Confused about uni accommodation

[AlisonHalligan]

Apologies for a dim question. DD is just at the start of all this and my understanding is as follows-

• apply to 5
• of your offers (fingers crossed!) you then pick two, a first choice and a reserve in case you don't get the grades for your first
• you then apply for accommodation at your first choice

What I don't understand is what happens if you then end up at your reserve choice. How do you find accommodation given that you're presumably looking months after everyone else?

She's especially interested in Bristol, Manchester, Leeds.

Hi OP
A lot of unis have enough accommodation to be able to offer to insurance students too. One of my DC got their uni place through clearing, and accommodation was guaranteed there too.

Might be worth drilling down into the uni websites to see what they say as they do vary. Also price of accom varies a lot - some self-catered rooms with shared bathrooms can be as little as £4 for the year; or at the top end, for a room with en-suite shower room and full catering, your can pay as much as £9k or even more. Worth bearing in mind.

You - but especially your DD, since she will be the applicant/ tenant - need to check the accommodation pages on each university's website to see how its system works. Some universities invite those with the university as their insurance to apply for accommodation in the same way as those who have it as their firm (Sussex does this, for example). Others only allow those who have firmed the university to apply for accommodation in advance of results day.

Do check availability for insurance offers eg I know Bristol had to house student's in hotels in wales because more got their grades than expected.

Some unis do not process accommodation applications until after results day. Many guarantee all Freshers a place although in practice this may be private halls or further away.

I wish there were a simple answer!

Some Universities open accommodation to only those who firm, some to those who also have them as insurance.

Some open as early as February, some much later.

Some guarantee first years halls, some only those first years who firm.

Most will give deposits back, if your DC Doesn’t get the place, but not all.

Some universities have a lot of private providers, others own and manage the majority of their student accommodation.

Minefield. Arghhhh!

Bristol is poor for accommodation with few getting their first or second choice. Is also very expensive.

As above, lots guarantee accommodation if you firm them, but that might not be on campus but in the city, (Bath for example) but at least you have something. Some operate on a first come first served basis and accommodation has already opened. Some wait till after results, some do it in dribs and drabs. Most are randomised allocations giving students a list to choose several preferences from. My daughter who had firmed and had her results in June (we're abroad,) received her allocation 10 days before starting and got her 3rd choice.
I didn't do anything with her university choices- and it worked out great for her- had I known about accommodation problems in some cities (Bristol and Manchester famously, plus there were photos of students in Durham queuing through the night to get to estate agents for Y2 accommodation) I'd have definitely told her to bear this in mind when researching.

I think Southampton is one that guarantees both 1st choice and insurance get accommodation.

A lot don't sort it until after results, but I think some still give priority to 1st choice.

Thank you, everyone. What a system!