UCAS fair later this month - how should DC make the most of it?

[Swiftlyintothenight]

My DC’s London school is taking all of year 12 to the UCAS ‘discovery’ exhibition later this month at ExCel arena. Loads of unis have stands there is all I know.

What research should DC do in advance to get the most out of it? Peer group seem to regard it as a ‘jolly’ day trip but I think it could be useful. Have any of your DC been to a similar thing?

Dd went to one but a bit smaller scale I suspect. She said you could tell the less popular unis as they gave much better gifts. She picked up a foldaway bag for Loughborough College (not uni!) that I use to this day, five years later.

Sorry op a bit flippant. More sensibly- maybe your ds can think about courses he might enjoy and talk to the different unis about them - modules, offers, assessment?

@clary yes DC alerted to the freebies by year 13 students who went last year! My younger DD has already put in her order (canvas bag, running earbuds)…

My DS went last year and the outcome was a couple of tote bags full of prospectuses, pens, frisbees etc followed by endless junk email from random institutions (Derby college anyone?)

They only had limited time there (2 hours I think), he said queues for the popular universities were very long and on the few occasions he got to the front and asked a question, he was referred to their website.

However, I guess it gets them thinking more about options after school and if a child goes to a school who aren't "full on" with the UCAS process it will be helpful.

He enjoyed the day out though - a rare "jolly" for his year who missed a lot of those through the COVID years.

I used to deliver a 'making the most of a ucas fair' talk to schools and these were my practical top tips.

Try and get hold of an exhibition guide before the day as it helps with planning.

Know Which universities you want to talk to and find out where are they situated in the room (generally it's alphabetical order but the lay out can sometimes be confusing)

Make a list of questions so you're prepared - don't be shy! Some places will only give away freebies to those students they've had a conversation with.

Find out what talks are happening and factor that into your day.

Only pick up prospectuses you actually want to look at, they're heavy and you can only carry so many!

Don't follow your friends - make sure you talk to the universities you are interested in.

Look up a prospectus on line. Don’t collect paper ones. No one representing a uni has detailed info on the course you want. It’s just general info. The UCAS talks are more useful. How to apply etc. Prioritise them. Look at top 10 unis in possible subject but don’t expect much detailed info.

Thanks 4 tips @VioletaDelValle and @TizerorFizz . Hadn’t taken on board that it is just general info. Still, will be a nice day out for DC and friends!

Yeah, the staff on the stands are general marketing staff not subject specialists or academics.
They'll still be knowledgeable though!

Just not about Astro physics- probably!

Depends on the person on the stand.
I used to do that job and over the years I built up some very detailed knowledge about a range of courses.
I can still tell you about the specific entry requirements, application process and course structure of a significant number of courses offered at my uni.

It will vary though as some universities send student ambassadors!

@VioletaDelValle
Now universities have expanded so much it must be very difficult to have encyclopedic knowledge. I think students seem to expect detailed answers too. However a quick tap on a computer finds all
the answers.

Definitely! But lots of the staff will have done the job for years and attend hundreds of careers fairs a year.

You build up a pretty decent knowledge base when you attend 3 or 4 careers fairs a week not to mention the weeks and weeks on the road doing the ucas circuit!