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Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

Original poster

I'm a bit confused about the UCAS process

17 replies

BeaBachinasec · 08/01/2023 02:19

I thought that if DC's A level grades are below what their firm choice offered on, the university could still accept them. However, I now think the first choice automatically rejects them and they get their insurance (provided they've got the grades for insurance).

Which is right?

TIA

OP posts:
Original poster
BeaBachinasec · 08/01/2023 02:21

At a school meeting some time ago, the teacher said that most students get their first choice even if they don't get the required grades. Does this sound right?

OP posts:
Feelallright · 08/01/2023 02:26

The university can still accept you, even if you don’t get the grades. It’s very common, perhaps more so in less popular subjects. I know lots of people this happened to. You can know if the university has accepted you before you know your actual grades, as the universities know before you do.

Offleyhoo · 08/01/2023 02:35

The university gets the grades, decides to accept you or not and UCAS track updates accordingly. On results day the student finds out if their first choice has accepted them from UCAS and only when they get to school do they find out what their grades were in relation to the offer.

In my experience it's not common to get accepted with lesser grades but it must depend on course popularity, which subject you came down in etc.

Original poster
BeaBachinasec · 08/01/2023 02:48

Thank you for clarifying.

OP posts:
lanthanum · 08/01/2023 18:06

There has to be a bit of flexibility if best use is to be made of the places. Suppose a course has space for 100. The university will probably make more offers than that, knowing that some will not make the grades. If only 85 make the grades, they can then look at the near misses and offer places to 15 of them.

(The problem came in 2020, when some universities had already done that, and then the government allowed grades to be changed - so extra places had to be found for those who had now met their offer after all.)

Chevyimpala67 · 08/01/2023 18:40

With ds1 his 1st choice university and course required AAA
They offered him AAB
Then offered ABB if he firmed them
Which he did
On results day ucas tracked as accepted but he had to wait for his college to email his actual grades.

LIZS · 08/01/2023 18:49

The firm uni can accept lower grades than the offer but it is discretionary. Equally the insurance can if firm does not. Otherwise they are rejected and can sift through Clearing (calling any including those they previously turned down, with offers they meet) . There was a website which published actual grades for those starting courses last year , possibly unistats?

LIZS · 08/01/2023 18:50

BeaBachinasec · 08/01/2023 02:21

At a school meeting some time ago, the teacher said that most students get their first choice even if they don't get the required grades. Does this sound right?

That sounds like pr, or they downgrade the pupils' ambitions to safer options.

Xenia · 08/01/2023 21:16

Pick a less popular subject and your chances increase that the first choice one might think they still want you even if you drop one grade. Pick a veyr popular course and they reject people in droves - happens to a lot of those who have Oxbridge offers every year - don't get the grades and they lose their place.

Bunnyannesummers · 09/01/2023 09:35

You should be aware there are increasing numbers of 18 year olds and pressure for places, so being accepted with dropped grades is now less likely than it will have been for a few years

Original poster
BeaBachinasec · 09/01/2023 10:23

Thanks for further replies.

DC wants to do History +MFL and it's mainly RG unis that offer this combination.

They don't want to do a less popular course just for the sake of going to uni. Looking at earnings for arts graduates 5 years post graduation, I'm actually wondering if it's worth the expenses tbh.

OP posts:
senua · 09/01/2023 10:31

I'm a bit confused about the UCAS process
It probably helps if you don't think of it as a "UCAS process". There isn't an overall rule. it depends very much on individual Universities, individual courses, numbers that year, etc, etc.
Heavily over-subscribed places eg Oxbridge don't take slipped grades. Many schools are pretty poor on Languages these days so MFL is not in the heavily over-subscribed category.

senua · 09/01/2023 10:37

Looking at earnings for arts graduates 5 years post graduation, I'm actually wondering if it's worth the expenses tbh.
You are right to think hard about it. It is no longer a given.

However, History is quite a good subject because you learn to research, investigate information, evaluate sources (and their biases) and come to a conclusion. That's pretty much what management is.

LadyLapsang · 09/01/2023 13:31

If DC drops a grade, they may offer MFL only. Probably best to have a lower grade insurance offer if DC wants to study history too. I wouldn’t get too bogged down in earnings if that’s what they want to do. Great experience living and working or studying abroad. Employers often offer sponsorship for Masters etc. Fast Stream at FCDO and lots of other graduate opportunities.

EasterIsland · 09/01/2023 19:13

I thought that if DC's A level grades are below what their firm choice offered on, the university could still accept them. However, I now think the first choice automatically rejects them and they get their insurance (provided they've got the grades for insurance).

Which is right?

Short answer: there is no blanket answer and it's not either/or.

Longer answer from an academic: it depends. My department rarely accepts students below our required grades because we are pretty selective & can choose from a well-qualified pool. Other Departments mop up any student they think will cope with the course.

We're an in-demand Russell Group university. It will be different at different universities, and within universities.

A Level grades mostly do two things in terms of university admissions:

  1. manage demand
  2. indicate the level of ability/knowledge/capacity to do well in a specific course

We want students to cope and even to do well. A Level grades indicate the prospective student's ability for this.

HarryArry · 09/01/2023 19:53

My DC both got their firm offer uni even though their A levels grade were under the offer. I am
not sure if it’s true but they were both told to attend the applicant day at their first choice uni as this can help.
However, History is quite a good subject because you learn to research, investigate information, evaluate sources (and their biases) and come to a conclusion. That's pretty much what management is
My DS is 24 and studied History and has a masters and he earns 30k which I think
is decent.

Twiglets1 · 12/01/2023 07:13

BeaBachinasec · 09/01/2023 10:23

Thanks for further replies.

DC wants to do History +MFL and it's mainly RG unis that offer this combination.

They don't want to do a less popular course just for the sake of going to uni. Looking at earnings for arts graduates 5 years post graduation, I'm actually wondering if it's worth the expenses tbh.

No one can say for sure but the unis do have discretion to accept people who don’t quite meet their offer. They will do this if they have spaces to fill, and your child’s subject is not wildly competitive. The insurance choice should ideally be a lower offer so even if a student misses their first choice offer, they have another option.

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