2016-how-to-apply-and-how-does-it-work/

Calisha that is extremely interesting and strangely reassuring!

A - if Track shows as a reject no point in phoning - they've already looked and said no. Another course might take him of course.

B - there will be separate clearing phone numbers. These will be on websites now.

Sorry...

C - decisions on which courses are in clearing will be made early next week so keep an eye on plan c/d/e/f websites - daily, certainly by late Wednesday you should have a list ready.

Wow, thanks so much all. Loads of really helpful information there

DS1 is currently away from home working so it's a bit tricky trying to sort things out , but as soon as he's home we'll sit down and make a list of Plan B universities/courses.

sassy I've just had a look at the telegraph link and DS1's firm course isn't on there, why is that?

Check UCAS Track - but if he tries to log on at the stroke of midnight, it's unlikely he'll get through. It invariably crashes.

If his Firm has confirmed his place, no problems!

If not, check Insurance offer.

If he's just missed at his Firm and it was for a Combined programme, they may over the Single Honours. Or vice versa - sometimes Combined/Joint degrees are tougher to get into, sometimes, it's the other way round. If it's in a subject he wants to study & his Firm is the university he really wants to attend, it's really worth considering any alternative offer they make him.

My place has dedicated Admissions phone lines from 8am of Results day - if you need to contact your Firmed university, ring those. Please don't ring the Department unless you're advised to by the Admissions Office. We've had the email asking us to refer any & all enquiries back to the central Admissions phone numbers.

If neither, there will be Clearing phone lines for universities in Clearing. It will be specific degree programmes in Clearing, not a university as a whole.

So you'll need to identify specific programmes at specific universities with vacancies in Clearing, and contact them via the central Admissions numbers which will be on the front page of every university website now, or very soon!

eg: www.royalholloway.ac.uk/studyhere/clearingandadjustment/clearinghome.aspx

offer not "over"

They're expecting to not need to go into clearing as they expect to fill with existing offer holders. However they won't have A level results yet so may make s last minute decision to enter clearing if more offer holders than expected miss their grades significantly.

The full clearing lists won't be out yet.
DD has had emails off both her choices giving phone numbers and what to do on results day if she misses her offers.

If the firm course isn't on the list, it's either because the number of places have been allocated and are waiting to see if any places become available or the course isn't going into clearing e.g. It's a competitive course etc

His course may not be in clearing as currently they are close to their admission number at the moment but things can change on the day of results itself.

Universities may give offers to 2-3 times more people than they can actually allow on the course. this is because
(1) some people decline the offer
(2) some people put it as their insurance
(3) some people don't get the grades.

DD's course doesn't go into clearing but they accepted her last year even though she had initially had missed her offer by one grade. She took a big risk and had a remark and did subsequently reach her original offer but this was not necessary as her Uni had accepted her.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/higher_education/2697657-A-level-Results-18-days-anxiety-rising-anyone-else

lots more clearing advice on this thread running simultaneously if you havent already seen it - hope it helps....

Check UCAS Track - but if he tries to log on at the stroke of midnight, it's unlikely he'll get through. It invariably crashes

He won't get anywhere if he tries to log on at midnight......

Track is officially available at 8:00 am on results day but in practice it may be a bit earlier. UCAS RESULTS info HERE

The UCAS site had a big issue crashing a few years ago, I think it was 2011 but I didn't think it was a problem anymore.

Incidentally, last year my DC had to call UCAS as she went into adjustment and was being given incorrect information by the University she was 'upgrading' to. She had to call a few times early on results day and she had no problem at all getting through and each time the UCAS representative was helpful and friendly.

UCAS RESULTS info HERE

I'll try the click link again. I'm on the app so can't preview

I'm an Admissions' Tutor for a programme that always goes into Clearing (we're a cash cow for the university...): I will ALWAYS talk to someone who's missed their offer, if they ring, even if it's been rejected through UCAS already, and I make this clear at Open/Applicant Days. If they can give me a persuasive argument (or their head teacher, in case of something that went wrong etc) I will go and make their case to the University's Registrar, and see if we can admit them anyway. It's a total ball ache, in that the Registrar is a total twat - but I have taken students this way more than once. Most of them who miss their offers, though, don't bother to ask - presumably because they think there's no chance. There's always a chance

I also missed my offer as an under-grad, and was told by my first choice that I couldn't have a place as a result; my insurance also rejected me. I found a place through Clearing, but in the meantime, wrote to the AT at my first choice and made a case for why I should still be allowed to go - and why I'd blown it: and, crucially, why I wouldn't blow it again given a second chance. I got my place

(Actually, if I could go back, I'd tell myself to hold firm against my parents and school, stick with my revised plans and do my own thing - I fucking hated the university, and loathed my three years there... but most people don't feel this way!)

I'd tell myself to hold firm against my parents and school, stick with my revised plans and do my own thing

Off-topic a bit, but I think a lot of undergrads who have difficulties with their courses are there because of parental pressure or expectation, rather than their own first choice.

I wish parents wouldn't do this.

And I wish we had an HE system where people didn't feel that they'd "missed their chance" if they didn't go straight out of school. But that people could be students at any stage in their lives - when they are best placed to get the full advantage & enjoyment from it.

Dancing spot on: my life would have worked out very differently if I could go back 25 years and stick up for myself Not that it's bad now, mind you - just had a large period of being very unconventional in the middle of it!

I find that actually, mature students often perform the best, and to the maximum of their capacity (as opposed to under-performing) because they really, really want to be with us, know what the real world is like, and have often made sacrifices to study. Even when they have existing issues, chaotic homelives or other problems during their studies, they still tend to do really, really well.

The problem is now, virtually every job requires you to have a degree, just to get through the first round of eliminations - so young people are more-or-less forced into tertiary education, whether or not it's right for them and whether or not they are ready, if they have any aspirations to some sort of career, as opposed to a job.