Can someone tell me how UCAS applications work?

[Sarahcoggles]

DS is in year 13.
I went to uni a long long time ago and I know it's changed.

So, he applies for 5 universities and then waits for interviews/offers.

After he (hopefully) gets some offers, does he have to narrow it down to 2 universities, or does he go into the A levels with up to 5 offers on the table?

If they're narrowed down, does he choose a first and second choice, or are they chosen equally? As in, do the universities know if they're the student's preferred option, or just the back up? Or do they just see that they're 1 of 2 choices for a student?

Many thanks

He narrows it down to two, in order, the "firm" and the "insurance." The unis know which they are. If it all goes wrong and he doesn't get the grades for either of them (let's hope that doesn't arise!) he enters "clearing" which is a first-come-first-served arrangement of courses that have vacancies.

It gets narrowed down to a “firm” and and an “insurance” choice. Generally the 2nd choice has lower/easier conditions

There are pretty clear explanations of the process and timeline on the UCAS website.

I couldn't find information beyond interviews etc

If a student doesn't get the grades for their "firm" choice, but does get the grades for their "insurance", does the "insurance" choice automatically accept the student? Or do they prioritise the students who put them as a "firm"?

And if anyone can find the clear timeline on the UCAS website I'd be very grateful for the link.

Thank you

Re timeline....this year I think the offers were out by March(not sure of exact date) and decision about choices had a deadline of 9th June for the courses ds applied for. Hope that helps

If he misses grades for Firm but meets Insurance, the Insurance uni accepts him. If he misses both he may still be accepted by either. If not he can call and see if they might reconsider depending how close his results were, or look for another course in Clearing his grades match and ring that uni.

I don't think they've published their 'accept by' dates yet, but apply by 25 Jan. Depending on when you get offers, these must be decided on by around mid June, so firm, insurance, decline.

If you miss grades for firm they may still take you (though less likely these days). If they don't and you meet grades for insurance then insurance will take you. If you miss grades for insurance, they may still take you (again less likely). If they don't then you can apply for leftover places in clearing.

Note school will have earlier deadlines as they need time to write and submit the reference and predicted grades.

Thank you

www.ucas.com/undergraduate/applying-university/ucas-undergraduate-advice-parents-and-guardians

Unis are bound by their offers. They have to honour them.

www.ucas.com/undergraduate/applying-to-university

This is the section that your DS will be working through - possibly suggestbthat you have a look through it together, to check that he at least knows what he needs to be doing and when, but the school / college should have gone through it with them. I'm surprised that you haven't had a parents' information session by now, though? The Oxbridge / medicine / dentistry / vet. med deadline is 6pm this coming Saturday, so hopefully none of those is relevant!

The school is pretty crap to be honest. What limited info we have is given to the pupils only - nothing for the parents, we've had to do it all ourselves.

I had a look at this page on the UCAS site already but I can't seem to find anything about what happens after the initial 5 applications and offers, and the process of narrowing it down to 2

If your child misses their grades for 'firm' and is at a private school, the old boy's network kicks in and your child will get a place anyway. The system sucks.

I had a look at this page on the UCAS site already but I can't seem to find anything about what happens after the initial 5 applications and offers, and the process of narrowing it down to 2

Your son will have created an UCAS portal. After he has had all his offers in (by 18th May) they will show up in the portal. There will be a button to press for either decline or accept. He will get an email reminding him that he has to make his mind up by a certain date. He will then press accept for his firm offer and again for his insurance. He has to do this by 18th June. His other offers will then automatically decline.

Can I jump on this thread to ask a question? If you already have the A Level grades then do you receive a definite offer, rather than a 'if you get the grades' conditional offer?

Yes, if you already have your grades and are taking a gap year then your offers will be Unconditional. In this instance you will only accept one offer, you won't have an Insurance.

Thank you, I wondered how it would work!

The Accept date depends on exactly when he gets his offers:
www.ucas.com/undergraduate/after-you-apply/types-offer/replying-your-ucas-undergraduate-offers

'Reply dates
These are based on when we get the last decision in from your unis or colleges. Check your application to see your personal deadline.
If you receive your last decision on or before 18 May 2023, your reply date is 8 June 2023 (except if you're using Extra to find a place).
If you receive your last decision on or before 12 July 2023, your reply date is 17 July 2023 (including Extra choices).'

I had a look at this page on the UCAS site already but I can't seem to find anything about what happens after the initial 5 applications and offers, and the process of narrowing it down to 2

You apply for 5 courses and hopefully get 5 offers.
It's then up to the applicant to narrow that down to a firm and insurance choice. They then reject the other three offers.

They do all of this via UCAS

In the link I posted, you (or rather, the applicant, but the info is there for anyone to see) go to 'After you apply', then www.ucas.com/undergraduate/after-you-apply/types-offer/replying-your-ucas-undergraduate-offers.

There are very few bits of the UCAS site (including in the areas for the teachers etc assisting with the application) which are totally inaccessible, so you can have a look at the whole process by following various tabs.